So who wants to keep him now?

[Maverick.AU 13,279]

21 hours ago, Mikey said:

Winning out would mean winning  SEC and national championships. Gus would be a hands-down cinch for every national coach of the year award in existence. You wouldn't give him a contract extension and a raise?

No I wouldn’t, if he showed it the following year, even if he lost a few but showed the same ability to adjust, gameplan, etc as the UGA game, I would extend him. The way we have lost the last 4+ years has been what’s been frustrating.

[Rednilla 5,383]

22 hours ago, Mikey said:

He'd get a raise because that's what happens when someone does an exceptional job. It's a foolish employer indeed that doesn't react positively when somebody pull off a great piece of work.

But if they do a piss poor job, they don't get their salary cut or the length of their contract diminished. They might get fired, but even that comes with a big buyout these days. The only reason I can see for giving an extension and/or raise is for the impact it'll have on recruiting, being able to battle the negative recruiting against Malzahn by other schools.

I came into this season with the expectation that we should win at least 9 games for Gus to not be on the extremely hot seat next year, and we're a Louisiana-Monroe victory from eclipsing that total. If we beat Bama and then Georgia again and make the playoffs, certainly we should look at Malzahn's contract and see it needs adjustment. I would just assume that we give him one more year after this one to prove that he's not an all-the-way vs. mediocre head coach before extending his contract and giving him more of a buyout if he reverts to 7-8 win seasons after that. However, if by some miracle we're able to pull off a national championship with two losses, we may be backed into a bit of a corner in at least giving him an extension. Does he really need any more money than he's making? I mean, most of us (even those of us who are younger than you and Golf) could live our entire lives comfortably on a year of Gus' salary, and he only has one season of more than 8 wins so far.

Don't get me wrong, I was exceedingly excited at the UGA game, and I've liked everything that has come out of the football team since Leath chastised Gus for the LSU game, so maybe that's all that is needed: someone to hold him accountable. I don't know. But what I do know is that we jumped the gun on giving him an extremely lucrative contract after 2013, and he's not lived up to his end of the bargain until this season...and even this season could have been much better if he had not gone so damned conservative against LSU, so his coaching still has not been up to snuff across the board.

Now, all of that said, I'm still a supporter of Gus Malzahn, and I'd LOVE for him to put himself into the conversation for a raise by making the playoffs, or maybe even winning the playoffs. But there's a LONG way to go for that to happen, and even if it does, would we really make another deal with a coach who has, thus far, been either a championship or bust (with the number of busts outweighing the championship) type of competitor, or do we wait until he proves he can maintain that championship caliber level for another year or two before making any movements on his contract situation?

[Rednilla 5,383]

2 hours ago, Maverick.AU said:

No I wouldn’t, if he showed it the following year, even if he lost a few but showed the same ability to adjust, gameplan, etc as the UGA game, I would extend him. The way we have lost the last 4+ years has been what’s been frustrating.

Now, I just got through typing an exposition on why we shouldn't extend his contract, but let's be fair here: Auburn has been in the top 10 during the second half of every season since Malzahn started. TAMU in 2014 was the beginning of the unraveling, and only one game was truly frustrating about this season (LSU), so that's really more like 3.5 seasons that have been so frustrating. Surely you weren't frustrated the last three weeks, as we took care of SEC West opponents at their place and then dismantled the undefeated #1 team in the country.

Yes, losing is frustrating, always. But the loss to LSU in 2013 was pretty frustrating, too, and that season ended up being alright. If you're talking about the AMOUNT of losing being frustrating, you really shouldn't include this year, because we're 8-2, ranked #6 in the College Football Playoff rankings, with a game against one of the teams ahead of us and two others set to play one another, as well. For all intents and purposes, the LSU loss, painful as it was, did nothing to diminish our chances at the playoffs. In fact, it might well turn out to be the wake up call Malzahn needed, with Leath calling him out about the team's performance.

So please, don't qualify the last "4+ years" as being the reason he shouldn't be granted favorable treatment, not when the fourth year is yet to be over and still has all the potential in the world.

[DAG 33,955]

10 minutes ago, Rednilla said:

Now, I just got through typing an exposition on why we shouldn't extend his contract, but let's be fair here: Auburn has been in the top 10 during the second half of every season since Malzahn started. TAMU in 2014 was the beginning of the unraveling, and only one game was truly frustrating about this season (LSU), so that's really more like 3.5 seasons that have been so frustrating. Surely you weren't frustrated the last three weeks, as we took care of SEC West opponents at their place and then dismantled the undefeated #1 team in the country.

Yes, losing is frustrating, always. But the loss to LSU in 2013 was pretty frustrating, too, and that season ended up being alright. If you're talking about the AMOUNT of losing being frustrating, you really shouldn't include this year, because we're 8-2, ranked #6 in the College Football Playoff rankings, with a game against one of the teams ahead of us and two others set to play one another, as well. For all intents and purposes, the LSU loss, painful as it was, did nothing to diminish our chances at the playoffs. In fact, it might well turn out to be the wake up call Malzahn needed, with Leath calling him out about the team's performance.

So please, don't qualify the last "4+ years" as being the reason he shouldn't be granted favorable treatment, not when the fourth year is yet to be over and still has all the potential in the world.

The loss in 2013 pales in comparison to the loss this year. I don't have an opinion one way or another on the contract extension, but that comparison is a hardcore reach. In fact, I think most of us were encouraged at how hard our boys fought in the 2nd half against LSU in 2013. We all hoped we would win, but the reality was, there was not an expectation. That was a team with no identity, coming off a terrible season. We just wanted to prove to be competitive more than anything.

[TigerOne 1,138]

Gus is a lump of coal that can turn into a diamond.

The future is ours , now go get it!

[Rednilla 5,383]

1 minute ago, DAG said:

The loss in 2013 pales in comparison to the loss this year. I don't have an opinion one way or another but that comparison is a hardcore reach. In fact, I think most of us were encouraged at how hard our boys fought in the 2nd half against LSU in 2013. We all hoped we would win, but the reality was, there was not an expectation. That was a team with no identity, coming off a terrible season. We just wanted to prove to be competitive more than anything.

I'm always frustrated when Auburn loses. That's just the way I'm built. I may know full well that the odds against are monumental, but it's still frustrating, especially when Auburn has done pretty well against monumental odds in the past. I was frustrated with this year's Clemson loss, in spite of the fact that we got outplayed that day. And yes, the LSU game this year was beyond frustrating.

My point is that this season is not over, and he was saying that it's been "4+ years" of losing like this that has him up against the wall. Uhh...4 years ago we were in the midst of winning the SEC, so I wouldn't say that year should count. At most, it'd be 3+, but considering we have everything ahead of us, the "+" seems a bit unwarranted. 3 years of it I can buy. No more. That was my only point in bringing up the frustrating losses.

[Maverick.AU 13,279]

10 hours ago, Rednilla said:

I'm always frustrated when Auburn loses. That's just the way I'm built. I may know full well that the odds against are monumental, but it's still frustrating, especially when Auburn has done pretty well against monumental odds in the past. I was frustrated with this year's Clemson loss, in spite of the fact that we got outplayed that day. And yes, the LSU game this year was beyond frustrating.

My point is that this season is not over, and he was saying that it's been "4+ years" of losing like this that has him up against the wall. Uhh...4 years ago we were in the midst of winning the SEC, so I wouldn't say that year should count. At most, it'd be 3+, but considering we have everything ahead of us, the "+" seems a bit unwarranted. 3 years of it I can buy. No more. That was my only point in bringing up the frustrating losses.

I said 4+ because I was counting the FSU game. 2013-2017 have all had frustrating losses, 2014-2016 especially, but 2013 and 17 still have those “frustrating losses” in them and that was my point. All I’m saying is I’m tired of the “raises and extensions” talk, let the guy show some consistency first. Gus in his 5th year not his 4th.

[thewhiz7 273]

All losses are frustrating. 

[CameronCrazy 1,057]

This sounds like Jimmy Sexton to me! Regardless of the Alabama game, I think Gus has earned the right to stay another year. BUT, we better not give him a huge raise and buyout just to keep him from going to Arkansas. There’s NO way that Gus leaves Auburn for Arkansas. 

He has built this thing up to where he wants it. He has a top 15 defense to go with his offense; he has an annual top 10 recruiting class (something he’ll never have at Arkansas); he finally had a breakout game against an elite defense; AND he would still have to play the same schools if he goes to Arkansas (minus UGA every year).

Wherever he coaches, he still has to win. He knows the power struggle at Arkansas is just as bad as Auburn’s. He would also have to rebuild at Arky instead of reload at Auburn. 

Gus Malzahn will be Auburn’s head football coach in 2018.

 

[Ber798297 241]

All this talk of Arkansas wanting Gus, did I miss the headline of Bret’s firing?? This has the stink of Sexton all over it.  I won’t even give this talk of contracts or Arkansas boosters another thought until Bret is fired.

[CountStandya 81]

One great game doesn't change my mind completely about Gus.

I do hope he learns from this and it makes Auburn better. 

1..)We need to consistently FIND and develop QB's who can pass better than they run. I'm not against a QB that can run but I hope his passing is even greater. The Cam's of the world are few and far between. 

2) Defense has just begun to shine the last two years. First time Auburn's has been noted for that since Tubs. Please keep Steele.

3) Play calling needs to continue to be fresh.

4) Recruit the best talent from every part of the U.S. ...players like Braden Smith and Carlton Davis are located about 800 miles from Auburn and some of our better players.

the Number one is most important though.....Gus's last two years have been bad because of bad QB play....sorry Johnson and White....but they weren't good QB's that's why we were at only 8 wins.

If Gus does these things....yes stay 

[johnnyAU 3,630]

Look, the win against #1 UGA was awesome.  Let's take a step back and look at reality for a second.  The SEC is down overall. Arkansas, Ole Miss, UT, UF and Vandy are all a hot mess right now.  In fact, they are a combined 6-30 in the SEC.  Only one of them even has a chance to go to be bowl eligible, and that's Ole Miss IF they can beat MSU in the Egg Bowl. 

When the East stacks up with the #2- 4 spots with South Carolina, Kentucky and Mizzou....what else can you say? UGA is over inflated. 

It was somewhat of a given Auburn would start out slowly in the sandwich game yesterday, especially at an 11:00 am kick off.  However, the team appeared to lack intensity and effort for the entire first half, save a few players. That is on Malzahn.

I'm not going to get over excited about winning 9 games when we are basically 1-2 in our 3 toughest games so far. Neither should anyone. Let's see what happens next week. If we come out and play with the same aggressiveness and execution throughout the game, the fans kick in and keep the atmosphere rocking and we end the regular season as SEC West champs, then I'll hop on board with some of you.  I'd love to see it happen.

 

WDE

 

 

[gr82be 14,401]

21 hours ago, Ber798297 said:

All this talk of Arkansas wanting Gus, did I miss the headline of Bret’s firing?? This has the stink of Sexton all over it.  I won’t even give this talk of contracts or Arkansas boosters another thought until Bret is fired.

I'm only saying this because Auburn, of all schools, knows that it can happen. Not saying it has happened  at all. Just think back to 2003. Can boosters and administration create a way to talk to a coach before their own coach has been fired? Sure they can. Just hop a jet and go try to work a back door deal late at night. Just saying it's been done before. 

[Rednilla 5,383]

On 11/18/2017 at 8:17 AM, Maverick.AU said:

I said 4+ because I was counting the FSU game. 2013-2017 have all had frustrating losses, 2014-2016 especially, but 2013 and 17 still have those “frustrating losses” in them and that was my point. All I’m saying is I’m tired of the “raises and extensions” talk, let the guy show some consistency first. Gus in his 5th year not his 4th.

Okay, so your "frustrating game" in 2013 was the FSU game? That seems more than a little nitpicky considering that was THE NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP GAME. I mean, if you want a coach who never gives you frustrating losses, then you need to give up sports. It happens, whether you continue to support the coach/team or not. Being undefeated consistently is not attainable, and minus that, you're always going to have frustrating losses.

Now, I won't disagree with the talks of raises and extensions being premature, as I believe I've already indicated on here, but you included both an SEC championship year and a year in which we still control our own destiny for both the SEC and National Championships. That only begs the question of what will make you happy? Do you expect to win it all every other year? Because that's sure what it sounds like.

[homersapien 11,352]

Well, I wasn't one of those in the front carrying a pitchfork, I was in the back carrying a torch.  I didn't even join the mob until the LSU game. 

While I am hopeful,  I'll wait and see. 

[roe4christ 940]

I would give him one more year if we lose to Alabama in a close game.  No raise for next year and see if we have a similar outcome next season record wise.  If so, look at extension.  Need to be mentioned concerning winning the SEC West and making the CFP on a regular basis.  He has to win 9 games a year consistently to keep his job.  With our talent, there are a lot of coaches that could do that.

Only discuss contract extension if he beats Bama and the Dawgs and makes it to the playoffs.

[Maverick.AU 13,279]

8 hours ago, Rednilla said:

Okay, so your "frustrating game" in 2013 was the FSU game? That seems more than a little nitpicky considering that was THE NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP GAME. I mean, if you want a coach who never gives you frustrating losses, then you need to give up sports. It happens, whether you continue to support the coach/team or not. Being undefeated consistently is not attainable, and minus that, you're always going to have frustrating losses.

Now, I won't disagree with the talks of raises and extensions being premature, as I believe I've already indicated on here, but you included both an SEC championship year and a year in which we still control our own destiny for both the SEC and National Championships. That only begs the question of what will make you happy? Do you expect to win it all every other year? Because that's sure what it sounds like.

Also blew a 3 score lead in that national championship game. Nobody said anything about going undefeated every year, if you read my very first post that you quoted I even said that. It’s about not blowing big leads, it’s about not always looking inept against the better competition, it’s the ability to adjust and gameplan even in a loss, that’s what I want to see consistency with

[Harp_AU2013 221]

On 11/18/2017 at 11:11 AM, Ber798297 said:

All this talk of Arkansas wanting Gus, did I miss the headline of Bret’s firing?? This has the stink of Sexton all over it.  I won’t even give this talk of contracts or Arkansas boosters another thought until Bret is fired.

There was an article that said they are parting ways at the end of the year. I also heard that the pitch Arky made was that if Gus will come, he can help pick the new AD.

[Mikey 16,545]

19 minutes ago, Harp_AU2013 said:

There was an article that said they are parting ways at the end of the year. I also heard that the pitch Arky made was that if Gus will come, he can help pick the new AD.

The last head football coach that voluntarily left Auburn to take another coaching job was John Heisman. Coaches don't leave AU for other jobs.

All this talk of Arky is just the bammer press and REC doing what they do every time it looks like Auburn is becoming a threat. Happens right before the Iron Bowl when we have a competitive team and again right before recruit signing day every year. Repeating their lies over and over only plays into their hands.

[TigerHorn 1,351]

7 hours ago, roe4christ said:

I would give him one more year if we lose to Alabama in a close game.  No raise for next year and see if we have a similar outcome next season record wise.  If so, look at extension.  Need to be mentioned concerning winning the SEC West and making the CFP on a regular basis.  He has to win 9 games a year consistently to keep his job.  With our talent, there are a lot of coaches that could do that.

Only discuss contract extension if he beats Bama and the Dawgs and makes it to the playoffs.

Seriously? No AU coach, EVER, has done that. I'd love to see how many coaches in all of D1 CFB have done that at all schools. I'd bet that the list is pretty short, and no school outside the all time top 5-6 has more than 1 coach on it. For that matter, the top 5-6 won't have more than 2-3 coaches on it in a century of football. That is hardly "a lot of coaches". 

Getting straight to the math, you want 9 wins in what is now a 12 game season, assuming 9 doesn't get you to a CG or the CFP. That is a 0.750 win pct. Looking at the all-time winningest programs, exactly NONE of them are over 0.750! AU is at 0.629. Michigan and Notre Dame are at the top of the list at 0.730 and 0.729, respectively. OU, Nebraska, and Texas, all of whom spent most of their FB history not playing more than 2 teams per season who were a significant test, sit at 0.721, 0.707, and 0.699, respectively. Basically, you're talking 8 wins/season on average against far less than SEC West competition. Saban, Bahr, Osborne, Switzer, and their ilk were products of their era, when cheating was all but unlimited for the latter three, and AU never had the $ to compete on that playing field on an even basis back then. We all know the very unique situation with Saban, Emmert and friends. That is unlikely to happen again in CFB after Saban hangs it up. 

Bottom line is that Auburn people need to get realistic in their expectations. Contending in November is a spot in the top 6-8 teams in all of CFB. This is now our 3rd time there with Gus. No other SEC team other than bammer under Saban has been there more than once in the past 10 years, most of them not at all. UF under Meyer is on the cusp of being a decade ago now. UF outside of Spurrier and Meyer has never had that kind of average, and Spurrier did it vs a down SEC.  Arguably, so did Meyer. 

The LSU loss upset me too, but replacing Malzahn with an improvement is statistically very unlikely. 

[auskull 239]

18 minutes ago, TigerHorn said:

The LSU loss upset me too, but replacing Malzahn with an improvement is statistically very unlikely. 

Agreed, the odds are against us. However before just extending the contract as a matter of fact, I would hope to see two consecutive 10 wins or more. If this doesn't happen in a timely fashion, then the AD will have to consider the contract circumstances going forward. It currently seems that about every 4 or 5 years we hit lightening in a bottle and it very much appears this coincides with getting a suitable QB. 

[TigerFanAU 586]

On 11/19/2017 at 6:42 AM, CountStandya said:

I do hope he learns from this and it makes Auburn better. 

I don't see how anyone can deny we've been a different team since the LSU game. its been FOUR QUARTERS of football instead of sitting on a lead.  Will Gus fall back on old habits? Maybe, but it appears he's put that all behind him.  I like the Gus Malzahn we're seeing and want to keep him.

[I_M4_AU 7,762]

43 minutes ago, Mikey said:

The last head football coach that voluntarily left Auburn to take another coaching job was John Heisman. Coaches don't leave AU for other jobs.

All this talk of Arky is just the bammer press and REC doing what they do every time it looks like Auburn is becoming a threat. Happens right before the Iron Bowl when we have a competitive team and again right before recruit signing day every year. Repeating their lies over and over only plays into their hands.

Technically, John Heisman did not leave Auburn to take another coaching job.  I found this:

From Auburn, Heisman went to Texas briefly to raise tomatoes, investing nearly all of his money. When Walter Riggs, the Clemson University professor, and later its president, founded the school's first football team in 1895, he also served as head coach for the team in 1896 and in 1899. Riggs had played under Heisman at Auburn and urged him out of the tomato fields back into football at Clemson.

http://www.encyclopedia.com/people/sports-and-games/sports-biographies/john-william-heisman

 

[Rednilla 5,383]

1 hour ago, Maverick.AU said:

Also blew a 3 score lead in that national championship game. Nobody said anything about going undefeated every year, if you read my very first post that you quoted I even said that. It’s about not blowing big leads, it’s about not always looking inept against the better competition, it’s the ability to adjust and gameplan even in a loss, that’s what I want to see consistency with

I suppose that's fair enough, even if I still think 4+ years is pushing it. Again, we are still in the hunt for the national championship THIS year, despite the screw up in Red Stick. We've also been ranked in the top 10 during the second half of the season every year Malzahn has been here. Gus has at least as much to do with that as anyone else...I would think a little slack could be cut, especially following one of the biggest wins ever over our oldest rival. What's more is that, even during down years, we've been competitive in most every game played, where a couple of breaks our way could have made a huge difference.

I'm not touting Malzahn just because he's our coach, I'm pointing out some of the good that has gone along with the bad. Recruiting has been stellar, and hiring Kevin Steele is looking more and more like a home run every week. No, we shouldn't be entertaining the notion of giving him an extension and a raise (or maybe an extension to his current contract if we do win it all), but that still doesn't take away from the foundation Gus has laid here.

[AU64 10,122]

1 hour ago, Mikey said:

The last head football coach that voluntarily left Auburn to take another coaching job was John Heisman. Coaches don't leave AU for other jobs.

All this talk of Arky is just the bammer press and REC doing what they do every time it looks like Auburn is becoming a threat. Happens right before the Iron Bowl when we have a competitive team and again right before recruit signing day every year. Repeating their lies over and over only plays into their hands.

We never give them a chance to do so....we slap the golden handcuffs on them and then keep them around until we don't want to keep them around any longer......but truth be told, most schools at our level are like that .   

Do you think some for the Michigan insiders are happy about paying Jimmy H  $9M or whatever it is to do what he's doing?  OSU won the last half dozen and all but 2 games this century.   Harbaugh was brought in to stop that mess....so how much longer does he have? 

I'm betting that some day even a guy like Dan M who seems to have it set up at MSU will get a call suggesting that he "retire' later today.   The really smart ones try to read the tea leaves rather than waiting for the handwriting on the wall.