The HOT BOARD: 2022
AUBURN | What follows is a look at men who either have been considered or could be considered by Auburn as a replacement for Auburn's ousted coach. These names can change and the order on a moment's notice, so check back at least daily to keep track of the latest changes.
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UPDATE 1 (11-10-22) — We still feel that Lane Kiffin is the most likely candidate to serve as the Tigers’ next head coach. So no change there. We are moving Hugh Freeze up the board, from No. 4 to No. 2. He benefits from guiding his Liberty Flames to a victory at Arkansas and a general lack of chatter/hype surrounding Deion Sanders. With that said, I absolutely DO NOT DISCOUNT “The Field” as a player in this thing. New athletic director John Cohen is talking to a much wider group of candidates than I expected. He’s not following the usual Auburn script; he appears to be doing an authentically thorough job.
I’d also like to mention something about Dan Lanning. Auburn operatives, including Cohen himself, have heard a bunch about the young Oregon coach (and former UGA assistant) from various, trusted observers throughout the southeast. He is wildly popular among recruits and high-school coaches in Georgia and Florida. Lanning recently made a statement, when asked about the Auburn job, that he wants to stay in Oregon. We’ll see how this unfolds. Oregon is a terrific place to coach football, but it’s also a long way from his circle of (professional) birth.
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LANE KIFFIN, Ole Miss head coach
Age: 47
Relevant experience: Ole Miss head coach (2020-present), Florida Atlantic head coach (2017-19), Alabama offensive coordinator (2014-16), Southern Cal head coach (2010-13), Tennessee head coach (2009), Oakland Raiders head coach (2007-08)
On the good side: Best play-caller in college ball and perhaps all of football, a true ninja when it comes to plucking quality talent out of the transfer portal, can adjust his offense to match his talent, understands the importance of the head coach's role in overall recruiting and knows how to close, a wealth of SEC experience, understands how to market/promote himself and his program through social media
On the bad side: Brooding personality, isn't enthusiastic about ingratiating himself to boosters and big-money supporters, approaches most everything with a lone-wolf mentality, at Ole Miss he's 0-2 against Alabama, at Ole Miss he's 1-2 against both LSU and Auburn
Chances of getting this job: 30%
HUGH FREEZE, Liberty head coach
Age: 53
Relevant experience: Liberty HC (2019-present), Ole Miss HC (2012-16), Arkansas State HC (2011), Arkansas State OC (2010), Lambuth HC (2008-09), Ole Miss TE/RC (2006-07), Briarcrest (Tenn.) High HC (1995-2004)
On the good side: Quickly built Ole Miss into a conference power despite starting essentially at zero, has elevated Liberty's program into the national consciousness, Liberty is 7-1 this season despite losing quarterback Malik Willis to the NFL, has SEC head coaching experience, has SEC recruiting experience, has that ability to charm people and networks easily with boosters and big-money supporters, sent his daughter to Auburn and is seen as a pro-Auburn person, relatively affordable
On the bad side: Faced scrutiny after getting into trouble at Ole Miss (2016) both on a personal level and for major recruiting violations, faced scrutiny last summer for messaging a former Liberty student with an active lawsuit against the university
Chances of getting this job: 25%
THE FIELD (Everyone Else In College Football)
Age: Various
Relevant experience: Various
On the good side: Can be adjusted based on availability, cost or narrative
On the bad side: Can be adjusted based on availability, cost or narrative
**EDITOR'S NOTE: Coaching searches, especially ones that last as long as this one will, have twists and turns. The first "front-runner" candidate rarely is the guy who gets the job. With THE FIELD, of course, you're keeping your options open to see who might be pop up as "available" down the road after rebuffing interest initially. Maybe a super agent is running smokescreens to make a fake candidate seem viable for the purpose of shaking down his current employer for more money. Or maybe a super agent uses smokescreens to diffuse interest in a guy who really wants the job. Folks, it's a wild world out there. My advice? Keep your heart out of it, your ears well-filtered and your eyes wide open.
Chances of getting this job: 20%
DAN LANNING, Oregon head coach
Age: 36
Relevant experience: Oregon head coach (2022-present), Georgia defensive coordinator (2019-21), Georgia linebackers coach (2018), Memphis linebackers coach and recruiting coordinator (2016-17), Alabama graduate assistant (2015)
On the good side: Possibly the most intriguing young coach in the game, has Oregon 8-1 right now, worked under both Nick Saban and Kirby Smart, has SEC experience, has served as a recruiting coordinator in the Southeast
On the bad side: He's quite young, unproven as a head coach, lacks real name recognition, buyout currently is $14 million
Chances of getting this job: 15%
DEION SANDERS, Jackson (Miss.) State head coach
Age: 55
Relevant experience: Jackson State head coach (2020-present), member of the Pro Football Hall of Fame and College Football Hall of Fame
On the good side: Possibly the best marketer/promoter among all football coaches, effervescent personality, reputation has helped him amass Bowl Subdivision talent at a SWAC school with remarkable ease, Jackson State has improved quickly and assuredly during the past two years, has a million-dollar smile and boundless energy, his son (JSU sophomore Shedeur Sanders) looks like a star at quarterback, his Class of 2022 haul included Rivals' No. 1 recruit (Travis Hunter) and four-star wideout Kevin Coleman Jr.
On the bad side: This is his first college coaching job of any kind, he's independently wealthy in a way that may not compel him to play nice with boosters and big-money supporters, not an Xs-and-Os strategist per se
Chances of getting this job: 5%
MATT RHULE, Carolina Panthers head coach
Age: 47
Relevant experience: Carolina HC (2020-present), Baylor HC (2017-19), Temple HC (2013-16), N.Y. Giants asst. OL (2012), Temple DL/QB/OC (2006-11), Western Carolina LB (2002-05), UCLA DL (2001), Buffalo DL (1999-2000)
On the good side: Has strong track record of improving toxic jobs/situations very quickly (Baylor and Temple), was a walk-on linebacker at Penn State and still has an underdog approach to everything ... much like the Auburn ethos, has high-level college and NFL experience, has coached on both sides of the ball, leads from the front, has served as a recruiting coordinator and understands the importance of recruiting
On the bad side: His time with the Panthers was not successful, longest stay as a head coach has been four years, no ties to Auburn or the Southeastern Conference or even the Southeastern United States
Chances of getting this job: 3%
JEFF GRIMES, Baylor offensive coordinator and TE coach
Age: 54
Relevant experience: Baylor OC and TE coach (2021-present), BYU OC (2018-20), LSU OL coach (2014-17), Virginia Tech OL (2013), Auburn OL (2009-12), Colorado OL (2007-08), BYU OL (2004-06), Arizona State OL (2001-03)
On the good side: His Baylor offense is averaging 38.4 points and 456 yards per game this season, uses a physical and run-first kind of offense that would be popular at Auburn, has enjoyed success both signing and developing offensive linemen everywhere he's coached, spent four seasons at Auburn and made friends here, has an affable demeanor that helps him network with ease, affordable
On the bad side: Has never served as a college head coach, his offense at Baylor (Top 25ish) hasn't been quite as effective as his offense at BYU (Top 5ish), lacks name recognition outside of Texas and Utah
Chances of getting this job: 2%
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