Auburn has found its new head coach: South Florida’s Alex Golesh. Sports Illustrated’s Pat Forde confirmed the news on Sunday. Shortly after the initial report came out, Auburn confirmed the news with a press release.
It is a six-year deal for Golesh and the Tigers, ESPN’s Pete Thamel reported.
“Auburn Football is one of the proudest, most tradition-rich programs in all of college football and my family and I could not be more excited to join the Auburn family,” Golesh said in a statement. “This will be a player-driven program, and no one will outwork our staff. Auburn has won, can win and will win championships. Let’s get to work.”
It has been a breakout year for Golesh at USF as the team went 9–3 during the regular season and has been considered for the College Football Playoff. Now Golesh will replace Hugh Freeze at Auburn after the program fired Freeze following his 4–5 start to the season. The Tigers ultimately went 5–7 after D.J. Durkin took over as interim coach.
Golesh led the Bulls the past three seasons and posted a 23–15 record. In the previous three seasons to Golesh joining the staff, South Florida had won a total of four games. Golesh also led the Bulls to two bowl victories in the past two seasons. He definitely altered the environment at USF for the better.
This season alone, Golesh brought South Florida back into the AP Top 25 rankings for the first time since 2018. Additionally, the Bulls beat ranked opponents in consecutive weeks for the first time in program history after wins over Boise State and Florida.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as Auburn Hires Breakout South Florida Coach Alex Golesh.
