Report: Gus Malzahn involved in dangerous car accident Monday night in Auburn

According to Brian Stultz of Auburn Sports, former Auburn Tigers and now UCF Knights head coach Gus Malzahn was involved in a car accident on Monday night. Stultz is also reporting there was a man lifted away in a helicopter, although that man was not Malzahn.

As for how Malzahn was directly involved, it is yet to be seen. Stultz was not able to report whether the former Auburn head coach was driving, in a passenger seat, or if he was in a different car. Updates will follow as details become available.

Malzahn spent seven seasons with the Auburn program, appearing in the 2013 national championship. On top of that, he won the SEC West on two occasions, famously doing so in the same 2013 season and again in 2017 with wins over their arch-rivals, the Alabama Crimson Tide. Malzahn was eventually named the National Coach of the Year by multiple outlets and the SEC Coach of the Year as well.

Also a key part of the 2010 team that won the national championship under head coach Gene Chizik, Malzahn was hired as the head coach after a brief stint at Arkansas State. He won the Broyles Award as the nation’s best assistant in 2010, serving as the offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach for eventual Heisman Trophy winner, Cam Newton.

Fired by the Tigers after the 2020 season, Malzahn accepted a job with UCF and just completed his first season with the program. Finishing 9-4, the Knights got a Gasparilla Bowl win over the Florida Gators to cap off a successful year. Within the next few years, he will be back coaching in a major conference when UCF makes the transition over to the Big 12.

Gus Malzahn will enter the 2022 season with higher expectations, wanting to compete in the American Athletic Conference. Bringing in another impressive haul via the transfer portal, UCF will have one of the best rosters in the conference.