Earlier in the week, Florida State offensive coordinator Gus Malzahn announced his retirement from coaching after 35 years. Malzahn had an illustrious high school career in Arkansas before stepping into the college ranks as the offensive coordinator for the Razorbacks in 2006. He will also be best known for his eight seasons as the head coach of the Auburn Tigers. During that time, he went 68-35, and Malzahn never had a losing record while at Auburn. Those eight seasons featured three wins versus Alabama, an SEC Championship, and a berth in the 2014 BCS National Championship Game against Jimbo Fisher and the Seminoles.
Malzahn and the Tigers parted ways after the 2020 season, and he would go on to coach the UCF Knights for four seasons before becoming the offensive coordinator for Florida State. After one season with Arkansas, Malzahn would serve as offensive coordinator for Tulsa and had his first stop at Auburn under Gene Chizik from 2009-11. He coached Heisman Trophy-winning quarterback Cam Newton during the Tigers run to the 2010 National Championship. In 2012, he served as the head coach for Arkansas State before being hired to lead the Auburn football program.
Here is a look at Malzahn’s top ten wins as the head coach of the Auburn Tigers.
No. 10: 2016 versus LSU
When the Auburn Tigers played the LSU Tigers in 2016, it was a game with both coaches playing for their jobs. Auburn came out on top with an 18-13 win, and the next day, LSU head coach Les Miles would be fired. Auburn entered the game with a 1-2 record that featured losses to Clemson and Texas A&M at home. All the Auburn scoring in this one came from the foot of Daniel Carlson with six field goals. It appeared LSU quarterback Danny Etling connected with D.J. Chark to win the game as time had expired, but the review showed the ball did not get snapped in time.
No. 9: 2014 at Ole Miss
Before Hugh Freeze coached at Liberty, he was the head coach for the Ole Miss Rebels. Auburn defeated Ole Miss in one of the more entertaining games of the 2014 season by a score of 35-31. Both teams entered the game 7-1 and ranked in the top five. Ole Miss went up 24-14 in the third quarter when tight end Evan Ingram caught a 50-yard touchdown pass from Chad Kelly. Auburn would take a 28-24 lead before the quarter ended after a rushing and passing touchdown by Nick Marshall. After Wallace scored a rushing touchdown in the fourth quarter, Auburn running back Cameron Artis-Payne scored a touchdown with 10:23 remaining to go up 35-31. The Tigers would get a fumble recovery from Cassanova McKinzy when Ole Miss receiver Laquan Treadwell fumbled the ball into the endzone on a play that originally was ruled a touchdown.
No. 8: 2019 vs Oregon
Auburn would open the 2019 season at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas, against the Oregon Ducks. It would be the first chapter of the story of Bo Nix as an Auburn quarterback as he led them to a 27-21 comeback victory. On the other sideline, Oregon was led by future first-round draft pick Justin Herbert. Auburn struggled for a large part of the game and was down 21-6 in the third quarter. Auburn, led by Nix, would score 21 unanswered points to win the game. Nix would connect with Seth Williams for a 26-yard touchdown with nine seconds left to win the game. For Nix, his career would come full circle when he transferred to Oregon after leaving Auburn when the 2021 season concluded.
No. 7: 2013 at Texas A&M
A game that tends to get overlooked from the magical 2013 season is the Tigers’ win at No. 7 Texas A&M, 45-41. The Aggies were led by quarterback Johnny Manziel, who had won the Heisman Trophy the year prior. Manziel was great in the game, throwing for 454 yards and two touchdowns, but he also had two interceptions. Nick Marshall had a good game on the other side for Auburn. He had a combined 336 yards and four touchdowns. Running back Tre Mason rushed for 178 yards and one touchdown, but the play of the game was on defense for Auburn. With 11 seconds left in the game on fourth and 18, Manziel would be sacked by Dee Ford to give Auburn the win.
No. 6: 2019 Iron Bowl
Malzahn did something no other coach could do in the SEC. That is beating Nick Saban and Alabama three times. His third win in the rivalry was the 2019 Iron Bowl that saw the Tigers win 48-45. It capped off a solid season for the Tigers, who won nine games and were led by SEC Freshman of the Year Bo Nix at quarterback. Auburn benefitted from two interceptions for touchdowns thrown by Alabama quarterback Mac Jones.
No. 5: 2017 versus Georgia
Auburn has not had much success against the Georgia Bulldogs as of late. The last win in the “Deep South’s Oldest Rivalry” occurred in 2017 when the Tigers won convincingly 40-17. It was the first of two games for Auburn against the No. 1-ranked teams to close out the regular season. The Auburn defense limited the Georgia run game, led by Nick Chubb and Sony Michel, to just 46 yards in the game. Auburn running back Kerryon Johnson had 233 total yards and one receiving touchdown. Quarterback Jarrett Stidham threw for three touchdowns in the win.
No. 4: 2017 Iron Bowl
Two weeks after the dominating performance over Georgia, Auburn would host No. 1 Alabama with a chance to clinch a spot in the SEC Championship Game. The Tigers won the game 26-14 by limiting the Crimson Tide passing game of Jalen Hurts, and Stidham had a strong game. He threw for 237 yards and rushed for a touchdown in the fourth quarter. Johnson rushed for 104 yards and one touchdown in the game. Unfortunately, Auburn would lose the following week versus Georgia in the SEC Championship Game.
No. 3: 2013 SEC Championship
Auburn won its third SEC Championship in 2013 by defeating Missouri 59-42. The victory positioned Auburn to get an opportunity to play in the 2014 BCS National Championship Game versus the Florida State Seminoles. Auburn running back Tre Mason had a legendary game against Missouri, rushing for 304 yards and four touchdowns. Auburn entered the fourth quarter with a 45-42 lead and outscored Missouri 14-0 in the final 15 minutes.
No. 2: Prayer at Jordan-Hare
Auburn entered the fourth quarter with a 34-17 lead, and they added to it early in the quarter with a Cody Parkey field goal to go up 37-17. The Tigers looked well on their way to another win and to get closer to a berth in the 2013 SEC Championship Game. Georgia quarterback Aaron Murray had other ideas. Murray guided a comeback for the Bulldogs, and they took the lead 38-37 with 1:49 left on the clock. Auburn faced a fourth and 18 when Nick Marshall launched a deep pass that was deflected by two Georgia defenders before landing in the hands of Ricardo Louis for a 73-yard touchdown. The play is famously known as the “Prayer at Jordan-Hare”. The win gave Auburn a 10-1 record and a showdown with Alabama for the SEC West.
No. 1: Kick Six (2013 Iron Bowl)
The 2013 Iron Bowl was a game with a lot at stake. The Auburn Tigers were looking for an upset victory to give them an opportunity to play for the SEC Championship. For Alabama, they were looking to put a claim as one of the greatest teams in college football history. They had won the 2011 and 2012 BCS National Championships and were looking for three in a row. The Crimson Tide held an early 21-7 lead before Auburn made a comeback.
Auburn tied the game at 21 in the third quarter when Nick Marshall connected with tight end C.J. Uzomah. Alabama regained the lead 28-21 when quarterback A.J. McCarron connected with Amari Cooper on a 99-yard touchdown pass. A play forgotten in this classic game is the game-tying touchdown by Sammy Coates for 39 yards to make it 28-28. The game appeared to be heading to overtime. That was until Nick Saban asked for one more second after T.J. Yeldon ran out of bounds. What happened next is now the greatest play in college football history. When Alabama kicker Adam Griffith was short on a 57-yard field goal attempt, Auburn’s Chris Davis returned the missed field goal for a touchdown to win the Iron Bowl 34-28. There is no doubt that this is the biggest win in the career of Gus Malzahn.
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This article originally appeared on Auburn Wire: Auburn football: Gus Malzahn’s top wins as head coach
