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Will Muschamp looks on during the third quarter of Florida's 42-21 loss to Alabama on Sept. 20, 2014, in Tuscaloosa, Alabama. (Vasha Hunt/vhunt@al.com)

Two things happened during the 2014 college football season that may give us more insight into the real Gus Malzahn than the Prayer at Jordan-Hare, the Kick Six and the rest of his spectacular debut as the Auburn head coach combined.

What did he do for an encore? First, he fell down and went boom. Then, he stood up and went, "Boom!"

That sonic event you heard Friday was Malzahn hiring Will Muschamp as his defensive coordinator, giving Auburn a dynamic duo of detonation on both sides of the ball. Legion of Boom T-shirts sold separately.

Muschamp's ability to lock down an offense matches Malzahn's acumen in turning one loose. Before you suggest that the Hurry Up, No Huddle and great defense go together like 55 and 44, go back and check what kind of offense Texas employed in 2009 as a complement to Muschamp's muscular defense en route to the national championship game.

Colt McCoy wasn't exactly running the wishbone.

Muschamp may not have aced his first test as a head coach at Florida, but his credentials as an elite defensive coordinator are impeccable. Witness the long line of suitors throwing rose petals and seven-figure salaries at his feet. Malzahn's willingness to jump into that competition and his ability to get his man says something positive about him at a time when doubts had begun to creep in.

Before Friday's shot heard 'round the college football world, with the regular season in the rearview mirror, it was possible to look at Malzahn and see unbecoming shades of his predecessor.

Like Gene Chizik, Malzahn followed a surprising trip to the national championship game with a disappointing return to reality and mediocrity. Like Chizik, Malzahn's encore to a big season was plagued by discipline problems that showed up off and on the field.

Unlike Chizik, who was supposed to be rebuilding in 2011, Malzahn seemed poised to contend for the conference and national titles again this year - beyond Nov. 1.

Like Chizik, Malzahn had to make a major hire after his reality check - out of a different sort of necessity - but unlike Chizik, Malzahn didn't take that opportunity to make the biggest staffing mistake of his life. He did just the opposite.

It's as simple as this: Chizik replaced Malzahn with Scot Loeffler. Malzahn replaced Ellis Johnson with Muschamp.

In other words, for those of us drawing any parallels between him and his predecessor, Malzahn just stole our crayons and ground them into Crayola dust.

This hire alone should ensure that, even if Auburn loses to Wisconsin in the Outback Bowl, 8-5 will be the floor for this program instead of a step down on the way to the basement.

Remember that Muschamp had choices, and while each of them may not have included an annual salary north of $1.6 million a year, he chose to return to Auburn to work for Malzahn.

Less than two weeks after 55-44, that's a real vote of confidence at just the right time.