In his ninth season at Auburn, head coach Tommy Tuberville has established his program as one of the nation's elite. In the last three seasons, Tuberville has directed the Tigers to 33 wins and an .868 winning percentage (33-5) which is tied for third best in the country in both categories. Over the last six seasons, Auburn has been one of the most successful programs in the Southeastern Conference. The 2006 season saw Tuberville direct the Tigers to their second 10-win campaign in the previous three years, including a 17-14 victory over Nebraska in the AT&T Cotton Bowl Classic. His 2006 squad was the only program in the country to defeat two teams ranked in the top five nationally - National Champion Florida and LSU. For his accomplishments on and off the field, Tuberville was one of three finalists for the inaugural Liberty Mutual Coach of the Year award. Tuberville, whose 2006 senior class set a school mark with 41 wins over four seasons, has defeated in-state rival Alabama five consecutive years, tying a mark held by legendary Auburn coach Ralph "Shug" Jordan, set from 1954-58. Coming off a perfect 13-0 season in 2004, expectations for Tommy Tuberville's 2005 Auburn squad were modest after the Tigers lost four players to the first round of the NFL draft, including their entire starting backfield. But Auburn surprised many of the experts, finishing 9-3 and earning a share of its fifth Southeastern Conference Western Division title in six years. Auburn ended the regular season with back-to-back victories over Georgia and Alabama - two teams ranked at the time in the top 10 - setting a new school record in the process with 22 victories over a two year period. In 2004, Tuberville led Auburn to its best season ever as the Tigers won a school-record 13 games and captured the SEC Championship and the NOKIA Sugar Bowl title. Auburn won its first conference title since 1989 including its first outright championship since 1987. Auburn defeated five top 15 teams, becoming just the 10th NCAA Division I-A team to finish 13-0 or better. The Tigers earned their first ever berth in a Bowl Championship Series game and defeated Virginia Tech, 16-13 in the Sugar Bowl. For his efforts, Tuberville was named the AFCA, Associated Press, Paul "Bear" Bryant, FCA, SEC and Walter Camp Coach of the Year. The season before Tuberville's arrival, Auburn finished with a dismal 3-8 overall record and a last place finish in the SEC Western Division. Tuberville guided the program back to the top of the league standings, leading Auburn to an SEC Championship, five Western Division titles including outright championships in 2000 and 2004 and co-championships in 2001, 2002 and 2005. Since 2000, the program has the best conference record among SEC teams with a mark of 42-14 (.750). Tuberville has directed Auburn to seven consecutive bowl appearances, including five New Year's Day bowl berths and three consecutive January 1 bowl games. Tuberville accomplished these feats while playing 24 percent of his games against top 10 opponents and 34 percent against teams ranked in the nation's top 25. His Auburn record stands at 71-29 while his overall record in 12 years as a head coach is 96-49. Remarkably, Tuberville has won eight of his last nine games against top 10 teams, including 14 of his last 19. Plainly stated, in eight seasons at Auburn, Tuberville has built a program that excels both on and off the field. Players have excelled under Tuberville's guidance as Auburn has earned 34 first-team All-Southeastern Conference awards, eight All-America honors, 18 SEC All-Freshmen accolades, 46 SEC Player of the Week honors, two SEC Player of the Year awards, two Jacobs Awards presented annually to the league's top blocker and one Most Valuable Player of the SEC Championship game. Twenty four players have been selected in the NFL Draft including an SEC-record four in the first round of the 2005 Draft. Running backs Ronnie Brown and Carnell Williams were taken second and fifth respectively, while cornerback Carlos Rogers was selected ninth overall and quarterback Jason Campbell was picked 25th in the first round. It also marked the first time in NFL Draft history that an entire backfield from the same team was taken in the first round. Since 2004, 18 Auburn players have been drafted, including 14 in the last three drafts. Of those 14 selections since 2005, half have been selected in the first two rounds--five first-round selections and two second-round picks. Carnell Williams earned NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year honors in 2005, while in 2006 Marcus McNeill became the first NFL rookie offensive lineman in 16 years to start in the Pro Bowl. The East team head coach at the 2006 Hula Bowl, Tuberville is currently on the Board of Trustees of the American Football Coaches Association and is serving a three-year term on the AFCA rules committee. Off the field, Auburn has earned more than 81 SEC Academic Honor Roll distinctions during Tuberville's tenure and when the NCAA released its Academic Progress Report (APR) in February 2006, Auburn football had a multi-year score of 981, which was the highest score among public BCS conference institutions. The program received public recognition from the NCAA for being in the top 10 percentile nationally and was one of only four BCS institutions to earn such distinctions. Entering the 2006 season, 11 players had graduated before the start of the season. Coupled with five December graduates, Auburn played the 2007 AT&T Cotton Bowl with 16 graduates on its roster. In 2005, 12 players graduated prior to the Capital One Bowl, while in 2004, nine players who had already earned their degrees played in the Nokia Sugar Bowl. In 2003, linebacker Dontarrious Thomas, a three-time SEC Honor Roll selection, was one of eight Division I players named a National College Scholar-Athlete which awarded him a $18,000 post-graduate scholarship from the National Football Foundation and College Football Hall of Fame. Tuberville also believes in giving back to the community. Among other activities, he hosts charity golf tournaments for Camp ASCAA, the Girls and Boys Club of Montgomery, the Auburn University Marching Band and the Alabama Sheriff's Youth Ranch. In addition, he continually stresses the importance of participating in community service projects to Auburn's football team. Auburn football players regularly read at local schools, serve as mentors and visit with the elderly. The last two summers, the football team spent a day working at Story Book Farm which is a non-profit organization that provides therapeutic horseback riding for children suffering from disabilities, chronic illnesses or those who have suffered a loss. It's evident that Tuberville has built a strong program both on and off the field. He has also spearheaded efforts to upgrade and improve Auburn's football facilities. Since Tuberville took over the program in November 1998, the Tigers have seen their stadium locker room rebuilt, making it one of the finest game-day facilities in the country. An assembly center and the Tiger Walk Plaza were completed in time for the 2001 season. In 2001, a 14,000-square foot weight room and a state-of-the-art training rehabilitation facility was built adjacent to the Athletic Complex. Prior to the 2003 season, Auburn added a Sprinturf field to its practice fields. Tuberville understands the process and commitment it takes to build a successful program. Coaching stops at perennial college football powers University of Miami and Texas A&M and a four-year head coaching stint at the University of Mississippi gave him the background in building and maintaining a successful program. While at Ole Miss from 1995-98, Tuberville posted a 25-20 record. Inheriting a Rebel program plagued by NCAA sanctions and probation, he guided Ole Miss to a winning record in his first season in 1995, despite having just 61 players on scholarship. He did not have a full compliment of scholarship players to work with in any of his four years at Ole Miss. By the time he had three recruiting classes under his belt, Tuberville led Ole Miss to an 8-4 mark and a victory in the inaugural Motor City Bowl in 1997. His efforts earned him Associated Press SEC Coach of the Year Honors and American Football Quarterly magazine selected him as runner-up for its Schutt Sports Coach of the Year honor. Prior to becoming head coach at Ole Miss, Tuberville served as defensive coordinator and linebackers coach at Texas A&M for one season. In 1994, he helped lead the Aggies to a 10-0-1 record and No. 8 final ranking by the Associated Press. Under his direction, the Aggie defense finished fourth nationally in scoring defense (13.1 ppg), fifth in total defense (265.5 ypg) and sixth in rushing defense (92.4 ypg). Tuberville served as a member of the University of Miami staff for eight seasons from 1986-93, taking over as defensive coordinator in 1993. While serving on the staffs of Jimmy Johnson and Dennis Erickson at Miami, Tuberville was a defensive coach on teams which won three national championships, posted an 87-9 record and played in nine consecutive New Year's Day bowls. As defensive coordinator for the Hurricanes in 1993, Tuberville directed a Miami defense which was ranked No. 3 nationally in scoring defense (12.6 ppg) and No. 5 nationally in pass defense (91.15 ypg). Tuberville began his collegiate coaching career at Arkansas State in 1980, coaching various segments of the Indians' defense over the next five seasons. During a five-year stay at Arkansas State, Tuberville coached defensive backs, nose guards and linebackers. During his final year at ASU, the Indians advanced to the second round of the NCAA Division I-AA playoffs. He began his coaching career at Hermitage (Ark.) High School where he spent two years as an assistant and two as a head coach. After three straight four-win seasons, Tuberville guided HHS to a 7-3 mark in 1979 before moving to Arkansas State. A 1976 graduate of Southern Arkansas University, Tuberville was a letterman at free safety and a two-year member of the golf team at SAU. He is a 1972 graduate of Harmony Grove High School in Camden, Ark. Tuberville is married to the former Suzanne Fette of Guilford, Ind. They are the parents of two sons, Thomas Tucker (13) and Troy Allen (11). The Tuberville File PERSONAL
COLLEGIATE COACHING RECORD
PREVIOUS COACHING EXPERIENCE
PLAYING EXPERIENCE
EDUCATION
NAMED AUBURN'S HEAD COACH
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