Auburn football defensive coordinator Derek Mason has been linked to the Arizona State HC opening, one that was created in the wake of Herm Edwards and the Sun Devils program brain trust agreeing to terminate their ties.
Edwards had never matched the highs his predecessors did, twice reaching eight wins at ASU’s height under his leadership. Todd Graham (2x) and Dennis Erickson had reached double digits win totals during their time in the desert.
Mason is a somewhat surprising name to be tabbed by ESPN’s Pete Thamel as an Edwards replacement considering his lack of success as a head coach at Vanderbilt and his less than stellar stint at AU — somewhat underwhelming start to his most-expensive-defensive-coordinator-ever run with Oklahoma State. Sure, the Cowboys gave up just 17 points to Arizona State, but they also let Central Michigan QB Daniel Richardson light them up for 424 yards through the air and four touchdowns.
Bryan Harsin was also a name to watch for the Arizona State role after the putrid Penn State outing this past weekend on the Plains. He has Pacific Northwest pull and was at Texas for a bit, but Arizona would be new ground for the Boise native.
Auburn football HC Bryan Harsin needs to beat Mizzou to avoid more hot seat talk
A loss to Missouri as a double-digit point spread favorite could spell doom for Auburn football HC Bryan Harsin. Vegas oddsmakers really had to amp up the pressure and demand the Tigers to show something against a Missouri squad that hasn’t looked great since their LA Tech beatdown Week 1.
The best way to cool down the hot seat talk is to handle your business, and losing one game as an underdog wouldn’t be the be all, end all for the Harsin era if not for the offseason inquiry that did unspeakable harm but no good.
Losing to Mizzou sets that seat on fire. Let an uneasy week in Auburn begin.