AUBURN, Ala. – Auburn's Gus Malzahn is one of 23 college football coaches on the preseason watch list for the 2019 Dodd Trophy.
The Dodd Trophy celebrates the head coach of a team which enjoys on-field success, while also stressing the importance of scholarship, leadership and integrity – the three pillars of legendary coach Bobby Dodd's coaching philosophy.
The Bobby Dodd Coach of the Year Foundation and the Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl released the list Thursday, representing all Power 5 conferences along with the Mountain West and independents Notre Dame and Army.
Entering his seventh season as Auburn's head coach, Malzahn is one of five SEC coaches on the list, along with Florida's Dan Mullen, Texas A&M's Jimbo Fisher, Alabama's Nick Saban and Georgia's Kirby Smart.
The watch list was created through a selection process by the Bobby Dodd Coach of the Year Foundation and Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl, taking into consideration each program's graduation rate, commitment to service and charity in the community, projected success for the 2019 season and Academic Progress Rate (APR).
"The Dodd Trophy is the most coveted coach of the year award because it looks beyond just the results on the field and measures the overall impact these coaches have had on their players, universities and communities," said Jim Terry, chairman of the Bobby Dodd Coach of the Year Foundation. "When determining candidates for the watch list, we carefully consider each coach's commitment to the award's three pillars of scholarship, leadership and integrity."
"This impressive group of coaches has an unprecedented resume of nine National Championships, 50 conference titles and 2,012 career wins," said Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl CEO & President Gary Stokan. "In what will be the sport's 150th anniversary season, we couldn't have asked for a more influential list of current coaches who have left their mark on college football."
The Big Ten leads all conferences with six coaches making the list, followed closely by the SEC with five representatives. Last year's winner Brian Kelly is joined by Jeff Monken as the two coaches on the list who represent independent institutions.
A midseason watch list – adding to or narrowing the field – will be released in the fall. A panel consisting of previous winners, national media, a member of the Dodd family and a College Football Hall of Fame member will identify the final list of potential recipients at the conclusion of the 2019 season. The winner of the 2019 Dodd Trophy will be announced in Atlanta during the week of the Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl.
Starting in September, the Dodd Coach of the Week Award will also be presented weekly to the coach whose program embodies the award's three pillars of scholarship, leadership and integrity, while also having success on the playing field during the previous week.
Jeff Shearer is a Senior Writer at AuburnTigers.com. Follow him on Twitter: @jeff_shearer