Auburn Football: 6 Reasons Why Scot Loeffler Was the Right Hire for the Tigers

After a lengthy 40-day search, Auburn named Scot Loeffler offensive coordinator in late late January. Looking at Loeffler’s past 13 years in coaching, it isn’t tough to find reasons why Loeffler was the right hire for the Tigers.

Auburn had issues with offensive identity a year ago, ending the Tigers' second run at a purely spread-based offense with the departure of Gus Malzahn to Arkansas State. Loeffler will look to employ a varying array of formations, commonly referred to as “multiple.”

Loeffler has a host of big-name advocates and an adaptive approach to play-calling. Here are six reasons why it was the right move for the Tigers.

Coordinator on the Rise

Scot Loeffler is a coordinator on the rise. Throughout his coaching career, Loeffler has had the opportunity to learn under some of the best minds in the game, developing a host of options for his offense.

Loeffler played quarterback under Lloyd Carr at Michigan, later becoming a graduate assistant and QBs coach for the Wolverines. Loeffler also coached quarterbacks at Central Michigan, Florida and for the Detroit Lions.

Last season was Loeffler’s first as a coordinator, where he helped take the Temple offense from No. 95 overall in 2010, to No. 56 overall in 2011 with virtually the same roster.

Loeffler will have much more to talent to work with at Auburn, with the assumption that the Tigers should see an increase in production with the new ideas that Loeffler will bring to the Plains.

Quarterback Developer

Scot Loeffler is a quarterback developer. It really is that simple.

Looking at the Loeffler track record, he has worked with six NFL quarterbacks in his collegiate coaching career. The most famous of which is undoubtedly Tom Brady.

Brady is close enough with Loeffler that he placed a phone call to congratulate the new Auburn coordinator after the Patriots' AFC championship win.

Loeffler also worked with Brian Griese, Drew Henson, John Navarre, Chad Henne and Tim Tebow, all players drafted into the NFL.

Call me crazy, but helping launch six quarterbacks into the NFL is very impressive and proof positive that this guy can coach and develop quarterbacks—a very important need for the Tigers this season. 

Winning Pedigree

When looking for a replacement for a major position like offensive coordinator, hiring a guy with a winning pedigree is always a plus. Scot Loeffler falls into that category.

As mentioned earlier, Loeffler played for Lloyd Carr during the 1990s and became a student graduate assistant with the Wolverines. The Wolverines won at least eight games during his time in the '90s.

Loeffler returned and served as Michigan's quarterbacks coach from 2002-07, helping the Wolverines win 56 games in that time. The Wolverines also had two 10-win seasons and one 11-win season when he was with the Wolverines.

Loeffler left Michigan for the Detroit Lions in 2008, and then moved to Gainesville to help direct the Florida Gators offense under Steve Addazio. The Gators won 13 games that season.

Loeffler has been a part of a winning team everywhere he has gone outside of the Detroit Lions. The guy knows how to win, plain and simple. 

High Praise from a Coaching Legend

Receiving high praise from a coaching legend doesn't happen often for a second-year offensive coordinator. Loeffler has received that praise from coaching legend Lloyd Carr.

Lloyd Carr holds a 122-40 overall college coaching record. He also led the Michigan Wolverines to the national title in 1997. The guy knows how to coach, and definitely how to win ballgames. He also knows how to endorse a former pupil.

Speaking with the Patriot News during the 2011 season, Carr said “Talk to any quarterback Scot's ever coached, they’ll all say the same thing: His meetings are unbelievable. You're going to learn the game, and he makes it fun.”

If that isn’t a ringing endorsement, I'm not sure what is. Carr goes onto say that “his expectations are high, but not unrealistic,” making for the appearance of a coach that can understand his players, and their level of development.

Loeffler is also quoted in the interview discussing his close friendship with Patriots star Tom Brady. “We talk every three weeks or so and it's the same old Brady and the same old Scot,” Loeffler said.

Couple that with the congratulatory call that Loeffler received the night of his announced hiring at Auburn and Loeffler has better endorsements than most major pro athletes. 

Player-Based System

A player-based offensive system comes off as cliché, but it happens to be the truth. The Temple offense rushed the ball nearly 75 percent of the time under Loeffler, a number that was built by necessity.

The Owls had a ton of issues at quarterback, balancing three different players under center throughout the season. Unfortunately for the Owls, no option was a good one. Loeffler built his system around his available athletes. While at Auburn, he plans to do the same.

Speaking with the Auburn media shortly after his hire, Loeffler said he and the Auburn coaching staff were “trying to create a system that is extremely flexible," "user friendly" and specifically tailored to the team's strengths, "particularly the offensive line and quarterback."

Loeffler has the opportunity to not only build his own offensive identity, but also an identity for Auburn that fits the players on campus. Having the flexibility that Loeffler does is a plus for the Tigers.

Running Is a Priority

Auburn football has historically been known for its strong defense and tough rushing offense. The Tigers will have the run as a priority as usual in 2012.

As previously noted, Loeffler led the Temple offense to the seventh-best rushing attack in the country in 2011. That same focus and drive on the run will be a huge benefit for the Tigers.

Auburn will have a wealth of talent in the backfield this season, and will likely rely on the rushing attack while the quarterbacks develop under the Loeffler system. It will be a treat for Auburn fans as they watch Loeffler find ways to get the host of talented backs into the game.

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