Auburn football: Analyst bearish on Kevin Steele’s future after Tide
Longtime Auburn football defensive coordinator Kevin Steele is now on his third Tuscaloosa residency under Nick Saban — with the possible long-term hope to become a head coach in college football again.
It has been over two decades since Steele has had such a role, but if his 2020 coup to land the head coaching job for Auburn football was any indication, that is his ultimate goal once again. It’s not outlandish to think an SEC program with a coach on the hot seat like Eliah Drinkwitz at Mizzou could hire Steele away after a 2023 Crimson Tide College Football Playoff championship.
But The War Rapport’s Mike Gittens has zero faith that would happen, even going as far as to say that Steele wouldn’t receive credit for a revival of the mid-2010s era unstoppable Alabama defenses:
Kevin Steele is one of the only Saban coordinator hires in a long time that has no chance of springboarding this opportunity into a head coaching job. ZERO chance. If his defense looks good at Bama, trust me it's the 1,000,000 5 stars.@thewarrapport
— Mike G. (@mikegittens) February 7, 2023
Auburn football coordinator flight risks after 2023
Down on the Plains, Auburn football has major turnaround potential if the Tigers have several things break their way. If Hugh Freeze has the team in the hunt for an SEC Championship berth, it’d be a great sign for him and his hirings.
In particular, Philip Montgomery could be someone in line for a head coach opening next hiring cycle if he is able to get the AU offense going next season. As a longtime quarterbacks/running backs coach, his experience could be particularly beneficial for presumed starter Robby Ashford — presumed, of course, if and only if the starting quarterback is on campus right now. Freeze hasn’t committed to that, though.
Regardless, Montgomery comes into the season coming off of eight consecutive seasons as head coach. It wouldn’t be shocking to see him parlay that into a head coaching jump next offseason — after major improvements to the Tigers’ offense — if offered.