Paul Finebaum no longer has faith in Bryan Harsin sticking around beyond Year 2 as head coach of the Auburn Tigers, and he believes the current narrative is no longer about if he’ll be replaced, but when.
"“It will no longer be, ‘Can Bryan Harsin survive?’ The questions now are, ‘Who will take his place.'”"
Finebaum went on to question during his Sunday takeaway YouTube show with SportsCenter anchor Matt Barrie whether or not Auburn even has a head coach currently that understands the intricacies of recruiting and competing in the SEC — something the HC’s recent history, unfortunately, doesn’t exactly refute.
The formerly Birmingham-based SEC network radio host hit Harsin with quite the haymaker, saying ‘the next coach at Auburn is going to understand the SEC, unlike Bryan Harsin’ (transcript via Saturday Down South).
Clay Travis suggest Lane Kiffin as a potential Bryan Harsin replacement
Paul Finebaum isn’t the only notable name talking about Bryan Harsin almost in the past tense. OutKick’s Clay Travis has already begun trying to find Harsin’s replacement and suggested a current SEC coach:
Pure destruction from Penn State. Don’t think Bryan Harsin survives the season. This Auburn offense is awful.
— Clay Travis (@ClayTravis) September 17, 2022
Auburn has to hire an AD too. But let’s pretend you’re Auburn’s newly hired AD, who do you hire? I’d probably try and steal away Lane Kiffin from Ole Miss.
— Clay Travis (@ClayTravis) September 17, 2022
As Fly War Eagle stated yesterday, if Lane Kiffin leaves Ole Miss after just four years in Oxford to go to Auburn, he’d be a flight risk from the minute he steps on campus. At this point, Kiffin isn’t the best option for that reason.
Hugh Freeze has SEC experience and has elevated the Liberty football program to unprecedented heights in the last four seasons — particularly during the 2020 season where his Flames knocked off the undefeated darling Coastal Carolina.
Perhaps the most interesting name is Mark Stoops. If he’d be willing to leave Kentucky, that’d be a home run hire for Auburn.