Auburn hires Harsin to lead football program

Auburn has hired Boise State's Bryan Harsin as its head coach, luring him away from his alma mater and into the powerful Southeastern Conference.

Auburn announced the hiring Tuesday evening. The 44-year-old Harsin is 69-19 with three Mountain West titles in seven seasons at Boise State, but winning in the SEC affords greater chances for playoff berths and national titles.

The Auburn job is also sure to bring a major pay raise, though contract details for Harsin weren't immediately available.

“I'm incredibly excited and humbled for the opportunity to be at a place like Auburn University,” Harsin said in a statement. “I knew it would take a special opportunity to get me out of Boise and Auburn is exactly that, the chance to compete at the highest level for one of the greatest programs in college football.

“I have a tremendous amount of respect for the coaches and players in the Southeastern Conference, but am ready to help build a foundation at Auburn where we can consistently compete for championships.”

That has been easier said than done in the brutal SEC West, presided over by in-state rival Alabama.

Auburn fired Gus Malzahn earlier this month after he went 6-4 in his eighth season — a move that cost the school more than $21 million to buy out the former coach's contract. Auburn has been an up-anddown program, winning the national championship under Gene Chizik before going on a rapid decline.

The Tigers turned to Malzahn, the offensive coordinator for that Cam Newton-led team. Malzahn led Auburn to the Southeastern Conference championship and into the national championship game in his first season, 2013. But the Tigers have lost at least four games in each of the seven seasons since.

The Tigers sought out their next coach from more than 2,100 miles away.

“He's a proven winner whose record speaks for itself,” Auburn athletic director Allen Greene said. “Coach Harsin impressed me with his detailed plan to lead Auburn to consistently compete for championships in the Southeastern Conference.”

Harsin also replaced Malzahn at Arkansas State in 2013, winning a share of the Sun Belt Conference title in his lone season.