What SEC head coaches have been saying about Auburn’s turbulent week
It has certainly been a week for the Auburn Tigers and its staff.
Monday saw the school hire a new AD in Mississippi State’s John Cohen and then fire its head coach, Bryan Harsin, mere moments after. The ensuing days have seen positional coaches fired and the team’s interim staff get shaped up for its game against the Mississippi State Bulldogs on Saturday.
Quite a few coaches around the league had quite a bit to say, be it because they knew Harsin or Cohen or because their name has been floating around in Auburn’s head coaching search. Here are a few reactions to what the Tigers have been doing the past week:
Lane Kiffin, Ole Miss
USA Today Network
Kiffin about potentially leaving Ole Miss for Auburn:
“We don’t really comment on those things here. A lot of times, they’re a product of players performing well, assistant coaches. We’re extremely happy here, got something special going. Have great support here from the administration, the chancellor.”
On coach Deion Sanders potentially getting a Power 5 job:
“I think he’d do great. I think that’s a great name and they should hire him. Great recruiter, great name. This is a different world we’re in now, because recruiting has always been important but now you have the portal… You can change a roster faster than you ever could before. And you can lose a roster faster than you ever could before. So the ability to hire Deion and have that name right away and portal people wanting to play for him right away can flip a roster where before – realistically – it would take two to three years to truly turn a roster around, you can do it immediately… You see teams get depleted and then just look completely different the next year. Like our team. Picture out team without the portal, and take those guys out of there and look what it looks like.”
Sam Pittman, Arkansas
(Photo by Wesley Hitt/Getty Images)
On advice for Auburn’s imminent coaching search:
“Do you have a love for the university? Do you have SEC experience? If they’ve been in the league? It’s a different league. Obviously to turn any program, you’ve got to recruit well. Probably ask who the coordinators are, who are your top recruiters. Guys like that, that you can bring in that can recruit the Atlanta area and those things, but you know, luckily I don’t have to be in those interviews. But I think you find somebody who’s got a love for the university, who can recruit and obviously knows the area. You’ve got to be able to hire real good coordinators. Things of that nature… Auburn will be able to do that. They’ve got a really strong tradition.”
“You hate for anybody to get let go. It’s part of our business. I think the average is just a little over three years of us guys in this league. I know he did it the way he wanted to do it and worked extremely hard. I just hate for anybody to get let go. I don’t know the situation but I am sure he’ll be fine. He’s a really fine coach and if he elects to coach again, he’ll find a real nice job.”
Mike Leach, Mississippi State
Derick E. Hingle-USA TODAY Sports
On whether or not NIL had to do with Cohen leaving Mississippi State:
“I think it’s always important. I don’t know if that was the big issue, though.”
On whether or not the team will have more motivation to beat Auburn now:
“Not really. The other team is going to run their plays, things like that — you’re busy thinking about how to address that. So no, I don’t think it really effects a lot.”
On his relationship with Cohen:
“I thought John was great. Got along good with John. You know, I just kind of go back to the first thing every week—surprises happen. I’m surprised this happened, but I’m not surprised something surprising happened. Something surprising happens every week; you just don’t know how it’s going to manifest itself. I enjoyed working with John.”
Eli Drinkwitz, Missouri
Nelson Chenault-USA TODAY Sports
“There’s a personal side and a business side and a fan side of this profession. I think Coach Harsin is a tremendous football coach. Obviously, he’s displayed that in his ability to win conference championships at two other previous schools. Think he’s a good person and had to deal with some very difficult situations down there and I really think more about his family and the rest of that staff’s family because there is a personal side.”
On schools deciding to fire a coach:
“The fandom side, the business side — that’s up to that university to make those decisions. In our profession, we get paid handsomely to have to deal with it. Whatever choice they made, that’s on them. From a personal side and all the people that were there — I knew a lot of those guys on that staff and people in the administration. I know it’s a hard time and it’s unfortunate.”
