Week 8 Review - HOPELESS

Complete utter hopelessness. That is pretty much where I am at. First, Bama and their legion of new bandwagon fans are just about to get their hearts ripped out and their season completely destroyed and freaking Tennessee can't get a stupid field goal in the air. That would have made this whole awful Auburn season a little easier to take. I mean for Tennessee to be able to almost get pass Bama and another crew of SEC officials obviously trying to make sure Bama and Florida stay undefeated was unbelievable. Great Kiffin quote today on that after he is scolded by the SEC again...

"Kiffin also said he decided to let the clock run down instead of trying to run another play before the kick because he was concerned about the officiating.
"You run another play and you throw an interception or they throw another flag on us -- I wasn't going to let the refs lose the game for us there and some magical flag appear..."

So good. Elsewhere I think you have to tip your cap to Miss State coach Dan Mullen for the job he is doing over there. State is coming to play every game. I mean you are really seeing a difference in this team after the Auburn game. Right now though I would pick State in a rematch. After all the hubbub over Gene Chizik and Lane Kiffin, I think Dan Mullen maybe doing the best job although Kiffin is rising and Chizik is falling.

That of course leads us to the absolute train wreck that occurred on the bayou on Saturday night. I am not sure where to go this week. I don't know how many times I can say the same thing. I see everyone trying to spread the blame but COME ON. My gosh when you have 16 yards passing at halftime and 47 for the game YOU HAVE A QB PROBLEM. Yes Malzahn is not doing a great job, yes our inexperienced wide receivers are having a hard time getting open, yes our offensive line is not exactly a wall BUT AGAIN WHEN YOU HAVE 16 YARDS PASSING AT HALFTIME AND 47 FOR THE GAME THEN YOU THE QB ARE THE PROBLEM.

For the millionth time... CHRIS TODD SUCKS. CHRIS TODD SUCKED AT TEXAS TECH, CHRIS TODD SUCKED IN JUCO, CHRIS TODD SUCKED LAST YEAR AND FINALLY CHRIS TODD HAS SUCKED THIS YEAR AGAINST ANY DECENT DEFENSE (I am going to assume the entire Tennessee defense was out drinking late for any success he had against them). WHY IN THE WORLD HAS THIS GUY STARTED THE MAJORITY OF AUBURN'S GAMES THE LAST TWO YEARS???!!!???

I started this blog early in August FOR THIS VERY REASON:

"What has brought me out of retirement? Well I must first say that the proliferation of so many blogs has had me stirred up for awhile but what finally pushed me over the edge is all of the sunshine pumpers. I could barely take it during the Tuberville years but the current deification of Gene Chizik and Chris Todd is simply more than I can take...".

THIS BLOGGER DID NOT LOSE HIS OBJECTIVITY THIS SEASON LIKE JUST ABOUT EVERYONE ELSE I READ DID. Just look at the posts here. I mean the only the only time I grudgingly said I was a little wrong about Todd was after the Tennessee game. I thought it was completely ridiculous to go off the deep end on this team when we had not played any of the better SEC teams. So far the only difference between this year and last is more offense against the lesser teams and beating West Viriginia (and do you think we would have beat them with Pat White?). The jig is up now and the offense looks just like last year against the better SEC teams.

Gene Chizik said this about the QB situation last night: ""We'll look at everything," Chizik said when asked about Todd. " (Possibly replacing Todd) is the natural question everybody is going to raise. "It was the whole offensive (unit), whether it was protection, running the football, throwing the football." Chizik also pointed to the Tigers' 42 yards in the first half and said, "You can't pin that on one guy. We're going to re-evaluate everything."

Uh sorry coach but you can most certainly pin that on one guy. Todd had time enough to make the play on most of those sacks. He threw an interception and fumbled. He is indecisive and slow. Our whole offensive game plans for most of the season were obviously made trying to protect him. It is so ridiculous. Either you can do the job or not. ONCE AGAIN JUST LIKE EVERY SINGLE FREAKING DAY SINCE HE CAME TO AUBURN YOU WILL NEVER BE ABLE TO CONVINCE ME ONE OF THE OTHER GUYS COULD NOT DO BETTER THAN THIS. But of course just like Kodi last year that guy won't get all the preseason work and all the work against the easier teams as Todd has already wasted that.

To top that quote off we get the word late Sunday that Chizik has declared that Todd will be the starter this week against Ole Miss (??????!!!!!!???????) This is a good time to say that this is a rant on my frustration with Chris Todd's play on the football field. It is also a good time to say it is not his fault that he is out there. By all accounts he is a nice guy and so on. IT IS THE FAULT OF OUR COACHES AND THEIR EGOS THAT HE IS OUT THERE. A friend of mine said it better than me so let me quote him:

"I tell you dude, this is going to be just like it was with Franklin. these guys are either too stubborn to admit they were wrong by making a change or they're afraid that the result of making a change would complicate their future plans ('09 and '10). in other words, its more about self-interests than the best interest of the team. there is just no other explanation for naming Todd the starter the afternoon after.... its appears that Todd could literally take the snap, hand the ball to a defender and block for the guy down field as he races towards the end zone and these stubborn jack-a$$es would refuse to make a change."

Absolutely dead on right. I think this IS a major factor in our coaches' decision making. All I can say is shame on them and say that doing stuff like that will come back to haunt you. I think there is evidence to support this accusation in the game itself. It was obvious after the first possession of the second half that the coaches were not coming back out to seriously win the game. We were mostly running the ball. It went downhill after that and as the 3rd quarter was ending LSU went up 31-3. It was obviously over and even if Todd was a great starter it would have been time to let the backup get in WAY BEFORE only two minutes were left in the game. However our coaches would not put Caudle in. What if he looked good for an entire quarter? That would mess up their plans and take the control for a decision out of their hands. Crazy you say? I don't think so. It is obviously a factor when a QB lays three big eggs in a row and a staff will not even take a look at the next guy. I use the "three strike" rule a lot in life and our coaches should most certainly use it here. STRIKE THREE CHRIS TODD SHOULD BE OUT!!!

This does not bode well for Chizik and Malzahn. A lot of this season is short term and as painful and frustrating as it is it will not determine this coaching staff's long term fate. As told to us ad nauseum many great coaches have a tough first year. I would also say there are a lot of bad coaches that have a tough first year and it doesn't get much better after that as well. We can go 6-6 and it will not effect us long term. However if these coaches stick with Chris Todd and get absolutely embarrassed like Saturday in our final three SEC games then YES I think that could hurt recruiting and hurt this staff long term.

I just do not understand it. A QB IS THE MOST IMPORTANT POSITION ON THE FIELD. A good team must have a QB who can throw down the field. AGAIN, it does not appear Todd can do that consistently or hardly at all. Even with our early season success he was not throwing down field that much. Good night EVEN CHIZIK is saying it this week! Malzahn (and the entire Auburn nation) said it last week. I think everyone in the world knows we can't throw down field at this point yet he is still the starter!!!???!!!. Here is a Chizik's quote and then one from Will Collier:

"Biggest difference in offense right now in Chizik's estimation: down field passing game. "Sheer numbers will tell you that's been an area the last couple weeks that we certainly need to improve on, whatever we need to do," he said." (REALLY COACH???????? YET TODD IS STILL YOUR GUY???)

"Chris Todd was either injured against Tennessee (and I strongly suspect that to be the case), or he's simply lost his mojo. Either way, Todd can no longer make the throws he was nailing for the first four and a half games, and by now everybody Auburn plays knows it. With the long threat gone, defenses can just stuff the run early and tee off on Todd late. All the misdirection in the world doesn't do you any good when the defense knows you're limited to the first 20 yards past the line of scrimmage. The safeties can just stay home and the defensive line can pin its ears back and go after you."

There you have it. Again, the rest of the offense needs to play better and yes our defense is dreadful but does it really matter if we do not have a QB? Yet with all that said, we are going to send Todd out for strike FOUR this Saturday. That leads me to feel COMPLETELY HOPELESS.