Gus Malzahn still remembers the 2006 season, his first in college football. He remembers the "wow" moment when he stood across the sideline from Steve Spurrier, one of his coaching heroes. Malzahn wore a visor that game, a look that began when he was a high school coach and continued until just recently, because he wanted to emulate Spurrier's trademark look.

That same season, Malzahn matched wits with the likes of Pete Carroll, Urban Meyer and Les Miles.

It was a dream come true for Malzahn. He had made the jump straight from coaching high school football to calling plays in the SEC as the Arkansas offensive coordinator. That type of jump was rare back then, and it's almost unheard of today.

However, by the end of the season, Malzahn was ready to move on. He left Arkansas, an SEC school in his home state to take the same position at Tulsa.

Why? It wasn't a promotion. It wasn't even a lateral move.

" I think it was a deal of having common philosophy in our values and how we run a program and what we believed in, and it was great combination," former Tulsa and current Arizona State coach Todd Graham said.

Ten years later, Malzahn hasn't forgotten that season. Those experiences, both good and bad, helped make him the coach that he is today.

Click here for the rest of the story on Malzahn's one year at Arkansas and how it continues to impact him to this day.