AUBURN, Ala. — Gene Chizik, the coach at Iowa State the past two seasons, will be formally introduced today as Auburn’s football coach. Then he has a lot of work to do.
The former Tigers defensive coordinator needs to assemble a staff and salvage recruiting after Tommy Tuberville’s resignation. Chizik also faces some skepticism among fans, in part because his Cyclones team lost its final 10 games this season, leaving his record in Ames, Iowa, 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.
Chizik, 46, was hired Saturday in Memphis, Tenn., after three final days of negotiations and two face- to-face meetings with Auburn officials.
“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,” 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.”
Novacek to enter Hall of Fame.
One of the greatest athletes in University of Wyoming history will be recognized when Jay Novacek is honored as one of 15 inductees in the 2008 College Football Hall of Fame Class.
The ceremony will take place in New York on Tuesday night.
Novacek was an All-America tight end at Wyoming in 1984. He still holds the NCAA record for highest average gain per reception in a single season by a tight end, averaging 22.6 yards per catch in 1984.
He also placed fourth in the decathlon at the NCAA track championships his senior season.
The Associated Press
