Auburn analyst hilariously ties LSU’s vacated wins to disgraced former coach
Opelika-Auburn News editor Justin Lee was able to tie LSU’s recently vacated wins from the 2012-2015 season as a result of the Will Wade saga to the failures of former Auburn football head coach Bryan Harsin, the least popular man (formerly) on the Plains. As Lee points out, with LSU vacating wins against AU in Gene Chizik’s final year and two of Gus Malzahn’s first three seasons, the latter — and the former for that matter — now have more wins than Harsin did in his last nine tries (Texas A&M, Mississippi State, South Carolina, Alabama, LSU, Ole Miss, Arkansas):
Gus Malzahn won more SEC games today than Bryan Harsin did in his last 9 SEC attempts, dating back to Oct. 30, 2021. https://t.co/i1wMOPd2J1
— Justin Lee (@ByJustinLee) June 22, 2023
NOLA.com’s Wilson Alexander broke down the circumstances behind LSU’s self-imposed sanctions.
“LSU vacated all 37 wins, including two bowl victories, because former offensive lineman Vadal Alexander competed while ineligible his entire career,” Alexander wrote. “Alexander, a four-year starter, played in 50 games. He only missed one, a 2014 loss to Arkansas. LSU self-imposed the penalty in its response to the NOA, which the school received in March 2022. The penalty, one of several LSU self-imposed to mitigate NCAA punishment, remained confidential until the final ruling was released Thursday.”
Bryan Harsin made enemies of most Auburn football reporters
Harsin had famous run-ins with just about every major Auburn football credentialed reporter, with AL.com’s Joseph Goodman being perhaps his greatest rival and Lee coming close behind. From #HatGate to the snide way of responding to the AP’s John Zenor after getting the doors blown off by Penn State the Saturday prior.
Auburn HC Bryan Harsin asked by @jzenor if QB Zach Calzada is 100% in terms of health right now
— Justin Ferguson (@JFergusonAU) September 19, 2022
Harsin: "You know something I don't?"
JZ: "No."
JH: "He's competed like everybody else. Those guys, every single week get those opportunities. And we try to play the best players."
While Harsin certainly didn’t ingratiate himself to the fanbase by shirking the responsibilities of, well, actually recruiting and making the team better as a leader, he angered reporters around the Plains perhaps even more.
After his sit-down interview with ESPN’s Chris Low painting himself as the victim, there will never be a cease-fire from Tiger fans who saw two seasons of Auburn football go to waste as the man responsible became one of the state of Alabama’s highest-paid employees.