Did a potential Auburn football coaching exodus already begin?

Win or loss in the Iron Bowl, there might already be an exodus of Auburn football coaches away from the program after just one season with Bryan Harsin at the helm.

A member of Harsin’s support staff, director of player personnel Ryan Smith, has already left the Plains to join Clay Helton’s inaugural staff at Georgia Southern.

Smith had served under both Harsin and former Tigers coach and current UCF sideline leader Gus Malzahn during his time with the program. Before that, he served under Mack Brown at UNC as an offensive analyst.

Has an Auburn football coaching exodus already begun?

If you ask some Tiger fans, they probably would hope that is the case. Faith in certain members of the coaching staff has waned, if not completely evaporated, in recent weeks after a depressing slide down the standings.

Blowing two-touchdown leads against Mississippi State (which is underselling that meltdown) an South Carolina has Auburn football finishing below Arkansas, Ole Miss, and Mississippi State since 2015.

The bad-will, if you will, from those losses has many calling for the dismissals of offensive coordinator Mike Bobo and defensive coordinator Derek Mason. Bobo’s play-calling has arguably boxed out Tank Bigsby from having the season many imagined him having, while Mason’s defense is not forcing the big plays even Kevin Steele’s did during his time as DC.

Perhaps Smith leaving the program will be a one-off coaching exit…but it could also be the start of the tearing down of Harsin’s first support staff with Auburn football.