Chip Lindsey Discusses Leaving Auburn

[abw0004 10,104]

Good read:

AL.com: It was mentioned in the press conference that you had wanted this job. Had you been following its status, even before Neal Brown left for West Virginia?

Lindsey: “I think when you’re a coordinator, and you’re getting to that window where you want to try and become a head coach, I think there’s always certain areas of the country and certain jobs that are more attractive than others. This is one because of my history here and because of the success they’ve had, and the people that are here, that always can see myself having the opportunity to one day be the head coach here is something that I thought fit me. I thought I was a good fit for them, so. Neal and I are pretty close, so you kind of hear in the industry that things are going a certain way, and just great timing, and excited to be here to get that opportunity.”

AL.com: How did Kansas react to you leaving?

Lindsey: “Well, you know, Coach [Les] Miles, he’s a Hall of Fame coach. Les Miles is truly as good a person in this business as I’ve ever been around. He’s amazing. I was really open with him during the interview process with him, that ‘Hey, I want to be a head football coach. If it’s in an area that makes sense for me, I want to have your blessing to pursue that. And you know, he agreed. He was, he’s a guy, I think, that likes to mentor coaches. He was very, very supportive in this process.”

AL.com: Why did you leave Kansas for Auburn? Was it tough that your name came up a lot in the last few weeks as being someone who would leave?

Lindsey: “No. No, not at all. Coach Malzahn and I really, really close. It was one of those things where, you know, offensively, I wanted to put my own spin on things, and do some things that I thought — and an opportunity to work for Les Miles, too, was extremely a big factor in that deal. But it just felt like it was time for me to get out and grow a little bit, and kind of get back to my roots. But at the end of the day, I always wanted to be the head coach here at Troy.”

AL.com: Do you feel like you could have gone back to Auburn next season?

Lindsey: “Oh yeah, yeah, oh yeah, 100 percent. I mean Coach and I, we talked this morning. I mean we’re — he’s been a really good friend of mine. He’s been a great mentor. He does a really good job. He does a lot, he’s been really successful. I just really appreciate him giving me those opportunities to be at Auburn for two years.”

AL.com: Troy AD Jeremy McClain said Malzahn recommended you, among other people at Auburn, for this job. 

Lindsey: “I mean, 100 percent. Coach Malzahn, he’s kind of for us former high school coaches, he’s the guy you look up to. He’s a great person, he’s a great man. I really, for me, he’s always been a mentor of mine.”

AL.com: Did you watch the bowl game at all, where Auburn set a record for points scored in a half of a bowl game?

Lindsey: “Yeah, sure I did, yeah.”

AL.com: What were your thoughts on that?

Lindsey: “I thought it was great. Jarrett Stidham and I are still very close. I’m close to a lot of those players there. I was really, really excited for those guys, and it was a good way to go out. A good way to end the season. And really created some momentum for next season for those guys.”

[gravejd 3,269]

Classy comments. Confirms he wasn’t getting the input into the offense that he wanted but also doesn’t throw anybody under the bus. Hope he does well at Troy 

[ToomersStreet 795]

It will be interesting to watch him at Troy.   Makes you wonder what his relationship with his OC will  be like.

 

[abw0004 10,104]

13 minutes ago, gravejd said:

Classy comments. Confirms he wasn’t getting the input into the offense that he wanted but also doesn’t throw anybody under the bus. Hope he does well at Troy 

Appears that he also has a high respect for Gus and they remain good friends.  Speaks a lot to both of their character for Gus to recommend Chip to Troy’s AD

[AuburnEagle79 2,163]

Classy interview. Everyone wins with what is happening with Chip. He gets to do his thing, doesn't get blacklisted as a Gus or Les Miles coordinator, and we don't have to watch two coaches coach in different directions. 

[AU-24 3,063]

I hear Gus and him didn’t get along at all; so add Chip to the list of complete liars. Lol, lol, lol!

Troy is about his speed, congrats coach and best of luck!

[alexava 6,973]

cool. 

[boisnumber1 2,818]

Chip = all class.

[bigbird 60,368]

How often do you hear of coaches bad mouthing one another?

[AURealist 2,185]

16 minutes ago, bigbird said:

How often do you hear of coaches bad mouthing one another?

Yep.  What do folks expect him to say?   

[PoetTiger 1,896]

9 minutes ago, AURealist said:

Yep.  What do folks expect him to say?   

The truth would be ideal. I personally think he was being straight forward. 

[AURealist 2,185]

Just now, PoetTiger said:

The truth would be ideal. I personally think he was being straight forward. 

I, too, believe he was being honest.  But if there were issues between him and Malzahn, I wouldn't expect them to aired in a post-presser interview announcing his new job.   

[bigbird 60,368]

9 minutes ago, PoetTiger said:

The truth would be ideal. I personally think he was being straight forward. 

Bless your heart

[aucanucktiger 1,789]

Interesting to note in that article where Chip's quotes stop and 24/7 fills in w/ Gus was meddling (vs telling or advising) and he made things more complicated than they need to be on the headset (their words, not Chips).

[alexava 6,973]

He said he talked to him this morning. There are other ways to blow smoke than this. They probably didn’t jive on strategy but didn’t have personal issues. 

[CR 2,427]

1 hour ago, bigbird said:

How often do you hear of coaches bad mouthing one another?

Rarely. It's career suicide.

[auburnphan 6,050]

1 hour ago, bigbird said:

How often do you hear of coaches bad mouthing one another?

The only one I can think off is DC

[bigbird 60,368]

17 minutes ago, CR said:

Rarely. It's career suicide.

Exactly

[PoetTiger 1,896]

26 minutes ago, bigbird said:

Bless your heart

It is blessed and has been for quite some time. Thank you for the affirmation. As for me I do believe he was being honest as to the questions that we’re asked of him. The interviewer did not ask him anything like, Did Gus let you call plays? Who really called the 2017 IB game? Did Gus take over play calling for the SEC championship game? Better yet when Auburn won last season was it because you called plays or Gus? You know the back and forthstuff that was tossed around here all during the season. None of that was necessary to be asked either. Nevertheless IMO the opportunity he had at Auburn helped him significantly in getting the job at Troy. Could he have gotten the gig from Arizona St, mmm maybe but his time at Auburn only helped him with that, and I truly believe he is appreciative of the opportunity Gus have him. 

[AUsince72 11,084]

4 minutes ago, PoetTiger said:

It is blessed and has been for quite some time. Thank you for the affirmation. As for me I do believe he was being honest as to the questions that we’re asked of him. The interviewer did not ask him anything like, Did Gus let you call plays? Who really called the 2017 IB game? Did Gus take over play calling for the SEC championship game? Better yet when Auburn won last season was it because you called plays or Gus? You know the back and forthstuff that was tossed around here all during the season. None of that was necessary to be asked either. Nevertheless IMO the opportunity he had at Auburn helped him significantly in getting the job at Troy. Could he have gotten the gig from Arizona St, mmm maybe but his time at Auburn only helped him with that, and I truly believe he is appreciative of the opportunity Gus have him. 

Hmm...

You gotta admit, those questions would have made it a far more compelling interview 😉😂🤣

[PoetTiger 1,896]

3 minutes ago, AUsince72 said:

Hmm...

You gotta admit, those questions would have made it a far more compelling interview 😉😂🤣

Ikr, would have been interesting for sure. Good thing is we will all get to see how both of their offenses do next season, look for similarities, differences, etc. I’m an adopted fan of Troy and I really hope Chip does great things there.

[DAG 33,955]

2 hours ago, PoetTiger said:

It is blessed and has been for quite some time. Thank you for the affirmation. As for me I do believe he was being honest as to the questions that we’re asked of him. The interviewer did not ask him anything like, Did Gus let you call plays? Who really called the 2017 IB game? Did Gus take over play calling for the SEC championship game? Better yet when Auburn won last season was it because you called plays or Gus? You know the back and forthstuff that was tossed around here all during the season. None of that was necessary to be asked either. Nevertheless IMO the opportunity he had at Auburn helped him significantly in getting the job at Troy. Could he have gotten the gig from Arizona St, mmm maybe but his time at Auburn only helped him with that, and I truly believe he is appreciative of the opportunity Gus have him. 

Yeah probably wouldn’t have gotten the interview if those were asked. Honestly who cares? He got an OC job just like that and now a HC got. That should tell you all you need to know about Chip Lindsey’s reputation. 

[NoALtiger 3,849]

Well I’m going to believe what Chip says personally. This isn’t from a third person or the standard rumor mill, this is straight from the man’s mouth. The not bad mouthing other coaches/former employers is obvious, everyone knows the standard drill. This was beyond that though. He went out of his way to express his feelings on the situation when he clearly didn’t have to. Unless someone provides factual insight in to the situation, I’ll believe what the man says. Veiled hints and innuendo not gonna cut it. 

[McLoofus 35,182]

I don't see anything in this interview that contradicts anything I've seen reported.

Chip is a high-character, level-headed dude. He understands the business he's in and he's probably got the capacity to separate work from personal life. I have no problem believing that he maintains a positive personal relationship with Gus after terminating a negative working one. 

Also, I fully believe that Gus has worked hard to help almost all his guys- coaches and players- have the softest possible landing at their next stop. 

The only people he seems to genuinely dislike are the media, lol. And who knows, maybe he's justified after everything that went down when he was here as OC. 

[AUght2win 6,816]

He spoke again today in an interview and it seems very clear he called the plays. Why lie at this point? Everything he said also contradicts that he hated working for Gus. Spoke very, very highly of Malzahn. Again, why lie?