A potentially big upcoming season for Gus Malzahn’s future at Auburn has resulted in several administrative changes to his off-the-field staff on the Plains this past week.
Announced on Thursday, the school confirmed several moves related to the running of the program. Perhaps the most notable change was the promotion of former Nick Saban staffer Patrick Suddes to assistant athletic director for football.
“I’m blessed to work for Coach Malzahn, and to work with this staff,” Suddes said in a release. “Auburn is a great place. It’s a blessing to be here. I’m going to embrace this new role and look forward to serving. I’m excited for the upcoming season.”
Stefan Schmidt takes over Suddes’ previous role as director of player personnel while Brett Whiteside slides over to director of football operations. Former AU offensive lineman Jorrell Bostrom, who won a ring on the 2010 national championship team, received a new title of director of player development.
That’s the biggest bits of shuffling among current staffers but the Tigers also announced two new hires to serve key roles. Former Cincinnati defensive line coach Kenny Ingram returns to Malzahn’s staff as director of player relations while Mollie Moore was poached from rival Georgia to serve as director of recruiting operations.
The moves still place Auburn well behind rival Alabama when it comes to number of non-coaching personnel on staff but do help the team play a bit of catch-up on that front.