News Taffy

One thing is certain. No coach in the history of Arkansas State University has ever received the welcome bestowed upon new Head Football Coach Gus Malzahn Wednesday afternoon.

Fans who arrived early were able to claim a seat in the auditorium where Malzahn was introduced, while dozens of others lined the walls of the room filling every available space. Down the hall, hundreds of additional ASU fans filled another room to capacity as they watched a video feed of the event. ASU System President Dr. Charles (Chuck) Welch and ASU Director of Athletics Dr. Dean Lee spoke before Malzahn and his wife, Kristi, were introduced.

A coach whose name is highly recognized throughout Arkansas and the nation, Malzahn has served as the offensive coordinator and quarteracks coach at Auburn for the past three seasons. Known for his innovative offense, he helped Auburn build a record-setting offense in 2010 when the Tigers finished 14-0 and claimed the school's first national championship since 1957.

Fans stood to their feet to welcome Malzahn as he took the podium Thursday, many of them howling as the Fort Smith native donned an ASU visor before addressing the crowd.

Malzahn told the crowd it was good to be back home in Arkansas, the place where he learned football. "I'm an Arkansas guy," he said. "And there's something to coming back home."

Self-described as a high school football coach who happens to be coaching college teams, Malzahn said he had received other offers in the past but had "no peace" about them.

"I've always let the Lord lead and guide my career," he said, noting that previous offers weren't right for him at the time. "Well guess what? This is the right place and this is the right time." 

Before coaching at Auburn, Malzahn spent two seasons at Tulsa, coordinating a Golden Hurricane offense that finished first nationally in total offense in 2007 and 2008. In 2007, Tulsa's offense established nine team school records and 12 individual records. The Hurricane also set nine Conference USA team records.

Prior to his time at Tulsa, he coached one season at Arkansas, where he served as offensive coordinator under former UA Coach Houston Nutt.

During his 14 seasons as a high school head coach, Malzahn led seven teams to the state championship game and won three titles. 

Malzahn told fans he likes to build - another reason why the ASU offer was attractive to him.

"I came here to win championships," he said. "My goal here is to be a Top 25 team year in and year out."