AUBURN, Ala. — Auburn University announced on Sunday that Alex Golesh from South Florida will take the helm as their new head football coach.

Golesh, 41, originally from Russia and a U.S. resident since age 7, has agreed to a six-year contract with Auburn. He steps in to succeed Hugh Freeze, who was dismissed earlier this November after struggling to resolve Auburn’s offensive challenges during his three-year tenure. Under Freeze’s leadership, the team dropped 12 of their last 15 Southeastern Conference matchups.

Auburn is set to pay Freeze a $15.8 million buyout, with no offset, based on a six-year, $39 million contract he entered into after replacing Bryan Harsin in 2022. Freeze’s stint ended with a 15-19 record overall and a 6-16 mark within the conference, marred by persistent offensive issues during the final five defeats.

Golesh is now Auburn’s fourth head coach in just seven years, following the dismissals of Gus Malzahn in 2020, Harsin in 2022, and Freeze in 2025. The university’s financial obligation for these coaching changes will total $52.5 million in buyout fees.

During his three-season tenure with the South Florida Bulls, Golesh achieved a 23-15 record. His leadership saw USF reach fourth place nationally in scoring. The Bulls notably triumphed over Florida in Gainesville this September and narrowly lost against Memphis and Navy, missing out on an American Conference championship game appearance and a potential spot in the College Football Playoff.

He previously worked as Josh Heupel’s offensive coordinator at UCF (2020) and Tennessee (2021-22) before taking over at USF.

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