Auburn Tigers head coach Alex Golesh shared a very human story about the final month of his USF Bulls tenure on Thursday during an appearance on Josh Pate's speaker series. It pained Golesh to tell it, but that's a good sign for Tiger fans considering the subject matter.
As Golesh told Pate, he had guilt for not giving USF football his full attention as the Arkansas Razorbacks and Auburn courted him for a coaching jump last November. The Bulls lost a chance at the CFP by losing a conference game against the Navy Midshipmen on November 15. That loss cost USF a title game berth in the American.
“(November was as) interesting a month as I’ve been a part of ... Nothing prepares you for it. I told my wife after it was all over, ‘It’s crazy if anything you go through because there’s nobody you can talk to about it. There’s nobody that can actually relate in the sense that you’re coaching your football team and all you preach is, ‘Block out the noise,'" Golesh said.
“The entire college football world is trying to keep guys focused, week in, week out and then you’re sitting there and there’s this feeling of guilt. Thinking, ‘I am the distraction. And the only reason I am the distraction is because we’re having success.’ That part for me was tough because the last thing I wanted to do was cause any distraction.”
Alex Golesh is at a destination job coaches don't just leave from
Golesh experienced life at an overperforming Group of 5 school during his first head coaching job. With it comes the territory of having to interview for his next job during a championship chase. It's not an easy thing for a man with morals to do. For his second job, though, Golesh is at a destination location. Coaches don't leave the Plains. They're usually forced out before their contract is done.
Shug Jordan was the last man to retire from this job on his own terms. Pat Dye was forced to step down because of an NCAA investigation. Terry Bowden resigned, but the writing was on the wall. Tommy Tuberville arguably resigned, but some would say he was fired, and AU merely let him save face.
Golesh has everything he can want if this gig works out. If it doesn't, well, many Tiger fans would just shrug their shoulders, yell "JABA dabba doo," and keep living life while hoping hoops could provide relief next winter.
Luckily, there's optimism at Auburn that it may finally be different this time, with this guy in charge.