Auburn has taken the 2013 college football circuit by storm as they have gone 9-1 this season, with their one loss being to LSU, another SEC powerhouse. Their success is a sudden improvement from their 3-9 campaign last year, but it is not luck. This season is Gus Malzahn’s first season as Auburn’s head coach after having been their offensive coordinator and quarterback coach from 2009 to 2011. Last season, he was Arkansas State’s head coach, but came back to Auburn and has helped the program make a complete turnaround.

In their abysmal 2012 season, Auburn’s most inhibiting factor was quarterback play. Between Kiehl Frazier, Jonathan Wallace, and Clint Moseley, who all had at least 60 passing attempts, Auburn only scored eight touchdowns via passing and had less than 2,000 total passing yards. The inefficiency of the quarterbacks killed drives and restricted Auburn’s always talented running back corps from being fed the ball. Last year, Tre Mason, Auburn’s starting running, ended the season with 171 carries and eight touchdowns. In two fewer games this season, Mason has been able to get 181 carries, as well as 16 touchdowns. The offense has clearly been opened up, but the question is, who is the catalyst?

The answer: Nick Marshall. The junior transferee from Garden City Community College has given new life to the Auburn Tigers. Marshall is, in a sense, Gus Malzahn’s second Cam Newton. From a physical and athletic standpoint, the two are quite similar and oddly enough, both came to Auburn after dominating at the Junior College level. As a passer, he has already thrown just as many touchdowns as the trio of quarterbacks in 2012 combined, despite having missed the Western Carolina game and only having one attempt in the Florida Atlantic game. To add to his passing ability, Marshall is a dynamic running threat. He is an unpredictable factor that defenses must respect. Through his 104 carries, he has ran for 734 yards and seven touchdowns. Although, what makes Marshall even more valuable is how he opens up the offense and allows the playmakers to make plays, as simple as that may sound. As previously stated, Tre Mason has been able to see a boost in carries, as well as carries with touchdown potential, and he has taken advantage of it. The entire offense has benefited from Nick Marshall’s presence.

Not only has the offense been revived under Malzahn, but the defense has shown slight, but noticeable, improvement. In general, Auburn has allowed eight fewer points per game and 25 fewer yards per game than they did last year. The key to the improved defense is an increased number of turnovers. Their porous defense of 2012 only intercepted two passes, as compared to the 15 their own quarterbacks threw. This season, they have already intercepted 11 passes and there are still a handful of games left to be played. The increased number of turnovers gives more chances for Nick Marshall to lead Auburn’s offense to the end zone. In turn, Auburn is able to both allow fewer points by taking the opposing offense off of the field, while also scoring more points on offense.

Malzahn is also paving the way for a bright future. He has already landed multiple five and four star recruits, including the nation’s top wide receiver, D’haquille Williams. Malzahn’s efforts have earned Auburn the 13th ranked class, as of now, with National Signing Day still to come. Auburn has been instantly revived by Malzahn and he plans to keep up the success.