Gus Malzahn said after Auburn's SEC Championship loss to Georgia on Saturday he wanted to stay at Auburn. He's going to get his wish.
The 5th-year Auburn coach signed a contract extension Sunday to remain on the Plains, according to Brandon Marcello of Auburn Undercover.
Marcello reports that the numbers are not clear at this time, but Malzahn's new deal is expected to last five years with a salary stretching up to $7 million. Malzahn earned $4.7 million in 2017, according to the USA Today salary database, ranking 11th in the country and trailing Nick Saban and Kevin Sumlin in the SEC West.
The extension comes after Arkansas focused its coaching search on bringing the Fort Smith Christian High School graduate home, back to state he went to high school and college and then cut his teeth as a high school coach. After an uber-successful run as an Arkansas high school coach, Malzahn began his college career as Houston Nutt's offensive coordinator at Arkansas in 2006, a 1-year tenure that started fantastically -- the Hogs were 10-1 at one point -- and ended in the type of drama only the SEC can produce.
That season in Fayetteville eventually led him to the head coaching job at Auburn, where he has compiled a 45-21 record with one SEC championship in five seasons. Malzahn has Auburn at 10-3 this season with an SEC West championship; the second-ranked Tigers hoped to reach the College Football Playoff with a win over No. 6 Georgia on Saturday, but those hopes were dashed in a 28-7 loss that denied Auburn the SEC title and opened the door for Arkansas to make a run at its native son.
Malzahn will conclude his fifth season with a date against Central Florida in the Peach Bowl on New Year's Day.
As always, stay tuned to The Scoop for the latest.