Auburn football fans joke about Bryan Harsin becoming next Alabama OC

With Bill O’Brien departing Tuscaloosa to become the next New England Patriots offensive coordinator, there is a void at OC for the Crimson Tide — and Auburn football fans have the *perfect* option to replace O’Brien at Alabama: Bryan Harsin.

Obviously, any time a Tigers fan or Tide fan is suggesting a candidate for a role on the other Iron Bowl rival’s staff, it’s probably not in the rival team’s best interest. After coaching the Auburn offense to the 59th rank in 2021 despite having a Heisman-caliber quarterback under center (Bo Nix) and an NFL draft-bound potential Day 1 draftee (Tank Bigsby), it’s unlikely any Power Five team — let alone the winningest team in the College Football Playoff era — would be interested in adding him considering the baggage he now brings following his infamous inquiry.

Here were the suggestions from Auburn football fans on Twitter regarding who Nick Saban should hire to replace O’Brien as offensive coordinator:

Alabama OC options that aren’t former Auburn football HC Bryan Harsin

With that bit of fun out of the way, there is now officially a search for one of the most important functions of the twilight of Nick Saban’s career: the man who will oversee the Crimson Tide offense. Saban is a master recruiter on both sides of the ball regardless of who is on his staff, but the Tide’s offensive play-calling took a downturn under Bill O’Brien relative to Steve Sarkisian’s results.

When it comes to the next Alabama offensive coordinator, Oklahoma’s Jeff Lebby has emerged as a top candidate, while many NFL OCs and former head coaches at the pro level are also expected to be in play.