Who Then?

 I want to state for the record that I am a Gene Chizik fan. As a Christian, I also am pulling for Gene to turn things around at Auburn, and that somehow he gets to keep his job there. Eventually he will take another team to the football championship, I truly believe that. 

 What I can gather from reading his book All In his beliefs and mine are relatively the same. I get the sense that he and I could become good friends if he didn't have such a high profile lifestyle.

 Maybe we all think that about someone who is famous, maybe I am reaching, I know I am digressing, so let me get to the true context of this post. My hope as I stated is that Chizik can somehow pull off a miracle, if not and the powers at Auburn choose to go in another direction to lead this team, who then will they go after?

 I was fortunate enough to have a lengthy discussion with some very intelligent people on twitter last night, and we came up with some names. Two of which are real surprises, to me at least. Lets take a look at those names, and a brief peek into their resume's.

 Al Golden  
 He is currently with Miami. My belief is the he was misled about the situation there. I would not be happy if I were in his shoes, is he happy in Miami? Would he leave for Auburn?

  Golden arrived in Coral Gables after spending five seasons (2006-2010) as the head coach at Temple University. Over five seasons at Temple, Golden took the Owls to unprecedented heights. Before his arrival, TU had just two winning seasons over its previous 26 years and had only won 22 percent of its games over the previous 30 years.-via the Miami hurricane official site

   Named defensive coordinator by Virginia head coach Al Groh in 2001, Golden became the youngest defensive coordinator in Division I-A.^[1] He had spent the previous season at his alma mater, Penn State University, serving as linebackers coach and recruiting coordinator under Joe Paterno.^[1] From 2001 to 2004, the Cavaliers' defense improved under his tutelage, ranking 108th in total defense in his first year to ranking 18th in total defense in 2004. In the same time period, Virginia's scoring defense went from 74th in the nation (27.6 ppg) to 17th (17.7 ppg) utilizing Golden's 3–4 defense. - wikipedia

Chris Peterson 
 The head coach of Boise State, who once again is in the chase for a BCS bowl.

 Success has come at extraordinary levels for Boise State head football coach Chris Petersen during his five years guiding the program. Petersen is the winningest active coach in the Football Bowl Subdivision, boasting a 61-5 record for a winning percentage of .924. The mark is the second-highest amongst active coaches at any four-year institution, regardless of division or association. He is also one of just six coaches nationally to have won multiple Bowl Championship Series games at his current school.-  boise state bronco official site

  Would he leave Boise State, where some say he has it made? Would he relish a chance to show he can coach at the nations premier football conference?

 Charlie Strong
 Strong is a former Gator defensive coordinator who was also their recruiting coordinator. Lots of fans love this pick because he knows the SEC, and he recruited well in the ares that Auburn historically does the highest percentage of their recruiting.


In 1999, Strong joined the South Carolina Gamecocks as defensive coordinator, becoming the first African American coordinator in Southeastern Conference (SEC) history. His stifling defenses and charismatic personality created buzz that he would be possibly the first black head coach in the SEC, but job offers were slim. Sylvester Croom eventually broke the color barrier in the SEC coaching ranks.
Strong was hired as defensive coordinator for the Florida Gators before the 2003 season. Florida head coach Ron Zook was fired midway through the Gators' 2004 season, but continued to coach until the bowl game; Strong served as interim coach of the Gators for one game, the December 2004 Peach Bowl. Florida lost the game, 27–10, to the Miami Hurricanes. Florida credits the regular season to Zook and the Peach Bowl to Strong. When Urban Meyer was hired as Florida's head coach, Strong was the only assistant coach retained from Zook's staff. - wikipedia

A man with a proven track record as an assistant coach for 27 years and winning two national titles, Strong has a clear vision of re-building the Cardinals' football program based on character, hard work and honor.
In two seasons at Louisville, Strong has guided the Cardinals to consecutive bowl appearances, and the school's first BIG EAST title since 2006. He is only the third coach in U of L history to guide his first two teams to bowl games and 14 wins after inheriting a team that won just 15 games in the three seasons before Strong was hired.- via louisville cardinal official site


 Greg Schiano 
 He is currently the head football coach of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in the NFL. He was at Rutgers at the height of Rutgers football prowess. His ties to the NFL would be very attractive to most recruits.

 Schiano served as defensive coordinator for the University of Miami from 1999 to 2000. In 1999, UM finished the year ranked 12th in the NCAA's Division I-A in points allowed per game (17.2), and in 2000 moved up to 5th (15.5 points allowed per game) - wikipedia

 
Named the ninth head coach in franchise history on January 27, 2012, Greg Schiano enters his first season at the helm of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in 2012.
This will mark the fourth season of NFL experience for Schiano, who also brings to Tampa Bay a wealth of experience from his 21 seasons working amongst the college ranks. - tampa bay buccaneers official site



One other name thrown in by a fan at the game Saturday. Tracy Rocker, because we would be mean as hell if he was the coach, and the attitude of the team needs to change. 

 So, there you have it. A qualified, and varied list of fans candidates for replacing Gene Chizik at Auburn if he is fired at season's end. Give us your thoughts in the comments section, and as always

WAR EAGLE!