After being hired away from the Seattle Seahawks and spending only a few weeks with the Auburn football program, Austin Davis will be stepping down as offensive coordinator. Davis arrived on the Plains earlier this month but will leave the program without ever having coached the Tigers.
Adam Rittenberg of ESPN reported that Davis is stepping down due to personal reasons, and it is unclear whether or not he will step away from football completely or return to the NFL.
Per Auburn Undercover, Davis made one known recruiting stop with head coach Bryan Harsin to Birmingham to visit 2023 4-star quarterback Christopher Vizzina, but he was not on the recruiting trail last week and did not take part in Auburn football’s Junior Day over the weekend.
After all the turnover on Bryan Harsin’s coaching staff, fans of Auburn football had a hard time putting a positive spin on the latest news and went in on the former OC via Twitter:
“I do not believe in work, certainly not hard work.” - Austin Davis, probably
— Skye Underwood (@SkyeUnderwood) January 31, 2022
Austin Davis recruiting Zach Calzada pic.twitter.com/khIoCnutTW
— ED KING FOREVER (@LonelyTalegater) January 31, 2022
Auburn Live’s Justin Hokanson indicates that Davis was “surprised by the work demands” after arriving on the Plains and wanted to rethink his decision. He made his resignation official to Bryan Harsin this morning:
Statement from Austin Davis on his decision to resign as Auburn’s OC pic.twitter.com/4MtCnJYLFF
— Tom Green (@Tomas_Verde) January 31, 2022
Now, after just replacing defensive coordinator Derek Mason, Coach Harsin will have to search for a new offensive coordinator yet again. While many will place the blame on Harsin’s shoulders, Auburn football needs strong coordinators that want to work hard for the program, and if Davis is not that guy, Harsin will find someone that is.