Auburn Tigers head coach Gus Malzahn speaks during a press conference after being introduced as the head football coach at Auburn. (John Reed-USA TODAY Sports)
Taking over a college football power has its prestige, but it also includes a tremendous amount of pressure.
All three new coaches in the SEC — Auburn’s Gus Malzahn, Arkansas’ Bret Bielema and Tennessee’s Butch Jones — will not have a honeymoon in the 2013 season. They will be expected to make complete immediate makeovers of their downtrodden programs.
High-priced salaries for coaches and their assistants place more emphasis on getting what schools are paying for, and these guys will be coaching in the football-crazed SEC. They will unfairly be thought of as their respective program’s answer to what Nick Saban has going on at Alabama.
Here is a listing of the new coaches who will feel the most pressure to succeed in 2013:
1. Malzahn
Auburn fans believed Malzahn, the program’s former offensive coordinator, was the coach — not Gene Chizik — behind the Tigers’ 2010 national championship season. Malzahn coached a potent offense and groomed Heisman Trophy winner Cam Newton in the Tigers’ dream season. Malzahn, only 47, should stir up excitement with the players who appeared lost under Chizik. Several hundred fans greeted Malzahn on the day of his hiring, and he rushed along the line exchanging high-fives. He promised to get Auburn “back to winning championships.” Many of those fans will not want to wait long for that to happen.
2. Jones
Jones, 44, is a capable coach but it’s not as if he took Central Michigan and Cincinnati to great heights. He lost 27 games in six seasons at the two schools. At least two other candidates were courted by Tennessee before Jones was hired. Jon Gruden and Charlie Strong rejected the Vols’ offers. Not only will Tennessee fans expect Jones to be an instant improvement over Derek Dooley, they will be watching every move of the new coach until he proves his worth. A cautious Jones talked about championships on the day of his hiring but he added this line: “We will be a champion in everything we do. That’s not only on the field but off the field.” On the field means a lot more to Tennessee fans after three consecutive losing seasons.
3. Mark Helfrich, Oregon
Helfrich, 39, has never been a head coach but has been firmly planted in the Ducks’ program being from nearby Medford, Ore. He knows Chip Kelly’s offense and style of coaching, and the players respect his ability. How that translates into victories and satisfying the Ducks’ fans remains to be seen. Helfrich may feel more comfortable with his surroundings than the other coaches on this list, but his familiarity with Oregon can add to the immediate pressure to succeed. So much is expected of him because of his four years as the offensive coordinator with the Ducks. Also, Oregon fans know if Stanford’s David Shaw can replace Jim Harbaugh without a drop-off, why can’t Helfrich at Oregon?
4. Bielema
Bielema’s experience at Arkansas is already turbulent, with some fans and members of the media criticizing his hire and one prized recruit’s mother taking her son’s letter of intent away and running out the door so he would not sign with the Razorbacks. Alex Collins, a top-flight running back, eventually signed with Bielema, despite his mother’s wishes. Bielema, 43, never endured a losing season in his seven seasons with Wisconsin, and he coached the Badgers to three straight Rose Bowl appearances. Starved Hogs will expect the same kind of success, especially after last season’s 4-8 debacle under interim John L. Smith. The coaching and talent in the SEC exceeds that in the Big Ten, so Bielema has the pressure to show he belongs.
5. Bobby Petrino, Western Kentucky
After his year away from coaching following his firing at Arkansas, Petrino will place more pressure on himself and his staff to succeed than the Western Kentucky faithful. Petrino wants to show other athletic directors and the media that he can continue to lead a program to prominence. This Western Kentucky stint is a short-term position for him to return to major-college coaching. The quicker he can lead Western Kentucky to success, the better the story of his hire will be. With 13 starters returning from last season’s 7-6 team, Petrino has a basis to build from. Neither he nor the Hilltoppers fans will be thrilled with anything less than a seven-win season in his first year.
