Pros and cons for 19 candidates to replace Gus Malzahn at Auburn

Plenty of names were mentioned as soon as the news broke Sunday. Here's what you need to know, from the early leaders to the outside shots.

Updated: Thursday, Dec. 15

After eight seasons, Auburn parted ways with Gus Malzahn on Sunday afternoon. The Tigers will have a new head coach — and, for the first time in more than a decade, there’s a feeling that the program is on the verge of heading into a truly new era.

The price tag to fire Malzahn with several years still left on his contract is a hefty one. Auburn owes more than $21 million to Malzahn, and half of that must come within the next 30 days. If other coaches are bought out, that total cost could rise to as much as $30 million before any new salaries are taken into account.

Auburn had gone backwards in 2020 with more lopsided losses away from home to top rivals, and Malzahn’s teams hadn’t had the level of consistent, explosive offense needed to compete for championships in this day and age of college football for several seasons. It’s not difficult to see why Auburn did what it did.