Will Muschamp’s next stop in his coaching career will be right where it started.
The former Florida head coach agreed on Friday to become the next defensive coordinator at Auburn University, multiple media sources have reported. Sports Illustrated was the first to report the news.
This marks Muschamp’s third stint with the Tigers in his coaching career.
The 43-year-old coach began his coaching career as a graduate assistant at Auburn from 1995-1996 and then served as the Tigers’ defensive coordinator from 2006-2007.
Muschamp, known for his defensive prowess, has been deemed the key to fixing an Auburn defense that has struggled as of late.
In the last four seasons, the Tigers have never finished higher than ninth in the Southeastern Conference and 61st nationally in total defense, while the Muschamp-led Gators defense never dipped below fifth and ninth in the respective categories from 2011-2014.
While Auburn has struggled on the defensive side of the ball, the Tigers’ offense has shown strides in the last two seasons under head coach Gus Malzahn.
Since Malzahn took over in the 2013 season, the Tigers finished in the top three of the SEC in total offense in both seasons, averaging 495.7 yards per game in 26 contests.
“My family, Carol, Jackson, Whit and I are excited about coming back to Auburn,” Muschamp said in a released statement, “and I look forward to working with Coach Malzahn to win national championships.”
Malzahn took to Twitter to give Muschamp an appropriate welcome.
“BOOM! Welcome back @CoachWMuschamp to the Auburn Family! #WarEagle,” he posted via his account (@CoachGusMalzahn) at 11:11 p.m.
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Will Muschamp signals during UF's 38-20 win against UGA on Nov. 1 at EverBank Field in Jacksonville.