AUBURN, Ala. – Gus Malzahn will join an elite Auburn fraternity Saturday, becoming the fifth coach to lead the Tigers in 100 games.
Shug Jordan, Mike Donahue, Pat Dye and Tommy Tuberville are the four other members of Auburn's 100-game club.
"How blessed I am to be at Auburn," Malzahn said on the eve of game No. 100. "I'm thinking about all the special times we've had, all the big games we've been fortunate enough to win, and all the great players I've been fortunate enough to coach during this time."
Having served as Auburn's offensive coordinator from 2009-2011, Malzahn returned to the Plains as head coach in 2013, leading the Tigers to a 31-24 win vs. Washington State in his debut.
Introduced as Auburn's 27th head coach on Dec. 4, 2012, Malzahn directed one of the greatest turnarounds in college football history, inheriting a team that had gone 0-8 in the SEC the previous season and leading it to an SEC championship and an appearance in the national title game.
"That was a magical deal," Malzahn said. "Playing for a national championship, winning the SEC was unbelievable."
In eight seasons, he's led Auburn to a pair of SEC Western Division titles, leading to two trips to Atlanta for the SEC Championship Game.
"I was very fortunate to be here before when we won the national championship," said Malzahn, who served as Auburn's offensive coordinator from 2009-11. "I knew what Auburn football was at its core, and that's really helped me."
Under Malzahn, the Tigers have been especially potent at Jordan-Hare Stadium, earning a 44-10 record, including a 3-1 record in home Iron Bowls.
"The Iron Bowls we've been a part of at home, how those things transpired, that's probably one of the first things that comes to mind," Malzahn said, reflecting on his head coaching tenure.
En route to the 2017 SEC title, Auburn won back-to-back games against teams ranked No. 1, a program first. Malzahn has led Auburn in five games against top-ranked teams, more than any coach in school history.
One-fourth of Auburn's games in the Malzahn era have been against teams ranked in the Top 10, and nearly half (44 percent) of the Tigers' opponents in his eight seasons have been ranked in the Top 25.
Including his three seasons as Auburn's offensive coordinator, Malzahn has been on the sideline for 140 games, No. 11 on the program's all-time list for all assistant and head football coaches.
During his 11 seasons as an assistant and head coach, Auburn has won a national championship and two SEC titles while making three appearances in the SEC Championship Game and a pair of national championship appearances.
"We've been blessed with the players and coaches who have been able to do that," he said.
One of only two active SEC coaches to lead their current programs for 100 games, Malzahn appreciates the opportunity he's had to provide stability at Auburn.
"We've been fortunate enough a few years to be right in the middle of things, winning the West twice and winning the SEC once," Malzahn said. "With the stability in this league, in this day and time, it's very rare. It definitely gives us an advantage."
Malzahn hits the century mark Saturday at 6 p.m. when the Tigers (4-2) host Tennessee (2-4) on ESPN.
'Blessed': Auburn's Gus Malzahn will coach in his 100th game Saturday vs. Tennessee
Jeff Shearer is a Senior Writer at AuburnTigers.com. Follow him on Twitter: @jeff_shearer