AUBURN, Ala. (AP) -Gene Chizik will be formally introduced Monday as Auburn’s football coach. As soon as that’s done, he’ll have a lot of work to do.
The former Tigers defensive coordinator needs to assemble a staff and salvage recruiting following Tommy Tuberville’s resignation. He also faces some skepticism among fans, in part because his Iowa State team lost its final 10 games this season, leaving his record there at 5-19 in two seasons.
“I know that we have found the right fit for Auburn,” Auburn athletic director Jay Jacobs said in a statement, describing Chizik as “a high-energy coach that is an outstanding motivator and demands a tough, physical style of football.”
When Chizik was the defensive coordinator at Auburn in 2004, the Tigers went 13-0 and the next year he went to Texas. With him as defensive coordinator, the Longhorns also went 13-0 and won the national championship.
The 46-year-old Chizik was hired Saturday in Memphis, Tenn., after three final days of negotiations and two face-to-face meetings with Auburn officials.
the last 23 years, there’s one place that I’ve always wanted to return to and that is Auburn,” Chizik said in a statement. “The tradition of the Auburn football program combined with the passionate fans and their love for Auburn are second to none.”
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