Just a year after being fired by the University of Florida, Will Muschamp will take over another SEC East program.
South Carolina announced on Sunday that Muschamp will be the football team's new head coach. The former Auburn defensive coordinator was introduced in his new role on Monday. Muschamp received a five-year, $16 million deal, according to The Associated Press. South Carolina has been searching for a replacement for Steve Spurrier, who resigned around midseason after a road loss to LSU. The Gamecocks struggled to a 3-9 season, faring no better under interim coach Shawn Elliott.
Muschamp, 44, served as Auburn's defensive coordinator for only one season after being fired by the Gators. At Florida, Muschamp was 28-21 over four years, but was under .500 over his final two. Muschamp's hire at South Carolina and Kirby Smart's at Georgia means three former coordinators of Alabama coach Nick Saban's will be a head coach in the SEC East next year, along with Florida's Jim McElwain.
Other reported candidates for the South Carolina job have included Oklahoma offensive coordinator Lincoln Riley, Arizona coach Rich Rodriguez, South Florida coach Willie Taggart and former Rutgers coach Greg Schiano.
On Saturday, a tweet from Arizona director of athletics Greg Byrne's account stated that Rodriguez turned down an offer from South Carolina and would remain at Arizona. However, South Carolina athletic director Ray Tanner said on Monday that Byrne's tweet was "inaccurate."
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