Some very sad news came out of Auburn today on the swimming and diving front. Men's and women's swimming and diving coach Richard Quick has been diagnosed with an inoperable cancerous brain tumor, according to the school.

Quick is a six-time United State Olympic coach who has won 12 NCAA titles, the most in Division I history.

“We’re currently in the process of looking for the best care possible to fight this,” Quick said. “I want to thank the countless individuals that have passed along their well wishes, thoughts and
prayers.”

Quick, who served as Auburn’s head coach from 1978-82, won seven NCAA titles at Stanford and five at Texas. He re-joined the Tigers again in 2007.

"Richard is such an energetic person, has an incredibly positive attitude, and is bound by his faith,” Auburn athletic director Jay Jacobs said. “I know that he’s going to meet this challenge head on, just as he has done with every endeavor he’s encountered. We ask the Auburn Family to keep Richard and his family in their thoughts and prayers.”

Brett Hawke will oversee the men's team in the interim, while Dorsey Tierney-Walker will run the women's program.

I'm on the road to New Orleans, but the news from Auburn doesn't stop. Defensive tackle Sen'Derrick Marks will make himself eligible for the 2009 NFL Draft, the school confirmed this morning.

Marks finished his Auburn career of 37 games with 114 tackles, 30 tackles for a loss and 7.5 quarterback sacks. A highly-regarded prospect entering the year, he fought through an injury-plagued season to finish with 32 tackles, 10 of which were for a loss.

“I’ve had a great experience during the last four years at Auburn,” Marks said. “However, I feel that it’s in my best interest to enter my name into the 2009 NFL Draft. It’s always been a dream of mine and I feel that I’m ready to advance to the next level.

"Auburn is, and always will be a special place to me. I want to thank all of my coaches at Auburn for giving me the opportunity to play college football and get an education. The Auburn family and my teammates have always been very supportive of my family and me, and for that I’m very appreciative."

Marks is a near lock to be a first-day pick come April and could go in the first round. ESPN draft guru Mel Kiper Jr. had Marks ranked as the fourth-best junior defensive tackle, behind Alabama's Terrence Cody, Nebraska's Ndamukong Suh and Oklahoma's Gerald McCoy.

Fellow defensive lineman Antonio Coleman will announce his intentions for next year at a press conference Jan. 3.

OK, I finally was able to get this video posted after having connection problems earlier. It's the first 10 minutes of Gus Malzahn being introduced as Auburn's new offensive coordinator.

It's off to New Orleans for the Sugar Bowl for me tomorrow, but I'll try to keep posted with the goings on at Auburn from afar.

Guz Malzahn was officially introduced as Auburn's offensive coordinator this evening. He and head coach Gene Chizik answered questions for about 20 minutes.

Here’s the bullet point version:

• Chizik on his discussions with athletic director Jay Jacobs: “I told him, I said I have a plan. And part of that plan was your hires. That has to be part of your plan. And as we talked about it, one of the guys I was very adamant about was Gus.”

• Three main reasons for this hire:

1. Chizik was looking for the “mark of the man,” how he treats players.
2. Someone who can relate to players and put players where they’re best equipped to win.
3. Success at every stop in his career.

• “As Gus and I talked through this process, it was very evident to me that I had the right guy in all of those ways,” Chizik said.

• Malzahn opening statement: “It is a true honor for me to be here. You know, I've been in college football and I've been in a lot of places, and the one stop when I was here when I was with Arkansas, I came away from this place being the most impressive place, from the tradition, the class of the people, the fans, the quality of the football. So this is a big moment for me to come here to Auburn, represent this university.”

• Malzahn stressed that Auburn would be a “run, play-action team,” despite his offenses being tagged with the “spread” term.

• He evaluated film of Auburn’s current players Monday, looking for strengths and weaknesses. He also looked at some film of recruits.

• Chizik had no background with Malzahn other than watching film of his offenses and being impressed.

• Malzahn will have some input on the offensive coaching staff. “Staff chemistry to me is paramount,” Chizik said. There apparently will not be another Tony Franklin-BBQ Mafia situation here.

• Malzahn on his one year at Arkansas: “I really think anytime you have experience in league, it does nothing but help you. It was a great experience for me. I got a chance to get familiar with some of the defensive coordinators and the speed of the game. The SEC is the best conference in college football and I got a chance to see the actual speed. I think that's very important when you're out looking for players to fit what you're looking for. To be familiar with that would be nothing but a positive.”

• Chizik is not concerned with finding assistant coaches familiar with the spread. He just wants to find the right “fit.” (There’s that word again.) Still no timeline on when he wants to hire anybody else.

• Malzahn on how much of Tulsa’s offense you’ll see at Auburn: “I think you'll see a lot of similarities as far as our philosophy, our pace. Our pace is so important. You will see a little bit different. The first year I was at Tulsa, we had to throw the football. I think we actually ran it one more time than we threw it. This past year we actually had some offensive lineman step up and we could run the football more. You see us, we ran a lot more. That's what I was talking about earlier about assessing our strengths, what we have here. We will build around our strengths for next year but you will see the same philosophy – the pace, the run play-action, the throwing the ball vertically down the field. That won't change.”

• “Anytime you come in a new situation, it’s a new state,” Malzahn said. “Everybody’s got a chance to step up and earn a position.”

• Malzahn repeatedly stressed a commitment to run the ball. “You won’t see a whole lot of straight drop-back pass. It’s not who we’re going to be. We’re going to run downhill.”

• Chizik vowed not to be meddlesome on the offensive side of the ball. “The bottom line is, when you hire great people, you got to give them the opportunity to run their show. … I feel very comfortable with Gus running the offense. Period. Working knowledge, absolutely. Micromanaging, absolutely not.”

• Malzahn called this his dream job (anybody think that phrase gets thrown around a bit too much?). “I take you back my experiences going to different places,” he said, “and there's certain places that you go away from and say, 'Man, that's an awesome place.' We actually won that football game that day and the crowd was different. They were classy. The atmosphere was second to none. And I went away from this place, talked to my wife, and said the same thing, you know, in the stands. And I just knew it was something special.”

• Chizik has spoken with Antonio Coleman, Sen’Derrick Marks and Jerraud Powers about their future plans, but he didn’t elaborate much, saying it is ultimately going to be their decision.

• Malzahn didn’t hear from Chizik until sometime around Christmas. It took him about an hour to decide to take the job, once he met with his family.

• Malzahn will split time between Auburn and Tulsa in the upcoming weeks. As soon as Tulsa’s bowl game is over with Jan. 6, he’ll be full-time at Auburn.

• Malzahn on Tony Franklin’s system: “I'm not very familiar with him. I've never met him. I'm not very familiar with his system and can't tell you much about it.”
  

Just got official confirmation from Auburn. Here's the release that was just sent out:

AUBURN NAMES GUS MALZAHN OFFENSIVE COORDINATOR

AUBURN — Gus Malzahn, who has served as the assistant head coach and co-offensive coordinator as well as quarterbacks coach at the University of Tulsa the previous two seasons, has been named offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach at Auburn, announced head coach Gene Chizik Sunday.

During his two seasons at Tulsa, Malzahn’s offenses have been among the nation’s finest, ranking first nationally in total offense in 2007 and second in 2008. Prior to his arrival at Tulsa, Malzahn was the offensive coordinator and receivers coach at Arkansas in 2006.

“This is an exciting opportunity to coach at Auburn, get involved with the Auburn family and work for Coach Chizik,” Malzahn said. “I can’t wait to get to Auburn and get started.”

Two of Malzahn’s three offenses have ranked in the top 10 nationally in rushing, including the 2008 Tulsa team that is eighth averaging 254.9 yards per game, and his 2006 Arkansas offense that was fourth nationally (228.5 ypg) behind Heisman Trophy runner-up Darren McFadden and fellow All-American Felix Jones.

Under his direction, the 2008 Tulsa offense is averaging 565.1 yards per game and 47.4 points per games, both second nationally. Entering their bowl game, the Hurricane offense is first in the country in third down conversion percentage (57.7 pct.) and yards per play (7.29 ypp) and is also seventh nationally in passing offense (310.2 ypg).

In 2007, Malzahn’s first Tulsa offense ranked as the nation's top offense, gaining 543.9 yards per game. The Hurricane also led Conference USA in passing, scoring, touchdown passes and passing efficiency, while ranking third nationally for passing, fifth for pass efficiency and 10th for scoring offense.

“Gus is one of the great offensive minds in college football and we are very excited to having him join the Auburn staff,” Chizik said. “His track record at all levels of coaching is remarkable and his offenses have been extremely successful both running and passing the ball. It’s truly impressive that he oversees an offense that is in the top 10 nationally in all five major offensive statistical categories. We’re looking forward to having Gus on board.”

Tulsa's offense in 2007 established nine team school records and 12 individual records. The Hurricane also set nine Conference USA team records, while Tulsa quarterback Paul Smith established new C-USA single-season marks for total yards, TDs responsible for, passing yards
and TD passes.

A Fort Smith, Ark., native, Malzahn will join the Auburn staff after Tulsa’s GMAC Bowl game versus Ball State on Jan. 6 in Mobile.

Malzahn spent the 2006 season as offensive coordinator and receivers coach at Arkansas. During his tenure, the Razorbacks finished with a 10-4 record, were SEC West Division Champions and were ranked 15th nationally.

Under Malzahn's direction, Arkansas not only had the nation's fourth-ranked rushing offense, but also ranked among the top-35 nationally in total offense and scoring offense. He was named the Rivals.com National Offensive Coordinator of the Year in 2006.

Malzahn spent 14 seasons as a successful Arkansas High School head coach, from 1991-2005, where he led five teams to the state championship game and won three titles.

Before becoming a college coach at Arkansas in 2006, Malzahn was the head coach at Springdale High School for five years (2001-05). He led the Bulldogs to two state championship game appearances, 2002 and 2005. Malzahn’s 2005 team posted a 14-0 record, won the state's Class 5A championship, outscored its opponents 664-118 and was ranked among the top-10 teams in the country.

Prior to his stint at Springdale, Malzahn coached five years at Shiloh Christian High School where he transformed that program into one of the most dynamic offensive prep squads in the nation. He led the Saints to back-to-back state championships in 1998 and 1999.

On the prep level, Malzahn coached two quarterbacks, Josh Floyd and Rhett Lashley at Shiloh Christian High School, both of whom set national passing records. Malzahn also tutored 2005 Gatorade, Parade Magazine and Rivals.com National Player of the Year Mitch Mustain at Springdale High School.

Malzahn began his coaching career in 1991 at Hughes High School, where he stayed for five seasons including the final four years as the head coach. In 1992, Malzahn became the head coach and in 1994 his team reached the state championship game.

Malzahn, 43, earned his bachelor's degree in physical education from Henderson State (Ark.) in 1990. He and his wife, Kristi, have two daughters, Kylie and Kenzie.

Multiple outlets are reporting that Gene Chizik will hire Tulsa's Gus Malzahn as Auburn's next offensive coordinator. An official announcement is expected this afternoon.

Malzahn has spent the last two years at Tulsa, where the Golden Hurricane have put up gaudy offensive numbers. Tulsa is second in the nation, averaging 565.1 yards per game.

Chizik promised to install an offense that runs the ball. the Golden Hurricane ran for 254.8 yards per game this season.

The 43-year-old Malzahn spent 14 years as a high school coach in Arkansas, leading five teams to the state championship game and winning three titles.

He joined Houston Nutt's staff at Arkansas in 2006. The Razorbacks went 10-4 thanks to the running back duo of Darren McFadden and Felix Jones. Malzahn left amid reports of tension with Nutt about the team's offensive direction.

Here's a brief bio:

Alma Mater: Henderson State '90
Birthdate: October 28, 1965
Hometown: Fort Smith, Ark.
College Coaching Experience: 3 years (2006-08). Entering second year at Tulsa.
Playing Experience: Played two years at Arkansas (1984-85). Was a two-year letterman as a receiver and punter and started one year at Henderson State (1988-89).

Some numbers:

Arkansas 2005 (pre-Malzahn): 360.6 ypg, 25.7 ppg

Arkansas 2006 (Malzahn's first year): 378 ypg, 28.9 ppg

Tulsa 2006 (pre-Malzahn): 388.4 ypg, 27.7 ppg

Tulsa 2007 (Malzahn's first year): 554.9 ypg, 41.4 ppg

Well, of course some action would happen on the Auburn coaching front as soon as I leave town for Christmas.

Here's the (late) word about Gene Chizik's coaching staff:

James Willis, who served as a linebackers coach on Tommy Tuberville's staff, will remain as a defensive assistant. Here's the full release from Auburn sports information. Willis was instrumental in the Tigers' recruiting efforts for 2009. Keeping him on board was one move expected from Chizik.

Chizik also elected to keep strength and conditioning coach Kevin Yoxall, director of football operations Jimmy Perry, director of NFL relations Phillip Lolley and team chaplain Rev. Chette Williams. Perry and Lolley helped Chizik recruit the first week after he was hired. Yoxall continued the team's offseason strength and conditioning program as usual after Tuberville's departure.

Georgia offensive line coach Stacy Searels will not be a part of Chizik's staff, electing to stay with the Bulldogs, head coach Mark Richt told the Atlanta Journal-Constitution on Friday. Searels, who does not speak to the media, will reportedly receive a pay bump.

Auburn nearly went into its Christmas break a little early Monday but managed to pull out a 77-72 win against Alabama State because of a smothering fullcourt defense.

The Tigers forced 24 turnovers, turning them into 31 points to erase an 11-point second half deficit against the reigning SWAC regular season champions.

Tay Waller hit six 3-pointers to finish with 21 points. Korvotney Barber had 10 points and 10 rebounds for his second straight double-double.

Some thoughts:

• Interestingly, Auburn head coach Jeff Lebo said he was surprised the Tigers' trap defense worked as well as it did. Alabama State has senior guards with Brandon Brooks and Andrew Hayles, who are both capable of breaking just such a press. But they didn't. In fact, Brooks committed six turnovers, the only demerit on his 24-point, 7-assist night. "It got the pace of the game going," Lebo said of the press. "We kind of got a little bit of juice."

• Alabama State's 24 turnovers were the most Auburn has forced against a Division I team this year. Division II Tuskegee committed 29 turnovers against the Tigers last week.

• At one point, Alabama State committed eight straight tunovers. Auburn capitalized with a 17-0 run. Now that is being opportunistic.

• Waller did more than just hit 3's. He had five rebounds, four steals and an assist too.

• Lebo praised Rasheem Barrett for having one of his best games of the year. The senior, who battled a groin problem early in the season, finished with 12 points, five rebounds, three assists and a steal.

• Two unnerving signs for the Tigers. Alabama State out-rebounded them 39-34. And Auburn went 16-for-30 from the free throw line. Those are bad indicators if a team is going to be playing a lot of close games.

There's not much happening in Auburn today. New coach Gene Chizik is presumably putting together a staff now that recruiting is in a dead period, but he's been a no-show in Auburn, leaving us writers with not much to report right now.

When a hire is made -- or we at least get to talk to Chizik -- it'll be up here as soon as possible.

In the interim, here's a video of everyone's favorite outspoken Auburn alum Charles Barkley on TNT that's pretty funny.

Barkley plays the role of President Bush to Kenny Smith's Iraqi journalist.

A week after Auburn plucked Iowa State's head coach to run its program, the Cyclones hired former Tigers defensive coordinator Paul Rhoads as their head coach.

This one makes plenty of sense. Rhoads is a Ankeny, Iowa, native. He was an assistant under Dan McCarney from 1995-99. And quite honestly, from speaking to the man throughout the season, he seemed like he had all the makings of a head coach.

The biggest thing for Iowa State is it got a coach who probably doesn't view a job in Ames, Iowa, as a stepping stone.

Rhoads' contract is for five years and $5.75 million.

Here's Iowa State AD Jamie Pollard's quote about Rhoads. Think this is a subtle jab at Gene Chizik? I do.

"He was the one candidate that clearly demonstrated both extensive experience and an extreme passion for and familiarity with our institution. In addition, and most importantly, he also has a comprehensive plan for how to be successful at Iowa State."

Somehow Auburn and Iowa State need to play each other in the near future. I think everyone would enjoy that game.

UPDATE: Rhoads' introductory press conference is up on the Iowa State athletics Web site right now. (Watch it here) Rhoads gets choked up throughout his brief speech, especially when talking about having deep roots in Iowa. "I can see myself here for a long time," he said. He clearly is happy to be headed back to near his hometown. I honestly can't imagine the Cyclones coming out of this situation with a better hire.

Gene Chizik has been around less than a week and he already got his second junior college signing Thursday, when Mississippi Gulf Coast CC linebacker Eltoro Freeman officially faxed his papers into the school.

Freeman joins defensive end Nick Fairley as Auburn's junior college signings.

Another, running back Onterrio McCalebb from Hargrave Military Academy in Chatham, Va., plans to sign with Auburn next week according to AuburnSports.com. He will enroll in January.

The 6-foot, 225-pound Freeman earned All-America honors in 2007 after helping Mississippi Gulf Coast to a national title. He made 65 tackles, with 17 for a loss and five sacks. He redshirted this year. He has three years of eligibility left.

Here's his full bio from Auburn sports information:

Eltoro Freeman
LB, 6-0, 225
Alexander City, AL (Benjamin Russell)
High School Coach: Carl Martin

JUNIOR COLLEGE: Junior College Coach: Steve Campbell … Played at Mississippi Gulf Coast CC in Perkinston, Miss. …. As a freshman in 2007, helped Mississippi Gulf Coast to National Championship …. Redshirted in 2008.
HIGH SCHOOL: High School Coach: Carl Martin … Recorded 140 tackles and 10 sacks at linebacker his senior year, while taking 15 carries for 223 yards and three scores at running back … Recorded 100 tackles, including 52 for losses his junior year … Named a PrepStar All-American recruit … Listed as tenth-ranked prospect in state of Alabama by The Birmingham News … Ranked No. 19 nationally at outside linebacker and the No. 10 overall recruit in Alabama by Rivals.com … Ranked No. 20 among outside linebackers by ESPN.com. … Selected by the AHSAA to play in the Alabama North/South All-Star game as a junior … Named Birmingham News and ASWA Class 5A All-State … Selected as a member of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution Super Southern 100 … Ranked the No. 78 prospect in the Mobile Register’s Super Southeast 120 … Named a Birmingham News Super Senior before the 2006 campaign.
PERSONAL: Born May 7, 1989 … Son of Greta and Rome Freeman.

Macon Telegraph Georgia beat man David Hale informs us today that Auburn has received permission to speak with Bulldogs offensive line coach Stacy Searels about joining Gene Chizik's staff on the Plains.

Georgia coach Mark Richt confirmed the news today.

Chizik, who has hit the recruiting trail hard since accepting the job last Saturday, has not yet made any comments on his staffing situation.

Searels played at Auburn from 1984-87, earning first-team all-SEC honors his last two seasons and being named a first-team All-American in 1987. He started his coaching career at Auburn as a graduate assistant. He's since coached at Appalachian State, Cincinnati, LSU and now Georgia.

Here's his full bio.

Interestingly, Richt has not been contacted about recruiting coordinator/defensive line coach Rodney Garner, another former Auburn man who played with Searels and spent six years as a Tigers assistant from 1990-95.

Georgia DT Jeff Owens has reportedly said Garner told him he was staying put.

It seems there have been dozens of anti-Auburn columns when it comes to the race issue, so in an effort to achieve some balance on the issue, here's one by Jason Whitlock that defends Auburn for passing up on Turner Gill.

Whitlock makes some very excellent points about Gill not being the right "fit" (and I know that word has been used to death lately, but it's the one he uses in the article).

Read the whole thing, especially the end about college football still waiting to find its version of John Thompson, but here's a blip about Auburn:

Turner Gill, the black head football coach at Buffalo, is one of the most promising coaches in the game. He has a chance to be a superstar. Auburn wasn't the right "fit" for Gill.

That word — "fit" — is frustrating to people outside the college football world. They don't understand the uniqueness of each college football environment.

They think college football isn't much different from the NFL, where the teams are all generally located in major cities, recruiting is a nonfactor, the style of play is pretty uniform and kissing the rear of a wealthy booster means lunch with Jerry Jones.

Head-coaching diversity is easier to achieve in the NFL because the clubs operate in diverse communities and the playing field is level. The "fit" in the NFL is all the same. It's a two-question test: 1. Can you be a consistent leader of young men? 2. Do you know the game?

There are far more variables in the collegiate game: 1. Can you connect with the high school coaches in the area? 2. Can you schmooze boosters? 3. Do you have the connections to put together a coaching staff appropriate for a particular conference or region? 4. Are you good at projecting and developing talent? 5. Do you have the discipline and passion to recruit?

The list is endless.

Turner Gill, a former quarterback at Nebraska and a native of Fort Worth, Texas, failed the fit test at Auburn, and that statement has nothing to do with his race. Gill likely would've destroyed a bright coaching future by winning the job at Auburn.

ESPN's Pat Forde is a columnist I greatly respect. He usually hits issues right on the head (I highly suggest you read some of his Bobby Petrino stuff).

And today he doled out grades for the coaching hires this offseason. Keep in mind that very few schools got good, if passable, grades. But he reserved his harshest comments for Auburn.

If you are squeamish, you might want to avert your eyes:

Auburn. The hire: Chizik. The grade: F.
Chizik needs to begin every morning by reciting the Lou Gehrig speech: "Today-today-today, I consider myself-myself-myself, the luckiest man on the face of the Earth-Earth-Earth." The fact that he somehow parlayed a 5-19 record at Iowa State into a job at one of the better programs in the country is astounding -- and reflects the glorious dysfunction that is Auburn athletics. Understand this: Auburn could have kept Tommy Tuberville and his 85-40 record (Resignation? Right.) but went with a guy who opened his tenure in Ames with losses to Kent State and Northern Iowa. Auburn could have gone after Leach, who knows something about winning in a brutal division, but instead hired a guy who went 2-10 in league play in the softer Big 12 North. Auburn could have landed the red-hot Gill, whose Buffalo team has won six of its past seven games, but instead embraced a guy on a 10-game losing streak. Maybe Chizik will be the next Bill Parcells -- he went 3-8 in his first year as a head coach, at the Air Force Academy in 1978 -- before turning out all right. But until that happens, this has the makings of the worst hire in SEC history.

This release seems like it came out about a month late, but the Auburn men's basketball team finally announced its signings for the 2009-10 season.

The Tigers had four players sign national letters of intent. Here they are, with a mini-bio provided by Auburn sports information:

C Robert Chubb, 6-10, 220, Peachtree City, Ga., 3 star according to Rivals.com

• Chubb attended McIntosh High in Peachtree City, Ga., where he averaged 14 points and 10 rebounds as a junior last season. He transferred to Montverde Academy in Orlando for his senior season.

• "Chubb is a kid who is getting better and better and better," Auburn head coach Jeff Lebo said. "His upside is big, and he is getting tremendous coaching at Montverde Academy. He is playing against a lot of big guys. Hopefully, he still has some growing up to do."

SF Kenny Gabriel, 6-8, 200, Charlotte, N.C., 3 stars according to Rivals.com

• Gabriel signed with Auburn last year out of United Faith Christian Academy in Charlotte, N.C., but he went to Paris (Texas) Junior College for this season. He will have four years to play three seasons at Auburn. Gabriel averaged 22 points, 12 rebounds and three blocks as a senior at United Faith Christian last year and 17 points and eight rebounds as a junior. He is averaging 15.2 points and 8.5 rebounds per game, leading Paris to an 8-0 record to start the season.

• "What is exciting about Kenny is his ability to shoot the basketball," said Lebo. "He can play a lot of different positions. He has the ability to shoot the basketball and has great range with his jump shot."

G Andre Malone, 6-5, 202, Atlanta, Ga., 4 stars according to Rivals.com

• Malone, who is ranked as the 19th best shooting guard in the country by Rivals.com and the 74th best player overall, averaged 16.6 points, 9.0 rebounds, 2.9 steals and 2.1 assists as a junior at North Clayton High in College Park, Ga., last year. He will play his senior season at South Atlanta High.

• "Andre just gives us another deep perimeter shooter," Lebo said. "He has athleticism and style and his body is already ready for this league."

G Earnest Ross, 6-5, 215, Cary, N.C., 3 stars according to Rivals.com

• Ross averaged 26 points, 10 rebounds and five assists per game last year as a junior at Panther Creek High.

• "Earnest, like Andre, has his body ready for this league and has tremendous upside," Lebo said. "He can take the ball to the basket and can shoot the ball from 3-point range and can play a multitude of positions."

Props to Macon Telegraph Georgia beat writer David Hale for this story on Bulldogs assistant Rodney Garner, who interviewed for the vacant Auburn football job a few weeks ago.

Garner vehemently disagrees with outspoken Auburn alum Charles Barkley, who said he thinks race was the No. 1 factor in the Tigers hiring Gene Chizik.

"I definitely did not feel that my interview was a token interview," Garner said. "I thought that it was fair. I was in there two-and-a-half hours. I felt like they gave me a very fair opportunity to present my plan for the program.

"The process played out, and I think in the end, they hired who they thought was the best fit. Charles is entitled to his opinion, but the only people who know are the ones who make the decisions."

Many critics of college football's lack of minority head coaches have stumped for a similar version to the NFL's Rooney Rule, which requires teams to interview at least one minority candidate for a head coaching vacancy. (It should be noted that Auburn interviewed TWO minority coaches -- Garner and Buffalo's Turner Gill.) Garner didn't sound completely on board with that idea.

"You would like to see more diversity in the hiring practice, but I'm not sure that a Rooney rule would work in college," Garner said. "In the pros, you're dealing with management, ownership. You may be dealing with one person or a family. In college, you're dealing with a whole facet of people, and there are a lot of different factors that play into it. So I don't know if that rule will work, per se."

Gene Chizik already added a player to his roster for next year. Nick Fairley was added Wednesday after the start of the junior college signing period.

The 6-foot-4, 295-pound defensive end originally committed in 2007 but did not qualify. He's spent the last year and a half at Copiah-Lincoln Community College in Wesson, Miss.

The Mobile native will enroll in January and has three years of eligiblity remaining.

Here's his complete bio from Auburn sports information:

Nick Fairley
DL, 6-4, 295
Mobile, AL (Lillie B. Williamson)

JUNIOR COLLEGE: Junior College Coach: Glenn Davis … Played at Copiah-Lincoln CC in Wesson, Miss. … All-Region XII in state of Mississippi in 2008 at defensive tackle … Had 63 tackles including nine for loss and seven quarterback sacks in seven games … Redshirted in 2007.
HIGH SCHOOL: High School coach: Bobby Parrish … Spent time on both sides of the ball as a senior, grading out at 97 percent on the offensive line and catching five passes for 150 yards at tight end, while making more than 90 tackles on defense … Named a 5A Lineman of the Year finalist and to the 5A All-State team by the ASWA … Ranked 28th among offensive guards and 15th overall in Alabama by Rivals.com … Ranked No. 32 at the offensive tackle position by ESPN.com … Selected to the Alabama-Mississippi All-Star Classic and played both ways in the game … Selected to the Mobile Press-Register’s Elite 18 Alabama recruits list and the paper’s Super Southeast 120 … Played in the AHSAA North/South All-Star game as a junior.
PERSONAL: Born January 23, 1988 … Son of Paula Rogers and Herbert Rogers.

I would put the odds slightly higher, but Sports Illustrated's Stewart Mandel penned an article today in which he said Gene Chizik has no chance to succeed at Auburn.

His underlying point? It might take Chizik a little while to right the ship at Auburn, and he won't have the public support of an inpatient Tigers fan base that is fractured over his hiring.

A couple things don't help Chizik:

1. The competitiveness of the SEC right now
   
2. Alabama's resurgence under Nick Saban
3. A general inpatience football-wise in this part of the country

Interesting read. Anybody have some thoughts?

ESPN's Outside the Lines examined Auburn's hiring of Gene Chizik, framing it in racial terms. Montgomery columnist Josh Moon, Birmingham radio host Paul Finebaum and ESPN columnist Jemele Hill were the panelists.

Take a look here. (the video scroll on the right, "Did race play a factor in Auburn's hiring of Chizik?")

Finebaum had the most scathing remarks:

Jay Jacobs, first of all, is a pawn of the trustees at Auburn University and there was no way they were going to hire Turner Gill, even though he should have been hired. ... The plantation mentality exists at very high places at Auburn University and there was no way he was going to get the job.

He finished with another blast of Jacobs and the trustees:

Auburn's been run by trustees for a long time. This school has been under investigation. Everyoen remembers five years ago when Bobby Lowder and others tried to get Tommy Tuberville fired in the middle of the night by bringing in Bob Petrino. They were under investigation. They almost lost the accreditation. But they haven't gone away. They're still running this program. And Jay Jacobs, the athletic director who wouldn't come on, might be the most incompetant athletic director in America. He couldn't go to the bathroom without asking Bobby Lowder or the Board of Trustees for permission.

It's safe to say there is a pretty good rift in the Auburn fan base about the Gene Chizik hire. From the poll on the right, about 75 percent of the respondents don't think Chizik is the right man for the job.

Here are two more opinions, one wholeheartedly in favor of Auburn athletic director Jay Jacobs' decision and one completely against it.

First, a letter from Auburn coaching legend Pat Dye to Tigers Unlimited members, calling for unity now that the Tigers have their coach. Here's an excerpt:

There is a lot of misinformation out there right now. The media people have their jobs to do and should have our respect for doing those jobs. But unless an individual has served as president of a major university, has been on the board of trustees of a major university, or has been athletic director or head football coach at a major university, it is hard to grasp how the people in these positions make the decisions that affect so many.

Unless you have walked in their shoes, you cannot begin to understand all that is involved in the process of making these decisions.

In addressing the current situation pertaining to our Athletic Director, Jay Jacobs, and his decision to hire Gene Chizik as our new Head Coach, I applaud all parties involved in the process for allowing Jay Jacobs to do his job.

Nobody is more qualified to make this decision than Jay. He is a true Auburn man to the bone and understands better than anybody the kind of man we need to lead our football program into the future. Gene Chizik is that man.

This Web site -- FireJayJacobs.com -- is not so favorable. It has a Top 10 list and an online petition aimed at getting Jacobs removed.

Something tells me this is going to be a point of debate at Auburn for quite some time.

Senior offensive guard Tyronne Green has accepted an invitation to play in the 2009 Senior Bowl on Jan. 24 in Mobile's Ladd-Peebles Stadium. Game time is 7 p.m. EST.

Green started 25 straight games for the Tigers and was on Phil Steele's all-SEC third-team offense this season.

The dust has finally settled a little bit after Auburn hired Gene Chizik, who will put together a staff and hit the recruiting trail immediately.

We at the Ledger-Enquirer had a handful of stories today. Have a look:

In today's main story, Chizik talks about returning Auburn to a physical brand of football and defends his 5-19 record at Iowa State.

Athletic director Jay Jacobs is taking a lot of heat for this hire, and his legacy will be defined by it.

Chris White has a story about an Auburn fan base that is less than enthusiastic about the hire.

Chuck Williams has a column about Pat Dye, who thinks Auburn got the right guy for the job.

Wow. Lots to digest here. I'll break Gene Chizik's introductory press conference down as well as I can real quickly before I have to hack away at tomorrow's print stories.

• Chizik did not offer many details about who his staff would be. Reports surfaced late last night that those remaining Tommy Tuberville's crew were informed to seek new employment. No idea if that means they are absolutely out of the loop.

• In the interim, Chizik will lean onformer Auburn assistant Joe Whitt Sr., director of NFL relations Phillip Lolley and director of football operations Jimmy Perry to help him recruit. No word on whether any of those three will be added to the staff full time.

• He emphasized several times how important recruiting will be in the process, especially in the early stages.

• Money does not sound like it's going to be an object in the hiring of a staff. "It's just going to be the best people, in my opinion, who are the best fit at Auburn."

• Terms of the deal were not disclosed. Chizik said money wasn't an issue. "I don't coach for money. I mean, I'm already making more money than I thought I would make in my entire lifetime. That doesn't mean anything to me. That's who I am, so that wasn't important to me. What was important to me was the job."

• Jacobs said the contract will be largely incentive based. "Just like in the business world," he said.

• Chizik has not yet spoken to Tommy Tuberville.

• Former coach Pat Dye and Redskins cornerback Carlos Rogers were in attendance.

Some quotables:

Chizik, on why he left Auburn four years ago

"My desire was to be a head coach. That’s what I wanted to be, and I felt like four years ago, I was ready. As you go into this profession you try to gauge, ‘What is the best thing for me to get to my ultimate goal?’ My ultimate goal at the time was to be a head coach. I had been a defensive coordinator at that time for ten or eleven years. At the time, the University of Texas, where I went, had a great track record of moving guys on to be a head coach. As you make business decisions about your career, just like any of you that are in the business world know, you have to make decisions about what is best for you and your family to get you to the ultimate goal. So I made the move. If you go back four years right now, and I didn’t make that move, I don’t know, maybe I wouldn’t be standing here in front of you today. Would I do it again the exact same way? Yes, I would. Not because I wanted to leave Auburn, but ultimately, if you really look at it, it’s because I wanted to get back to Auburn.”

Chizik, on his offensive philosophy

"I think it is 200 years old to be honest with you. I think on offense right now you have to be able to run the football and I don’t think that has changed since forever. That doesn’t mean that we aren’t going to throw the ball, but in my opinion, in order to win you have to be able to run the ball."

Chizik, on losing 10 straight to finish the season at Iowa State

"Last year was a situation that I had never really experienced. What I learned was perseverance and to keep the kids playing hard, and let them always know what the goal is for every week. We were playing with eleven true freshmen and they played hard every week. But we kept persevering and we stuck it in there. We grew a lot, I grew a lot, and it was tough managing a football team that was under those circumstances because I had never done that before. I wouldn’t trade those two years for anything I’ve done. I did it right, and I enjoyed those two years, but learned a lot.”

Chizik, on balancing recruiting and getting a staff in place

"I think kind of all the way around – doing everything at once. I'll be in the car driving here and you've got to make 10,000 phone calls. I'm trying to get some guys in place. Again, it's kind of a storm. You've just got to do everything in a day as it goes. There'll be a lot of things going on in terms of recruiting and hiring a coaching staff. Those are the two main things, obviously. "

Athletic director Jay Jacobs, on hiring a coach who lost 10 straight games to finish last season

"He made the choice instead of just trying to be a quick fix, he made the choice in his third year he wanted to have a good team. So he started 10 or 11 freshman this past year. The other thing is he had to make some hard choices when he first got there, but he made those in a way that didn't impact them negatively APR. So coming in, to make those changes and get the right quality people in the program, and his vision for where the program was going, and the validation from the AD and president that it was goign in the right direction, all those things matched up with what he told us."

Jacobs, on the initial negative reaction the hire produced

"I'm not disappointed at all. I just stood on Exodus 14:14 and am just going to keep walking by faith and not by sight. And I know that at the end of the day, I'm going to put on my code of honor from Ephesians 6:10, and I know that we got the right guy here to do the right thing for Auburn and our student-athletes are going to have an unbelievable experience playing for a guy that loves them and is going to work them as hard as he can possibly work them, push them to a new limit. And all the people be proud and get on board."

Jacobs, on Charles Barkley saying race was the No. 1 factor in this hire

"Well, my reaction is I was picking the best fit for Auburn."

Jacobs, on if he had any advisers in the process

(Joking) "Some requested and some unrequested."

Here's the opening statements of Gene Chizik's introductory press conference. There's a lot of material to sift through, but I'll try to get as much of it up here as fast as possible.

It starts with athletic director Jay Jacobs, who introduces Chizik. Enjoy.

The Gene Chizik era is not getting off to a great start in terms of media coverage.

One of Auburn's most outspoken alums, Charles Barkley, ripped into his alma mater in this ESPN.com article by Mark Schlabach.

He says the only reason Auburn didn't hire Buffalo coach Turner Gill is because he's black. Here's a quote:

"I think race was the No. 1 factor," said Barkley, who played basketball for three seasons at Auburn during the early 1980s. "You can say it's not about race, but you can't compare the two resumes and say [Chizik] deserved the job. Out of all the coaches they interviewed, Chizik probably had the worst resume.

"I'm just very disappointed. I just thought Turner Gill would be the perfect choice for two reasons: He's a terrific coach and we needed to make a splash. I thought we had to do something spectacular to bring attention to the program. Clearly, if we'd hired a black coach, it would have created a buzz."

Interesting article in the Des Moines Register today. Iowa State athletic director Jamie Pollard said Gene Chizik told him twice that he would not accept the Auburn job, including the day he actually did accept the position.

A sampling:

Pollard expressed clear and consistent frustration that Chizik left the Cyclones after two seasons, five victories and the most recent 2-10 season.

“I know Jamie Pollard couldn’t do that to this place,” Pollard said during his first public comments about Chizik’s departure.

Could this be sour grapes? Sure. Are football coaches the most truthful creatures on earth? Absolutely not. Still, it's never a good sign when your former AD starts taking swipes at you 48 hours after you leave.

Iowa State's players, meanwhile, feel betrayed.

The dominoes have already started to fall since Auburn hired Gene Chizik as its head coach on Saturday.

Chizik informed all of Auburn's assistants under Tommy Tuberville to look for new employment late Sunday night, according to AuburnSports.com and the Birmingham News.

Surprisingly, James Willis was in that group. Willis recruited tirelessly, even once Tuberville was out, and seemed like the odds on favorite to be retained by the new staff. He wasn't. And one of his major recruits -- four-star Fort Meade, Md., quarterback Raymond Cotton -- decommitted as a result, Rivals.com reported. It doesn't sound like Auburn has a good chance of getting him back.

Cotton was the seventh decommit for Auburn since Tuberville resigned.

Press conference today at 1 p.m. CST. I'll have an update afterward.

Newly hired Auburn coach Gene Chizik met for 20 minutes with Auburn's players tonight. We got to talk to a few of them afterward. Here are some of the highlights:

CB Walt McFadden

His reaction to the hire
"I'm kind of happy by seeing him come back. He's the one who got me here. He's the one who gave me a comfort of coming to Auburn, with me being from Fort Lauderdale, Florida. I didn't know anything about Auburn. He told me a lot. Just being around Carlos Rogers when I was here on my recruiting visit, he just comforted me and told me all about coach Chizik and just gave me a lot of hype about it. "

On tonight's team meeting
"He just said he was a loyalty person. There's going to be change, but it's going to be for the great. He's not looking to rebuild. We're looking for that 13-0 season again. When he left off, he was 13-0. He's planning on being 13-0 next season."

On the last few weeks
"Just trying to find out who we are again. Before Tubs left us, we were all trying to find what it takes to be a better Auburn Tiger football player. And then soon as he left, we were trying to gain that knowledge, that comfort and he left us. Who are we? Then you know, we've been sticking around with Brother Chette, you know doing our bible studies and Coach Yox is helping us out. Now tonight, Coach Chizik coming right in and talking to us gives us a lot of comfort."

On the mood of the team
"First we were wondering, 'Who's this guy.' The people who wasn't recruited by him was like who's this guy. He came in and everybody just calmed down and it was a big relief that we finally got somebody we could trust."

TE Tommy Trott

On Sunday's team meeting
"He really didn't introduce himself off the bat. I wondered if everybody knew who he was but I'm sure off T.V. and the internet had got familiar with his face. He just came in and said how pumped he was and how jacked he was to be back at a place that he loved. The last time he was in this room he was 13-0. He walked out of that room 13-0 and he plans on getting us back there."

On what Chizik's plan for Auburn is next year
"He said a lot of those seniors out there, he kind of spoke to me, a lot of those seniors out there don't be worried. This isn't a rebuilding thing. I'm not going to start from the ground up. We're coming out next year and we're going to be a lot better football team."

On Chizik's style
"You can tell he's going to be out there motivating us. He sounds like he's going to be a little more hands-on. He's probably going to snatch you up at a practice. He's going to have things done his way, he said. We're going to get back to being physical. If you don't love football, get out, because you better love football to what we're about to do. In a weird way that's very inspiring."

CB Jerraud Powers

His reaction to the hire
"I was just happy it was over. That was the most part. I'm glad they chose a guy like coach Chizik. I just think, from the players' standpoint, we're just happy it's all over. Now we can go back to no worries and just doing what we're doing. Lately, since the thing happened, it's been kind of crazy around here. We're just happy it's over. "

NOTE: Powers, who just finished his junior season, said he submitted his name to the NFL's advisory committee, a group of league scouts and officials who research a player and give an approximation of where he might go in the draft.

"It's still the same," Powers said about whether he's coming back. "I'm just going through the evaluation process and trying to get as much information as I can possible. I'm going to get to sit down with coach Chizik and get his opinion on things and just go from there. "

Just got back from the Robert G. Pitts Airport, a beat writer's home away from home this week, and a crowd of about 200 was there greet new coach Gene Chizik after he stepped off a plane from Ames, Iowa.

Very pro-Chizik crowd. The crazy guy that showed up yesterday was nowhere to be found.

Chizik spoke very briefly with the media. Here's his comment:

"First of all, I am very, very overwhelmed. I'm back home. What can I say? I'm back home. I feel very blessed. My family, myself, this is a dream come true for us. And this is going to brief, but I'll tell you this -- these people of Auburn University and the Auburn family is what I got into coaching for. And I left it with a dream to one day come back to it, and today I'm living that dream and I want to thank you guys. And War Eagle."

Former Auburn linebacker and Shaw High star Antarrious Williams, who played for Chizik when he was the Tigers' defensive coordinator from 2002-04, was on hand as well. Here's what he had to say:

What are your thoughts of the hire?
Extremely elated. I think we got the right guy. All along, we interviewed 6, 7, 8 guys -- I don’t know -- before we hired Chizik. I said: Where is Gene Chizik? Where is Gene Chizik? He was my No. 1 choice before they even mentioned him. I think Jay Jacobs got this right on the head. A lot of people are underestimating Gene Chizik’s coaching ability and mo9tivating players and players buying into the system, which is the key right now. That’s why Alabama’s successful -- players are buying into Nick Saban’s system. It’s not that what they’re doing is so great. It’s that players believe what he’s saying. Players will buy into Gene Chizik.

What was he like as a coach?
He’s a fiery guy, I couldn’t tell you one time I can remember him cussing one players out, but he got on to us. He coached us hard. When Chizik left, it hurt us more to lose the guy than the coach. He’s a really good coach, but players were sad to lose Gene Chizik as a person as well. That just speaks highly of his character. I think he’s just the right fit for us right now.

We're getting current players in a little bit. I'll put their reactions up a little later.

Auburn finally released a statement Saturday night about the hiring of Gene Chizik.

A press conference is scheduled for Monday at 2 p.m. It's closed to the public.

To tide you over, here's Chizik's statement from the release Saturday:

“Through my travels in coaching over the last 23 years, there’s one place that I’ve always wanted to return to and that is Auburn. The tradition of the Auburn football program combined with the passionate fans and their love for Auburn are second to none. My family and I are Auburn through and through, and look forward to being part of the Auburn family and community.

“I am dedicated to working tirelessly to win championships. We will not be outworked in any facet of the building process. I’m excited to get on the recruiting trail, meeting with the current players and reconnecting with past players. We want to develop young men into champions not only on the playing field, but in the classroom and in the community.”

Here's Auburn athletic director Jay Jacobs' comment in the release:

“I’m extremely proud and excited to have Gene returning to Auburn to take over as head football coach of this program. I know that we have found the right fit for Auburn. Gene’s body of work during his 23 years in this profession is remarkable. He has a strong knowledge of this athletics program, this university and the community, and he knows how to be successful in the Southeastern Conference. He is a high-energy coach that is an outstanding motivator and demands a tough, physical style of football. I’m confident that Gene can build upon the foundation that has been established and make this a program that competes for championships on a consistent basis.”

Here's the entire release.

Just finished filing my story about Auburn's hiring of Gene Chizik.

To sum this hire up in a word: perplexing.

Judging from the responses on message boards and the few loyal posters on this blog (major props, Acid Reign and Scott H.!), it is not going to go over very well with the fans.

And I can see why. Whether or not Chizik was a great defensive coordinator in the past, he hasn't had any success as a head coach, even if the situation was as dire as it was at Iowa State (quick aside: Turner Gill won despite some pretty dire circumstances at Buffalo)

Des Moines Register columnist Sean Keeler doesn't sound too bummed to see Chizik leave.

Now, Tigers fans obviously hope that going to a school like Auburn, with all its resources, will bring out the best in Chizik. And let's face it, Auburn would probably be hailed as making a great hire of an up-and-coming coach if Chizik was still at Texas as a defensive coordiantor, even if it meant he didn't have any head coaching experience.

But that doesn't change the fact that he took the reclamation project at Iowa State. And these are the undisputable facts of his two years in Ames:

• He has a 5-19 record.
  

• He has as many career wins as head coach Tommy Tuberville did in his worst season as a head coach.

• His Cyclones failed to win a Big 12 game this year, despite not playing any of the conference's heavyweights -- Oklahoma, Texas or Texas Tech.

• Iowa State lost 10 straight games to end the season and was tied for the second-longest losing streak in the nation with SMU. Only Washington, which hast lost 14 straight and fired its coach, has a longer streak.

• His defense allowed 35.8 points per game, ranking 11oth nationally.

• He fired two assistants and demoted both his offensive and defensive coordinators less than two weeks ago.

Reading that, I can understand why some Auburn fans are upset with this hire.

Feel free to post your thoughts below.

Iowa State just released a statement saying Gene Chizik has accepted the position as Auburn's head coach.

Here is ISU athletic direcotr Jamie Pollard's quote:

"Gene Chizik confirmed for me today that he is accepting the head coaching position at Auburn. I'm disappointed for Iowa State fans and student-athletes that he has chosen to leave our program after only two seasons. I understand that Auburn is a dream job for him, but the timing and the way it played out has been hurtful and disappointing. Although this is a signficant set back, we will get through the challenge because the Iowa State University athletics program is far greater than one person."

This from the The Tribune in Ames, Iowa.

A source close to the Iowa State football team has told the Tribune the Cyclone players are "irate" coach Gene Chizik is leaving to become the head coach at Auburn.

The source said several Cyclones came to ISU to play specifically for Chizik and don't understand how Chizik could leave for another school.

Senior offensive tackle Doug Dedrick was shocked when he heard the news and said his heart goes out to the returning players.

"I understand why he did what he did," Dedrick said. "Coach Chiz really is a very good guy. I've got nothing negative to say about him. My reaction to this is I feel really bad for the players, the current team. I think Chiz could have done great things here, but he did what he had to do. It's his decision."

Just staked out Jay Jacobs at the airport. He returned from Memphis on a school plane withschool president Jay Gogue, senior associate athletic director Tim Jackson and associate AD Mark Richard.

Here's what Jacobs had to say to a group of reporters:

Do you have your man?
Nope, we’re still in the process.

How close are you to getting your man?
I think that if everything continues to go well then in the next few days, we ought to have the process narrowed down pretty well. We’ll go from there, but we’re still moving along. It’s been good so far.

Are you in the negotiations stages?
We’re just still processing right now. A lot of things going on.

Multiple reports have said Gene Chizik is going to be your next coach. True or false?
We’re just still working through the deal.

That’s it guys.

The public's response was, shall we say, not favorable. A group of about 20 fans also made it to the airport. One particularly vocal one booed the Auburn University plane as it landed, holding his arms out and giving two thumbs down as he yelled.

As Jacobs exited the tarmac, he shouted, "We want a leader, not a loser."

Just a bizarre scene all around.

Rivals.com national college football writer says Gene Chizik will be Auburn's next coach. There no source for the information.

We'll keep monitoring the situation.

There is an Auburn University plane that flew to Memphis today. Memphis is where agent Jimmy Sexton's Athletic Resource Management is located. Chizik is one of Sexton's many clients.

Then again, so are Will Muschamp, Steve Spurrier and Jimbo Fisher.

Bottom line: we'll be watching the return trip of that plane for sure.

There's a lot of buzz out there right now about Iowa State's Gene Chizik being the new frontrunner. The Opelika-Auburn News is saying has jumped to the top of Auburn's list and could be hired as early as Monday.

On the heels of that is this release from Louisiana Tech about Derek Dooley that I just received via e-mail:

In light of the continued speculation, Louisiana Tech head coach Derek Dooley confirmed Saturday that he has removed his name as a potential candidate for the Auburn head coaching position.

"As I have said on many occasions, we are very happy in Ruston and are excited about the continued investments that our administration is committed to making into our athletic program," Dooley said.

Now, that doesn't mean much. I don't think Dooley was ever a serious candidate. But it's common practice for coaches to withdraw their names from consideration for jobs they were never going to get anyway, especially when somebody else is on the cusp of getting the job.

Think Skip Holtz at Syracuse a few days ago. Do you think it's coincidence that within 24 hours of him pulling his name out of consideration that the Orange hired somebody else?

I believe Michael Scott used this same tactic for the corporate job he wasn't going to get at Dunder-Mifflin.

Michael: Let me know about the job.
David Wallace: Actually, Michael, I think we're gonna take it in another direction.
Michael: Good, I'm glad we're on the same page. I have a lot of ideas for new directions.
David: No, we're not giving you the job.
Michael: You know what? That... is actually good... because, um, I don't think I could take... my girlfriend's job. That's not being a good boyfriend. So, I respectfully withdraw my name from consideration. Do you accept my withdrawal?
David: I do.
Michael: Good. Very good. I'm glad we are finally on the same page. Still have my job in Scranton, though.
David: Yes.
Michael: Good. That's all I ever wanted. These two. [points at Jim and Karen] Either one of them... excellent candidates.

While somewhat non-committal about his future with Florida State at a Montgomery Quarterback Club meeting earlier this week, Seminoles head coach-in-waiting Jimbo Fisher was more direct with his words to the Orlando Sentinel that he is not going anywhere.

“I’m staying here at Florida State,” Fisher said. “… I’m happy at Florida State. We’re building the right things.”

Fisher never explicitly said he would not be interested in the Auburn job if it was presented to him earlier this week, instead saying he was "happy" at Florida State over and over. He even uttered the line "never say never" during his speech to the club.

"You offend people when you say never,” Fisher said. “I mean, whether it’s 20 years down the road. Those things always come back to bite you.”

Jay Jacobs set aside some additional time on his Thursday trip to Fort Worth, Texas. In addition to reportedly interviewing TCU's Gary Patterson, he also interviewed Iowa State's Gene Chizik.

Here's a snippet from the Associated Press report:

Iowa State coach Gene Chizik is in the running for the Auburn job, Cyclones athletic director Jamie Pollard said Friday.

Pollard acknowledged that Auburn athletic director Jay Jacobs recently contacted him to speak with Chizik about the Tigers vacancy. Pollard said in a statement released Friday that his understanding is that Chizik — the Tigers defensive coordinator from 2002-04 — has met with Auburn officials and is a serious candidate for the job.

Anybody else think the "serious candidate" portion of that statement seems ludicrous? Chizik was a fine coordinator at Auburn and Texas, but he's 5-19 in two years at Iowa State.

ESPN's Chris Low has an updated article on the Auburn coaching search. He addresses the absurdity of the whole situation (including the media in that equation) and matter-of-factly mentions that TCU's Gary Patterson isn't interested in the job.

Here's the paragraph:

TCU's Gary Patterson is no longer interested after interviewing on Thursday. Auburn is supposed to talk to Wake Forest's Jim Grobe on Friday, and there are also rumblings that Georgia Tech's Paul Johnson and East Carolina's Skip Holtz could be targets.

Patterson and TCU never acknowledged that an interview took place, but athletic director Jay Jacobs and some of his advisers were in Fort Worth, Texas (home of TCU) for close to eight hours Thursday, probably not to enjoy the brisket (though I've heard it's fantastic).

Texas has released an official statement from defensive coordinator/head coach-in-waiting Will Muschamp.

"I have not interviewed for any jobs. I'm not interested in any jobs. I'm happy here, my family loves Austin and I'm going to be at Texas."

Now THAT, my friends, is how you make a denial.

Just talked briefly to the Wake Forest media relations director, Steve Shutt, who said the school is not commenting on whether or not Auburn has asked for permission to speak to Jim Grobe.

AuburnUndercover.com and AuburnSports.com. have cited anonymous sources as saying Auburn will interview Grobe today.

OK, this should be interesting. Two Alabama TV stations have conflicting reports about a couple of big names in the Auburn coaching search.

I wouldn't necessarily put too much stock into either of these reports.

• The Montgomery NBC affiliate says Auburn may (emphasis theirs) be close (emphasis mine) to offering South Carolina coach Steve Spurrier the job.

• The Mobile FOX affiliate says Auburn will likely name Texas defensive coordinator Will Muschamp as its head coach in a press conference today. (The site has since retracted the story following this statement by Muschamp released by the school: "I have not interviewed for any jobs. I'm not interested in any jobs. I'm happy here, my family loves Austin and I'm going to be at Texas."

That second one's a pretty bold report, considering Auburn hasn't made a peep about setting up a press conference today (and if school officials have already sealed the deal and are ready to present their coach, why wouldn't they want a media horde at that thing?).

Both are from anonymous sources, which we're finding out in coaching searches can be just about anybody professing to know a relative of a friend of a barber of the coach's wife. I think I've seen five or six reports claiming Auburn has made a hire, yet we're still chasing Jay Jacobs off airport tarmacs.

For what it's worth, Spurrier shot down questions about Auburn yesterday before a press conference for the Outback Bowl. Muschamp debunked rumors late last night in conversations with AuburnSports.com and AuburnUndercover.com.

So how will today's search unfold? Who knows? Maybe with another airport stakeout; probably not with an introductory press conference.

Then again, crazy things happen in coaching searches. We'll see how it all unfolds.

UPDATE: Muschamp made pretty emphatic denial to Tony Barnhardt of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution today.

"I have not talked to Auburn about this job and I have no interest in the job," said Muschamp. "I really don’t know what else to say. I’m going to stay at Texas until they fire me."

Apparently Auburn message board favorite Turner Gill isn't destined for Syracuse after all.

ESPN is reporting that Saints offensive coordinator/offensive line coach Doug Marrone has accepted the head coaching job at Syracuse. An announcement is expected Friday.

Interesting timing. Marrone and the Saints are taking on the Chicago Bears as I type this.

Marrone, who was a three-year letterman at Syracuse in the 1980s, reportedly interviewed with school officials two weeks ago.

Tommy Tuberville's resignation letter become public today. Here's what the Dec. 3 note entailed, according to an Associated Press report:

"This letter will confirm our recent conversations about my status as Head Football Coach. After long consideration, I have decided to resign. I understand that, notwithstanding my resignation, the University will make a total payment of $5,083,334 as outlined in Section 21 of my contract. I also understand that the structure and timing of the payments may be modified by mutual agreement.

"I deeply appreciate the opportunity to serve as Head Coach at Auburn and will continue to support Auburn's Athletic Program in any way I can."

Athletic director Jay Jacobs had a one-word response: "Agreed."

Today had an interesting twist to the coaching search saga.

Auburn athletic director Jay Jacobs made a trip to Fort Worth, Texas, today, presumably to interview TCU coach Gary Patterson. TCU and Auburn aren't commenting.

But a few crack reporters decided to stake out the Auburn-Opelika Airport. Jacobs and some of his advisers returned on flight from -- guess where? -- Fort Worth, Texas. On board were Jacobs, executive associate athletic director Tim Jackson, senior associate AD Mark Richard and radio sideline reporter Quentin Riggins, a former all-SEC linebacker at Auburn.

The plane landed at 5:54 and stopped on the tarmac. A brown SUV then drove out to pick them up and leave out of a secret airport exit. And here's the kicker! The crew drove off, only to return to the airport 15 minutes later to drop the party off so they could leave in their respective vehicles.

Riggins was the only one to offer a no comment.

Auburn is certainly going to great -- some would say ridiculous -- lengths to avoid any detection in this coaching search. The plane the group traveled in wasn't even an Auburn plane. It is registered to Warren Manufacturing Inc., a company based in Birmingham.

Very clever, Auburn. Very clever.

The game is on.

Another coach who might be entering the Auburn mix is East Carolina coach Skip Holtz, who withdrew his name from consideration for the Syracuse job today.

Here's his quote from the release:

"While it is always flattering for others to have an interest n your abilities, I simply am too focused on our preparations for the bowl game and many other of our short and long-term goals to fairly evaluate what I feel is a promising situation at Syracuse. I appreciate Syracuse's interest, but that cretainly is a direct reflection on what our players, coaches and the Pirate Nation have been able to accomplish, especially through a season that featured so much adversity."

Holtz is scheduled to be at a Liberty Bowl press conference today. I'll update with any comments he makes pertaining to the Auburn job.

ESPN's Joe Schad is reporting that Auburn has arranged an interview with TCU coach Gary Patterson today. Still trying to seek confirmation on this from TCU.

Patterson is an interesting name. He's done about as well as you can at a non-BCS school, going 72-27 in eight years with the Horned Frogs.

A Kansas State grad, Patterson was hired by Dennis Franchione at TCU as his defensive coordinator in 1998. When Franchione left for Alabama in 2000, Patterson took his place.

Patterson's 10-2 Horned Frogs are preparing to play undefeated Boise State in the Poinsettia Bowl on Dec. 23 in San Diego.

Through a bizarre turn of events that probably included some sort of clerical error, I was awarded a Heisman Trophy vote this year. (Actually, the two voters Columbus had last year left for other papers, so I was given a vote in their place.)

Although I have voted for the Naismith Award in basketball, I've never voted for the Heisman. It seems like I picked a good year to join the fun.

Honestly, you couldn't go wrong if you picked any of this year's three frontrunners -- Oklahoma's Sam Bradford, Texas' Colt McCoy or Florida's Tim Tebow.

Two other players I considered briefly were Texas Tech's Graham Harrell and Michael Crabtree. The Red Raiders' stinkbomb of a performance at Oklahoma certainly didn't help their cause. Harrell dropped off my radar because of that game. Looking closer at Crabtree, he didn't have as good of a season statistically as he did last year, so I kept him off my ballot (you get to vote for the top three places).

That left Bradford, McCoy and Tebow, all of whom have put up ridiculous numbers this year.

• Bradford: 302-443, 4,464 yards, 68.3%, 48 TD, 6 INT, 186.3 rating, 65 rushing yards, 5 TD
• McCoy: 291-375, 3,445 yards, 77.6%, 32 TD, 7 INT, 128 carries, 576 rushing yards, 10 TD
• Tebow: 174-268, 2,515 yards, 64.9%, 28 TD, 2 INT, 176.7 rating, 564 rushing yards, 12 TD

This is where it got tricky. Tebow's numbers aren't as great as the other two, but in 10 of 13 games this year, he played against a defense that was ranked in the top 37 nationally. Bradford only faced three defenses in the top 50. McCoy didn't face one ranked higher than 65th.

Now, I take that with a grain of salt. Are SEC defenses ranked so high because it was a brutal year for SEC offenses? Is the Big 12 really that big of a sieve on defense or are the numbers skewed because the conference has a class of quarterbacks that are truly outstanding?

Ultimately, this is what my ballot looked like:

1. Bradford
2. Tebow
3. McCoy

I went with Bradford for his consistently great production all season. The sophomore threw for more than 300 yards in all but two games. He had three or more touchdown passes in 10 games this year. And down the stretch, when Oklahoma needed to win -- and do so impressively to move up in the BCS -- he was nearly perfect, throwing for 1,378 yards, with 14 touchdowns and no interceptions in the Sooners' final four games, including a 34-for-49, 384-yard performance in the Big 12 title game.

You could argue that Bradford had more weapons at his disposal at Oklahoma than Tebow did at Florida and McCoy did at Texas, but I don't see why that should be a detriment. You play the hand you're dealt, and Bradford did it to near perfection.

Even in Oklahoma's one loss -- a 45-35 defeat to Texas -- he went 28-for-39 for 387 yards and five touchdowns. The Sooners defense lost that game. I don't hold that against him just like I don't hold it against McCoy that a safety dropped a sure interception that would have prevented Texas' only loss to Texas Tech.

Anyway, I can see the case for Tebow or McCoy as well and wouldn't argue against any voter that put either of them No. 1 on his or her ballot.

Tebow performed great down the stretch and was magnificent in the SEC title game. He did get off to a relatively slow start this year, though, and in a tight race like this, that hurt him a little bit in my opinion.

McCoy was every bit the passing and running threat that Tebow was and, as mentioned before, didn't have the same supporting cast as Bradford. Still, he played an even easier schedule than Bradford, who faced two tough non-conference defenses in TCU and Cincinnati. And despite facing practically the same Big 12 schedule, his stats, while amazing, aren't quite up to par with Bradford, who threw for 16 touchdown passes and over 1,000 yards more than McCoy, which I thought more than made up for McCoy's sizeable rushing advantage.

So there you have it. My reasoning for the Heisman.

Feel free to post your thoughts on how you would have voted and rip my reasoning to shreds.