Wesley McGriff returning to Auburn as defensive backs coach
AUBURN — Wesley McGriff is returning to Auburn to coach in the secondary, sources have confirmed to Auburn Live.
The news comes less than one month after McGriff departed Auburn for Texas A&M. Sources tell Auburn Live that officially, McGriff never signed his contract with Texas A&M. So, McGriff is back? Never left? Either way, he’ll be on the Tigers’ staff again next season.
In the end, chalk it up to a change of heart, but McGriff is reuniting his friend, Hugh Freeze, and the Tigers’ program. How’d we get here?
During the season, Auburn Live reported that McGriff was leaving his on-the-field role and moving off the field. Sources told Auburn Live that disagreements with then defensive coordinator Ron Roberts pushed McGriff to make the decision. It was Hugh Freeze that kept McGriff on staff for the remainder of the season, hoping to find a resolution at season’s end.
The day after Auburn’s bowl loss, Auburn Live reported that McGriff would be heading to Texas A&M, joining new head coach Mike Elko‘s staff. Fast forward to January 8, when Auburn Live reported that Roberts was departing the Tigers’ staff. Roberts is headed to join Florida’s defensive coaching staff. That move aided in Freeze’s ability to bring McGriff back to Auburn.
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In March, here’s what McGriff said about returning to Auburn for the third time:
“I’m never leaving. I went and coached somewhere else, but we never left Auburn. We kept the house here and this is home. Did I ever think I’d be back here coaching? I was hopeful for that. When you have an opportunity to come to a place like Auburn and you get that phone call, it’s a very short conversation. Look at the town, location and the league. The people are phenomenal. We love this place. It’s hard to say now. It’s one of those places that you dream of coaching. Having the opportunity to do it three times, don’t wake me up.”
McGriff just finished his third season as a defensive assistant coach at Auburn, having previously worked there in 2016 and 2019–20. McGriff was a member of the coaching staff that guided the Tigers to a Sugar Bowl appearance in 2016 during his first stint on the Plains. The Auburn secondary recorded 12 interceptions last season under McGriff and Zac Etheridge‘s coaching.
McGriff coached at Louisville during the 2022 season, where he oversaw one of the nation’s most stingy secondary defenses. The Cardinals were ranked No. 10 in the nation for interceptions (15), second best in the ACC. Louisville allowed the fourth-lowest passing yards per game in the league (206.5), and junior defensive back Kei’Trel Clark earned All-ACC honors in 2022.
He spent two seasons at Ole Miss, first as defensive coordinator from 2017 to 2018, then as associate head coach in 2018. He also served as co-defensive coordinator and cornerbacks coach in 2012. McGriff began his professional career working with the New Orleans Saints’ defensive backs from 2013 to 2015, including his first season when the Saints ranked second in allowing 194.1 passing yards per game.
Prior to his time in Oxford and the NFL, he was the defensive backs coach and recruiting coordinator at Vanderbilt in 2011, where he led the Commodores to their fifth bowl appearance in program history.
