Reports that Auburn might hire former Colorado defensive coordinator Charles Kelly first surfaced Dec. 30, just before Auburn’s Music City Bowl matchup against Maryland.

However, official word of Kelly’s hiring didn’t come until Jan. 12, when Hugh Freeze and the Auburn football program publicly announced the addition of Kelly, who is a native of Ozark, Ala. and played for the Tigers from 1986-89.

“Charles is an outstanding football mind who is an excellent recruiter and understands the landscape of Auburn and the Southeastern Conference,” Freeze said Friday in a release. “We are excited to have Charles on our staff as we continue building a strong foundation for the future success of Auburn football.”

Kelly’s return to his alma mater comes after a season spent in Boulder, Colo., where he served as Colorado’s defensive coordinator under Deion Sanders.

“I am very grateful to return to a university and a football program that have meant so much to me growing up in this state and playing for Coach Dye,” Kelly said Friday in a release. “It’s an honor to work with Coach Freeze, whom I have a tremendous amount of respect for, and I’m appreciative of him for this opportunity.”

The hiring of Kelly also follows the departures of a pair of Auburn defensive assistants in secondary coach Wesley McGriff, who jumped ship to Texas A&M, and defensive coordinator Ron Roberts, who reunited with Billy Napier at Florida.

Prior to joining Sanders’ staff, Kelly was at Alabama, where he served as the Crimson Tide’s associate defensive coordinator and safeties coach from 2019-22. During his four-season tenure under Nick Saban in Tuscaloosa, Kelly helped Alabama to a 47-6 record, which included winning a national title in 2020.

Kelly’s time at Alabama succeeded one season at Tennessee (2018), which came after five seasons at Florida State. Kelly served as the Seminoles’ special teams coordinator and linebackers coach in 2013 and was later promoted to FSU’s defensive coordinator — a role he held from 2014-17.

In his five seasons in Tallahassee, Florida State’s defense ranked among the top 25 in his final three seasons.

During his time with the Seminoles, Kelly also coached 10 NFL Draft picks, including a pair of first-rounders in Jalen Ramsey and Derwin James, who were taken No. 5 overall in the 2016 NFL Draft and No. 17 overall in the 2018 NFL Draft.

Kelly got his start in the FBS ranks in 2006 as the special teams coordinator at Georgia Tech, where he spent the next seven seasons.

The addition of Kelly is also bound to boost Auburn’s red-hot recruiting efforts as Kelly was named last year’s national recruiter of the year by 247 Sports.

“I look forward to helping Coach Freeze and this staff bring our program back to the caliber of championship football that Auburn deserves,” Kelly said. “As the Auburn Creed states, ‘I believe in work, hard work.’ I do not take this opportunity lightly and am ready to go to work. War Eagle!”