It was reported last week that Alex Golesh was bringing offensive coordinator Joel Gordon with him from USF, and the Tigers’ new head coach confirmed that news on Monday.
Gordon was Golesh’s offensive coordinator for all three of his seasons at USF and the two were on staff together at Iowa State from 2016-2019. Gordon and Golesh both arrived at Iowa State in 2016, but Gordon stayed until 2022, working his way up from offensive assistant to quarterbacks coach and passing game coordinator.
During his time at Iowa State, Gordon helped develop now San Francisco 49ers quarterback Brock Purdy, as the Cyclones passing offense saw consistent success during his time as quarterbacks coach and passing game coordinator.
“Joel’s a much better coach than I am. High, high-level developer of the quarterback and an elite level play-caller. Brilliant in every imaginable way,” Golesh said. “Joel left a situation three years ago that was really, really good from a football side to come with me to South Florida and has helped us build what I guess ended up being the number two offense in the country. He’s a huge, huge part of that, and one of the best coaches I’ve been around.”
Gordon’s offenses with Golesh at USF were consistently successful, ranking in the top 50 in yards per game in each of his three seasons there. That ranking rose to No. 2 in 2025, as the unit was led by star quarterback Byrum Brown.
Under Gordon’s direction, Brown threw for over 3,000 yards and rushed for over 1,000 in 2025, and was the only quarterback in the FBS to do that this season.
“Joel is a hell of a ball coach and an incredible, incredible dude,” Golesh said. “But from a quarterback development standpoint, the best I’ve been around.”
He’ll be a welcomed addition at Auburn, where quarterback play has been inconsistent at best over the past three seasons. Six different quarterbacks have started games for the Tigers since the 2023 season began.
In 2025, no Auburn quarterback threw for more than 1,309 yards, and the team finished with just 2,365 passing yards and 11 touchdowns.
