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Gus Malzahn Will Not Speak at AFCA Convention, Will Appear on ESPN Instead

By Nicholas Ian Allen

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Auburn head coach Gus Malzahn was scheduled to speak at the annual AFCA Convention, held this year in Louisville. But, those plans have changed, apparently.

The annual American Football Coaches Association Convention, scheduled to run Sunday January 11 through Wednesday January 14 this year in Louisville, Kentucky, is the nation’s premiere coaching convention and clinic.

Jan 1, 2015; Tampa, FL, USA; Auburn Tigers head coach Gus Malzahn reacts against the Wisconsin Badgers during the second half in the 2015 Outback Bowl at Raymond James Stadium. Wisconsin Badgers defeated the Auburn Tigers 34-31 in overtime. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports

Thousands of coaches from all over the country, primarily college coaches of all levels, but some high school and pro coaches as well, make a pilgrimage each year to a central location to meet, swap stories, learn from one another and have a good time.

There are chalk talk sessions where coaches discuss the finer points of X’s & O’s, information sessions on everything from technology to player safety, a trade show featuring the latest gadgets, gizmos and swag, and plenty of meetings behind closed doors.

Interestingly enough, my first face-to-face encounter with Auburn football coach Gus Malzahn came during the 2009 AFCA Convention in Nashville, where the newly hired Tigers offensive coordinator gave a clinic on practice and program organization in great detail. (He also was part of the graduate assistant forum in 2014).

Six years later, and now Auburn’s head coach, Malzahn had been scheduled to speak Monday afternoon at 2:10PM in the convention’s General Session. That made him a headline speaker that would address the entire congregation for an hour. It’s a high-profile assignment reserved for a handful of the best coaches in the business.

However, as of Thursday afternoon, Malzahn is no longer listed among the convention’s speakers. He has been replaced by Arkansas head coach Bret Bielema. You can view the full schedule here.

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The immediate question is, simply, why?

A few days ago, we heard rumblings that the San Francisco 49ers had reached out to Malzahn for their vacant head coaching position. At the time, it really didn’t seem to be anything for Auburn football fans to worry about, but it’s possible canceling his speaking engagement and the NFL are connected.

I remember standing in the lobby of an Orlando convention center during the AFCA meetings in January 2010, watching on television as Lane Kiffin held a press conference in a plain white polo, announcing that he would be leaving Tennessee to become the head coach of the USC Trojans.

Why is this important? Because Kiffin was replacing Pete Carroll, who just left for the Seattle Seahawks.

Hopefully, Malzahn is simply too busy with new hires and recruiting to make it to Louisville. Maybe something else simply came up. And hopefully it’s not because he is meeting with the 49ers or another NFL team.

UPDATE: It appears that Malzahn will miss the speaking event because he will be otherwise engaged with the College Football Playoff National Championship Game broadcast on ESPN. Whew.

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