Odds to Be Next Auburn Football Head Coach After Bryan Harsin Fired – Grimes, Freeze and Kiffin Top Favorites

• Auburn is looking for a new football coach after firing Bryan Harsin
• Baylor offensive coordinator Jeff Grimes is favored to replace Harsin
• A look at the Auburn coaching odds and analysis can be found below

New Auburn athletic director John Cohen had barely settled into his office Monday when he made his first decision – firing embattled football coach Bryan Harsin.

The news came as little surprise as Harsin had a 9-12 record in his two years leading the Tigers, including 3-5 this season. He seemed an odd fit from the beginning after being hired away from Boise State, far, far away from SEC country.

Cohen’s second order of business will be finding a new coach.

Next Auburn Coach Odds

Jeff Grimes has been installed as +200 favorite. That gives the Baylor offensive coordinator an implied probability of 33.33% of being Harsin’s replacement in the estimation of the oddsmakers.

Grimes The Favorite

Grimes has built a reputation as an outstanding offensive coordinator, first at BYU and now at Baylor.

Grimes helped mold BYU quarterback Zach Wilson into the No. 2 overall pick in last year’s NFL Draft by the New York Jets. Baylor is 15^th in the nation in scoring offense this season with an average of 38.4 points a game.

Jeff Grimes doesn’t call a lot of trick plays, but when he does, it’s a good one. pic.twitter.com/Q1ZFzIhPqr

— Colt Barber (@Colt_Barber) September 24, 2022

Twice, Grimes has been a candidate for the Broyles Award, which goes to the nation’s top assistant coach.

It also helps the 54-year-old Texas native’s cause that he has ties to Auburn’s glory days, serving as offensive line coach from 2009-12. The Tigers won the national championship in 2010.

Freeze, Kiffin Next on Board

The second and third choices to succeed Harsin are current successful college head coaches – Liberty’s Hugh Freeze and Ole Miss’ Lane Kiffin.

Freeze has revitalized his career at Liberty after being fired at Ole Miss amidst a scandal. The Flames are 7-1 and #23 in the AP media poll this year and 33-12 in four seasons with Freeze at the helm.

The year after Malik Willis graduated, injuries have forced @LibertyFootball to use THREE different starting QBs… yet the Flames are 7-1 and ranked.

Hugh Freeze needs to be on every COY short list right now.. pic.twitter.com/Gvf0uCuOdB

— Rich Cirminiello (@RichCirminiello) November 1, 2022

Freeze recently signed an eight-year extension that keeps him under contract at Liberty through 2030. However, the buyout is reportedly reasonable, especially for a program with influential boosters like Auburn.

At Ole Miss, Freeze showed he could compete in the SEC. The Rebels were 39-25 over five seasons from 2012-16 and twice beat Alabama.

Freeze also went 10-3 in his lone season at Arkansas State. He has an overall record of 102-45 in 12 seasons, including two at Lambuth, an NAIA program.

Kiffin has compiled a 23-9 record in his three seasons in Oxford. This season, the Rebels are 8-1 with a #11 ranking in the CFP selection committee’s first poll, which was released Tuesday night.

Ole Miss was down 14-10 at halftime.@Lane_Kiffin changed hoodies.@OleMissFB won 31-28. pic.twitter.com/o0pi4cv057

— SEC Network (@SECNetwork) October 30, 2022

Kiffin also has head collegiate coaching experience at Tennessee, USC and Florida Atlantic along with a stint as Nick Saban’s offensive coordinator at Alabama. His overall record is 85-43, which offsets a disastrous NFL coaching stint in which he was 5-15 with the then-Oakland Raiders from 2007-08.

Who Will Get The Auburn Job?

Despite his outstanding record at Ole Miss, Kiffin is showing signs of wanderlust. He has been critical of the Rebels’ fans this season and reportedly would be open to leaving Oxford.

Kiffin is everything Auburn could want in a coach. He knows how to recruit and win in the SEC and would also be sure to draw some attention away from archrival Alabama with his outspokenness and social media presence.

Lane Kiffin: calls A&M player a bitch and says something to him about faking injuries

Also Lane Kiffin: pic.twitter.com/P2GrYrIlrq

— Ghost of Allyn McKeen (@AllynMcKeen) October 30, 2022

Kiffin is the best bet here, though Kentucky’s Mark Stoops is intriguing as a +2100 shot for much the same reasons, minus the braggadocio.