Bryan Dale Harsin (born November 1, 1976) is an American

college football College football is gridiron football that is played by teams of amateur Student athlete, student-athletes at universities and colleges. It was through collegiate competition that gridiron football American football in the United States, firs ...

coach. He is the offensive coordinator at

California California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...

. He was the head coach for the

Auburn Tigers The Auburn Tigers are the athletic teams representing Auburn University, a public four-year university located in Auburn, Alabama, United States. The Auburn Tigers compete in Division I of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) a ...

from 2021–2022. Prior to coaching at Auburn, he coached the

Boise State University Boise State University (BSU) is a Public university, public research university in Boise, Idaho, United States. Founded in 1932 by the Episcopal Church (United States), Episcopal Church, it became an independent junior college in 1934 and has b ...

Broncos A bucking horse is any breed of horse, male or female, with a propensity to buck. They have been, and still are, referred to by various names, including bronco, broncho, and roughstock. The harder they buck, the more desirable they are for ro ...

from the 2014 season through the 2020 season where he posted a 69–19 overall record. He began his head coaching career at

Arkansas State University Arkansas State University (A-State or ASU) is a public university, public research university in Jonesboro, Arkansas, United States. It is the flagship campus of the Arkansas State University System and the second-largest university in the st ...

for the 2013 season. Harsin was the co-offensive coordinator at the

University of Texas The University of Texas at Austin (UT Austin, UT, or Texas) is a public research university in Austin, Texas, United States. Founded in 1883, it is the flagship institution of the University of Texas System. With 53,082 students as of fall 2 ...

for two seasons. Before leaving for Texas in

2011 The year marked the start of a Arab Spring, series of protests and revolutions throughout the Arab world advocating for democracy, reform, and economic recovery, later leading to the depositions of world leaders in Tunisia, Egypt, and Yemen ...

, Harsin was an assistant at Boise State for 10 seasons, the last five as

offensive coordinator An offensive coordinator (OC) is a Coach (sport), coach responsible for a gridiron football team's offense (American football), offense. Generally, the offensive coordinator, defensive coordinator and special teams coordinator represent the second ...

and

quarterbacks coach In American football, a position coach is a team official in charge of coaching a specific position group. Position coaches have more specialized duties than the head coach, associate and assistant coach, and the offensive and defensive coordina ...

. From

Boise, Idaho Boise ( ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of cities in Idaho, most populous city of the U.S. state of Idaho. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, there were 235,685 people residing in the city. Loca ...

, Harsin is a graduate of Boise's Capital High School, and a former

quarterback The quarterback (QB) is a position in gridiron football who are members of the offensive side of the ball and mostly line up directly behind the Lineman (football), offensive line. In modern American football, the quarterback is usually consider ...

at Boise State. He was the first alumnus of Boise State to serve as the Broncos head football coach.

Playing career

Born and raised in Boise, Harsin graduated from Capital High School and was a

from 1995 to 1999, where he was a three-year letterman and earned a

bachelor's degree A bachelor's degree (from Medieval Latin ''baccalaureus'') or baccalaureate (from Modern Latin ''baccalaureatus'') is an undergraduate degree awarded by colleges and universities upon completion of a course of study lasting three to six years ...

Business Management Business administration is the administration of a commercial enterprise. It includes all aspects of overseeing and supervising the business operations of an organization. Overview The administration of a business includes the performance o ...

in 2000.

Coaching career

Eastern Oregon

Harsin got his start at

Eastern Oregon University Eastern Oregon University (EOU) (officially designated as Oregon’s Rural University) is a public university in La Grande, Oregon. It was formerly part of the since dissolved Oregon University System. EOU was founded in 1929 as a teacher’s ...

in La Grande, coaching

running back A running back (RB) is a member of the offensive backfield in gridiron football. The primary roles of a running back are to receive American football plays#Offensive terminology, handoffs from the quarterback to Rush (American football)#Offense ...

s and quarterbacks in the 2000 season.

Boise State

2001 The year's most prominent event was the September 11 attacks against the United States by al-Qaeda, which Casualties of the September 11 attacks, killed 2,977 people and instigated the global war on terror. The United States led a Participan ...

, he returned to Boise State as a

graduate assistant A graduate assistant serves in a support role at a university, usually while completing post-graduate education. The assistant typically helps professors with instructional responsibilities as teaching assistants or with academic research resp ...

under first year coach

Dan Hawkins Dan, Danny or Daniel Hawkins may refer to: * Dan Hawkins (American football) (born 1960), American football coach and former player and sportscaster * Daniel Hawkins (politician) (born 1960), American politician in the Kansas House of Representat ...

. Harsin was hired as tight ends coach in

2002 The effects of the September 11 attacks of the previous year had a significant impact on the affairs of 2002. The war on terror was a major political focus. Without settled international law, several nations engaged in anti-terror operation ...

and remained in that position through

2005 2005 was designated as the International Year for Sport and Physical Education and the International Year of Microcredit. The beginning of 2005 also marked the end of the International Decade of the World's Indigenous Peoples, Internationa ...

. During this period the Broncos led the nation in scoring twice and remained in the top 10 scoring offenses all four years. In 2005, four Broncos tight ends combined to catch 27 passes for 298 yards and three touchdowns. When Hawkins left BSU for

Colorado Colorado is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States. It is one of the Mountain states, sharing the Four Corners region with Arizona, New Mexico, and Utah. It is also bordered by Wyoming to the north, Nebraska to the northeast, Kansas ...

, offensive coordinator

Chris Petersen Christopher Scott Petersen (born October 13, 1964) is an American former college football coach. He was the head coach for eight seasons at Boise State University; Petersen guided the Broncos to two BCS bowl wins in the 2007 and 2010 Fiesta ...

was promoted to head coach for the 2006 season. Harsin was moved up to offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach, and guided the Broncos offense to an undefeated season. Running back Ian Johnson rushed for 1,713 yards and led the nation in rushing touchdowns and scoring. In

2008 2008 was designated as: *International Year of Languages *International Year of Planet Earth *International Year of the Potato *International Year of Sanitation The Great Recession, a worldwide recession which began in 2007, continued throu ...

Kellen Moore Kellen Christopher Moore (born July 5, 1988) is an American professional football coach and former quarterback who is the head coach for the New Orleans Saints of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Boise Sta ...

took over the quarterback position and under Harsin's guidance earned WAC Freshman of the Year honors, completing an NCAA freshman record 69.4

completion percentage The following terms are used in American football, both conventional and indoor. Some of these terms are also in use in Canadian football; for a list of terms unique to that code, see '' Glossary of Canadian football''. 0–9 ...

(281–405) with 25 touchdown passes and only 10 interceptions. During Harsin's tenure as offensive coordinator, Boise State posted a 61–5 () record, which included two undefeated seasons and two

Fiesta Bowl The Fiesta Bowl is an annual American college football bowl game played annually in the Phoenix metropolitan area since 1971. From its beginning until 2006, the game was hosted at Sun Devil Stadium in Tempe, Arizona. Since 2007, the game has be ...

victories, over

Oklahoma Oklahoma ( ; Choctaw language, Choctaw: , ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. It borders Texas to the south and west, Kansas to the north, Missouri to the northea ...

(

2007 2007 was designated as the International Heliophysical Year and the International Polar Year. Events January * January 1 **Bulgaria and Romania 2007 enlargement of the European Union, join the European Union, while Slovenia joins the Eur ...

) and

TCU TCU may stand for: Education * Tanzania Commission for Universities, regulatory body for Universities in Tanzania * Texas Christian University, a private university in Fort Worth, Texas ** TCU Horned Frogs, the athletic programs of the school * Tok ...

(

2010 The year saw a multitude of natural and environmental disasters such as the 2010 Haiti earthquake, the Deepwater Horizon oil spill, and the 2010 Chile earthquake. The 2009 swine flu pandemic, swine flu pandemic which began the previous year ...

Texas

After the 2010 season, Harsin moved to the

Austin Austin refers to: Common meanings * Austin, Texas, United States, a city * Austin (given name), a list of people and fictional characters * Austin (surname), a list of people and fictional characters * Austin Motor Company, a British car manufac ...

for the

and 2012 seasons and was the primary play-caller for the Longhorns, paired with Major Applewhite as co-offensive coordinators. During this time he also served as quarterbacks coach for the Longhorns.

Arkansas State

Harsin became the 29th head coach at

in Jonesboro on December 12, 2012, succeeding

Gus Malzahn Arthur Gustav Malzahn III (; born October 28, 1965) is an American college football coach who is the offensive coordinator at Florida State. He was the head coach at the University of Central Florida ( UCF) from 2021 to 2024, Auburn University fr ...

, who left for Auburn after just one season. Because Malzahn and his predecessor

Hugh Freeze Danny Hugh Freeze Jr. (born September 27, 1969) is an American college football coach. Since 2023, he has served as the head coach for Auburn University. A successful high school football coach at Briarcrest Christian School in Memphis, Tenne ...

left after just one season in Jonesboro, Harsin's contract at Arkansas State included a $1.75 million buyout clause. Harsin led the

Red Wolves The red wolf (''Canis rufus'') is a canine native to the southeastern United States. Its size is intermediate between the coyote (''Canis latrans'') and gray wolf (''Canis lupus''). The red wolf's taxonomic classification as being a separate ...

to a 7–5 regular season record in

2013 2013 was the first year since 1987 to contain four unique digits (a span of 26 years). 2013 was designated as: *International Year of Water Cooperation *International Year of Quinoa Events January * January 5 – 2013 Craig, Alask ...

and a share of the

Sun Belt Conference The Sun Belt Conference (SBC) is a collegiate List of NCAA conferences, athletic conference that has been affiliated with the National Collegiate Athletic Association, NCAA's NCAA Division I, Division I since 1976. Originally a non-football confe ...

title with a 5–2 record. The Red Wolves earned a berth in the 2014 GoDaddy Bowl against Ball State on January 5, a 23–20 victory.

Return to Boise State

Harsin returned to Boise State as head coach on December 11, 2013. He replaced his mentor Petersen, who left for the

University of Washington The University of Washington (UW and informally U-Dub or U Dub) is a public research university in Seattle, Washington, United States. Founded in 1861, the University of Washington is one of the oldest universities on the West Coast of the Uni ...

Seattle Seattle ( ) is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Washington and in the Pacific Northwest region of North America. With a population of 780,995 in 2024, it is the 18th-most populous city in the United States. The city is the cou ...

. In his first season at the helm, he led his team to a win at the Mountain West Championship against

Fresno State California State University, Fresno (Fresno State) is a public university in Fresno, California, United States. It is part of the California State University system. The university had a fall 2020 enrollment of 25,341 students. It offers 60 ba ...

28–14, and earned a spot in the

against

Arizona Arizona is a U.S. state, state in the Southwestern United States, Southwestern region of the United States, sharing the Four Corners region of the western United States with Colorado, New Mexico, and Utah. It also borders Nevada to the nort ...

. The Broncos won the

38–30, and Harsin won 12 games in his first season. Harsin led the Broncos to 10+ wins in 5 out of his 7 seasons.

Auburn

Harsin was hired on December 22, 2020, as the 27th

head coach A head coach, senior coach, or manager is a professional responsible for training and developing athletes within a sports team. This role often has a higher public profile and salary than other coaching positions. In some sports, such as associat ...

of the

, taking over after the termination of

. His salary was $5.25 million. In his inaugural season with the Tigers, Harsin went 6–7, the team's worst record since

2012 2012 was designated as: *International Year of Cooperatives *International Year of Sustainable Energy for All Events January *January 4 – The Cicada 3301 internet hunt begins. * January 12 – Peaceful protests begin in the R ...

. Despite the losing record, the season saw ranked victories over

Arkansas Arkansas ( ) is a landlocked state in the West South Central region of the Southern United States. It borders Missouri to the north, Tennessee and Mississippi to the east, Louisiana to the south, Texas to the southwest, and Oklahoma ...

and

Ole Miss OLE, Ole or Olé may refer to: * Olé, a cheering expression used in Spain * Ole (name), a male given name, includes a list of people named Ole * Overhead lines equipment, used to transmit electrical energy to trams, trolleybuses or trains Co ...

to go along with a narrow 24–22 4OT loss to #3

Alabama Alabama ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Deep South, Deep Southern regions of the United States. It borders Tennessee to the north, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the east, Florida and the Gu ...

. Following the season, Harsin fired offensive coordinator

Mike Bobo Robert Michael Bobo (born April 9, 1974) is an American college football coach who is currently the offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach at the University of Georgia, his alma mater. He was the head coach at Colorado State from 2015 to 2 ...

and hired former

Seattle Seahawks The Seattle Seahawks are a professional American football team based in Seattle. The Seahawks compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC West, West division. The club entered the NFL a ...

quarterback coach, Austin Davis, to replace Bobo before losing Davis just six weeks later for personal reasons. Harsin also lost defensive coordinator Derek Mason to

Oklahoma State Oklahoma State University (informally Oklahoma State or OSU) is a public land-grant research university in Stillwater, Oklahoma, United States. The university was established in 1890 under the legislation of the Morrill Act. Originally known ...

where Mason took the same role for less money. In addition to the coordinatoring changeovers, 31 players left the program including starting quarterback

Bo Nix Bo Chapman Nix (born February25, 2000) is an American professional American football, football quarterback for the Denver Broncos of the National Football League (NFL). He played his first three seasons of college football for the Auburn Tigers ...

who described his time under Harsin as "miserable". Following the loss of players and coaches, as well as rumors that began circulating in February 2022, Auburn began to collect information to understand any issues surrounding the football program. Harsin told

ESPN ESPN (an initialism of their original name, which was the Entertainment and Sports Programming Network) is an American international basic cable sports channel owned by the Walt Disney Company (80% and operational control) and Hearst Commu ...

that "I'm not planning on going anywhere". Multiple players, current and former, came out in opposition to Harsin with one former player stating that Harsin "treated us like dogs". In the end, Auburn decided to retain Harsin as head coach. Harsin would later, in July 2022, describe the situation this way: "There was an inquiry. It was uncomfortable. It was unfounded. It presented an opportunity for people to personally attack me, my family and also our program. And it didn't work." Harsin's recruiting also came under significant criticism during his tenure at Auburn, signing the worst two recruiting classes in program history by a wide margin, with the coaches of many of the top high school programs in Alabama stating that they had never met Harsin and that he was "absent on the recruiting trail". Harsin was fired as Auburn's head coach on October 31, 2022 following a 3–5 start to the season. He finished with a 9–12 record and recorded the lowest winning percentage for a non-interim head coach at Auburn since Earl Brown (1948–1950).

Cal

In December 2024, Harsin was named offensive coordinator at

Head coaching record

* Departed Arkansas State for Boise State before bowl game

References

External links

Coaching statistics
at

Sports Reference Sports Reference, LLC is an American sports statistics company that operates databases of several sports. They include Pro Football Reference for American football, Baseball Reference for baseball, Basketball Reference for basketball, Hockey ...

Auburn Tigers bio

Boise State Broncos bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Harsin, Bryan 1976 births Living people American football quarterbacks Arkansas State Red Wolves football coaches Auburn Tigers football coaches Boise State Broncos football coaches Boise State Broncos football players Eastern Oregon Mountaineers football coaches Texas Longhorns football coaches Players of American football from Boise, Idaho Capital High School (Boise, Idaho) alumni Coaches of American football from Idaho California Golden Bears football coaches