It’s safe to say that Auburn fans know a little bit more about Gene Chizik now than they did when word first leaked last December that he would be the Tigers’ next head coach.

After all, who could ever forget the video of that obnoxious fan booing and yelling at Auburn athletic director Jay Jacobs upon returning to the Plains after finalizing Chizik’s deal?

A year later, Chizik has the Tigers headed to the Outback Bowl against Northwestern with a chance to win eight games.

He’s helped to restore the energy among the fans, and most importantly, has built the kind of base that Chizik thinks will serve the program well for years to come.

There’s not a lot of flash and dash to Chizik. He’s pretty much what you see -- a tough-minded, no-nonsense football coach, who as he says, “gets Auburn.”

Here’s something else about Chizik: He’s exactly where he wants to be. If he could have picked where he wanted to coach football, Auburn would have been at the top of his list.

As the Tigers get set to take on Northwestern on Friday in Tampa, Chizik took some time recently to share his thoughts on a number of things facing the program.

On the foundation that has been laid in Year 1:

Gene Chizik: That was our goal when we came in, without trying to pin a number of wins or losses on this season to say whether it was a success or not. But it was really to feel like we laid down a great groundwork for what we were trying to do down the road. I don’t think there’s any question that we’ve done that and feel really good about where it’s at.

On whether the Tigers will be a deeper team next season:

GC: It’s going to take us a couple of recruiting classes in a row to catch up. Depth-wise, you’re going to look at a lot of young people next year on our football team again and a new quarterback. It’s going to take us a while to catch the numbers back up. That won’t be done in one year. It’s just not where we’re at.

On where the most improvement will be made next season:

GC: We’re going to be better from the perspective that everybody knows what the expectations are a year later. Everybody understands what it is that we’re trying to do as far as the X's and O's part of it. More than anything, the players know now what we want from them and who we are and why we are who we are and what we’re trying to accomplish. I don’t think there’s any question in my mind that they get that.

On the standing ovation the Auburn fans gave the team following the 26-21 loss to Alabama at Jordan-Hare Stadium:

GC: I think that’s a great statement and great commercial for how great our fans are. Our fans are the greatest fans in the country, and they knew that we fought in that game and they knew that our kids really, really played with a lot of heart. My hat is off to our whole fan base, because that’s who they are and is very much appreciated by the players and by myself, our administration and everybody involved with Auburn football. However, we don’t get excited and want pats on the back for almosts. We were in that game to win it, and we didn’t. We’re proud and very happy of the way our fans are. But again, we’re not happy that we played them close.

On the importance of getting to eight wins:

GC: I think it’s big. Eight wins is a great landmark. It would be a great way to culminate a year where there were a lot of question marks. I think it sets a great foundation for where everything is going down the road. An eighth win would be very important to our program.

On the reception the Tigers have received on the recruiting trail:

GC: It’s been really good. Our reception has been phenomenal. We’re trying to recruit the top kids in the country and feel we’re being received well across the country, including the state of Alabama and the surrounding states.

On the defensive struggles this season:

GC: We’ve obviously got to take our defense to a new level. We were very sporadic on defense this year. There’s no question about it. But it was the same thing on offense and special teams as well. We’ve just got to take our whole game to a new level. Next year, we’ve got to show improvement in all areas. That’s what we as coaches expect, what our fans expect, and that’s what we’ve got to work toward.

On Gus Malzahn’s goal to play even faster on offense next season:

GC: It goes back to the players knowing what the expectations are. We expect more. We expect a faster pace. And with time, that’s our goal. That’s what we have to get done. Our offense had a lot of great moments, and we had some moments that weren’t so great. It was about like the rest of our football team. There were some times when we were very productive. There were some times that we weren’t. We’ve got a long way to go. Offensively, that was obvious in several games. We certainly haven’t arrived there yet. We’ve got to keep coaching it, got to coach it better, execute it better and stay on the recruiting trail and bring in some really good players that fit this offense.

On the team’s leadership going forward:

GC: We have a junior class that is the biggest one we have on our roster right now. Our whole junior roster has to step up to the plate, and that’s starting right now. This bowl game, for them, ought to be in their mind not the end of this year, but the beginning of next.

On the strength of the SEC:

GC: The conference, if anything, is even more talented than when I left. The speed and the size of these guys is phenomenal. Having left the conference for four years and coming back four years later, it seems like the talent level and the speed and the size of everybody has got to be at one of its best points. There’s so much improvement even in the teams that weren’t as good when I was here before in terms of the level of players they’ve got. I’m just amazed at the level of player in this league, and everybody’s got them now.