Just listened and I highly recommend you do as well. Gus is fairly candid in this interview, which isn't something you get very often as he comes across more guarded and generic in his UCF interviews. This is a Christian-themed podcast so much of the conversation is steered towards topics of faith.
One of the podcast's hosts is Jimmy Dykes, who was the AD at Shiloh Christian HS in Springdale, Ark. and actually hired Gus for his first head coaching job in 1996. After huge success there, Gus went to Springdale HS and later into college.
"That was a pivotal step to allow me to be where I'm at right now," Malzahn said while reflecting on his early high school coaching days. "Talk about fun times, Jimmy. It was fun growing that thing and getting it to where it ended up being."
As Jimmy explained, Shiloh Christian FB under Gus became "the thing to do" in Northwest Arkansas and the stadium was "jam packed."
Here's an interesting tidbit from Jimmy: Gus "loves" slow-pitch softball. He competed on a team called the "Mules" that played in national tournaments. They joked about it - sounds like Jimmy was a solid hitter and Gus was the power guy that would drive in runs.
They continued discussion about his high school background. His early coaching influences were other Arkansas HS coaches: Barry Lunney Sr. (Fort Smith-Southside), Don Campbell (Wynne) and Frank McClellan (Barton). Lunney Sr. in particular who was a Christian coach.
Gus continued to talk about his early years and then how everything happened quickly - he won a state high school title in 2005 and then in 2006 he was at Arkansas and they were in the SEC Championship Game.
Gus said he actually found it easier to coach in college as far as scheming as you have a lot more data and video to help you prepare.
They spent a few minutes talking about Kristi's health scare in January 2022. Gus explained that Kristi had basically been healthy her whole life - contracted a virus, went to the hospital and 24 hours later was on a ventilator where she would remain for seven days. The doctors inferred there was a decent chance she wouldn't make it.
"It was my first time I've experienced anything like that," Malzahn said. "She was in the hospital for 19 days. It was a rare virus. They gave her the right medicine and the fever went down. Talk about a life changing experience. It made me sit back and evaluate everything. Life, coaching, what's really important. When you go through something like that, things that are the most important come up. It's my family, my wife. This coaching, I'm an extreme guy that puts my whole focus into something. After praying and evaluating, I thought about whether I want to keep coaching.
"It was good for me. I decided I wanted to keep coaching, but I want to do it different. Make sure I spend more time with my family. I like to think I've changed in a positive way. I'm making sure I put my family first. Not just talk about it. I hope I've become a better person and a better head coach for my players. It was a life-changing experience. I'm thankful Kristi is with me today. I thank the good Lord every day."
Gus then said that was partially the reason he decided to give up OC duties. He said he loved calling plays and envisioned finishing his career at UCF as both the head coach and play caller. But now balance is more important. Now he feels he can have lunch or dinner with Kristi during the season whereas he never would have done that before.
This also allows him to have a deeper relationship with the players. As the OC, he was spending so much time in the film room. Now he's meeting with players more often, getting to know them on a personal level.
"Coaching football has changed in the last five years," Malzahn said. "I believe the coaches that will be successful going forward are more relational."
They talked more about parallels between faith and coaching. The importance of coaches being role models. Many of these players don't have the family structure.
Gus said his favorite bible verse is Matthew 5:16.
The host, Jimmy, seemed especially impressed that Gus doesn't cuss. So much so that Jimmy kept talking about it even after the interview ended. Gus says he prays before every game that God protect his tongue so "only positive things come out."
Gus said he has two people he leans on - Pastor Ronnie Floyd (Senior Pastor at a megachurch in Springdale) and you guessed it - Jimmy Dykes, the host of this podcast. When Gus needs to talk, those are the two people he calls.
"(As a head coach) the pressure goes up and your circle of friends gets smaller," Malzahn said. "Who can you trust."
Dykes told the story of meeting with Gus in 2005 I guess as he was contemplating his first college opportunity. At that time 40 years old, that was probably his only shot so he took it. His first job was at Arkansas as OC and WR coach.
Gus then says there is a coach on the UCF staff that, "I rely on for spiritual accountability in my daily life. Somebody that can say something to me. I'm real blessed to have somebody who can help me with that."
What advice would Gus tell his 30-year-old self?
"Make sure you put your family first. As far as my wife, every day I wake up first thing and thank the good Lord Kristi is still with me. My two daughters, they grow up quick. I spent time with them and hope I was a good dad, but you can spend more time with them. Balance. That's the No. 1 thing I would tell a young Gus Malzahn. Do not take a day for granted with your family. That's what I'd tell him loud and clear."
Gus was asked about the biggest difference moving into the Big 12.
"The week in and week out grind," Malzahn said. "There's no off dates. You've got to bring your lunch every day. You've got to win close games. That's the biggest challenge. We're fortunate enough that we've got our starting quarterback and two starting receivers, older guys that have been in the SEC. They've been really good players so that experience will help. I've got a staff and a lot of them were with me at Auburn. Hopefully that helps. We're excited about it. It's a great challenge."
He was asked John Rhys Plumlee juggling football and baseball. Gus started off by saying he tried recruiting JRP to Auburn and wanted him and Bo Nix in that 2019 class.
"He rushed for 205 yards against LSU as a freshman, the year they won it all, and rushed for 175 against us," Malzahn said. "When he went in the portal I thought he was the perfect quarterback fit for what I like to do. The deal was he's going to play baseball. I'm all for that. He's ended up being one of our better baseball players. He missed only one spring practice... He had a baseball game before the spring game. He went 2-for-3 with two RBIs and a triple, then came over and threw for 270 yards and two touchdowns. He's a special talent. I think he can play in the NFL and in the Major Leagues too."
The interview ended with a prayer.
Afterward, the two hosts reflected on the interview. Dykes said Gus is the "most competitive guy" he's ever known. "He hates to lose and losing eats him up." He then spoke more about how impressed he is with Gus' "discipline of his tongue."
All in all, solid conversation and a different perspective of Gus than what we usually hear.
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