Week 11 Review - Down In Flames

"I felt like there was no way we were going to lose this game. I felt bad for coming out. I didn’t play great. I didn’t play good at all, probably the worst game I’ve played all year. And we lose the game and I finish my career 0-4 against Georgia." - Ben Tate

If you are looking for keen analysis or more blanking sunshine pumping then I am sure some of the links I have here will have some of that up shortly. As I have gotten older I have gotten much better at letting most losses just roll off my back. Yeh I will come on here and blow off some steam but I can then just move on. Not so much today. Not so much today. That one hurt. I think the quote above pretty much says it all. AN ENTIRE CLASS AT AUBURN NEVER BEAT GEORGIA. Linger on that for a minute. That is a big deal. When a player like Ben Tate is sitting there after the game with tears streaming down his face you know that this wasn't just another loss.

I read over at WBE and a couple of other places how this season is still such a great one and how positive things are even if we lose these last two games. Uh HOW ABOUT NO. NO! A season where you lose to Georgia and Bama (and Arkansas and Kentucky and LSU) is NOT A GOOD SEASON. I don't care how you spin it or what the expectations were coming in. What a difference between 7-5 and 8-4. What a difference. We beat Georgia this all looks better. It is a big rival win on the road and stops a three game losing streak to our second biggest rival and we finish 8-4 playing on New Year's Day. Now we really don't have a big win this season and Gene Chizik certainly does not have a "signature win". A win at home against the mrs is not it. A win against a Tennessee team that got destroyed by the mrs is not it. Don't even mention West Virginia to me.

I am down, man I am down. I am glad we got another big recruit and all that but you know what I really don't care that much right now. Again we just lost to Georgia for the FOURTH YEAR IN A ROW and now we have to wait two weeks to get rolled up again by Bama. Yes I am counting that as a loss. If anybody thinks we can beat Bama with Chris Todd at QB and our defense in it's current state they are CRAZY. Yeh yeh, throw out all the cliches, it ain't happening. Another football season in the dumper. That would be two in a row now. Again, one win last night would have sure made it feel better. It would have broken one of these streaks!!!!!! Look at it now:

GEORGIA - four game winning streak over Auburn

LSU - three game winning streak over Auburn

ARKANSAS - two game winning streak over Auburn

BAMA - will have two game winning streak over Auburn

VANDY/KENTUCKY - combo two game winning streak over Auburn

GRRRRRRRR.... I am too tired to try and assign blame here but the litany of mistakes made the last few years by the administration and the previous coaching staff are too numerous to mention. I hope all these super recruits are going to save us but we better start recruiting more beef and a lot of it to block for these studs AND TO HOLD THE LINE ON DEFENSE. I am so sick and tired of watching our defensive line get pushed all over the field. I mean on seemingly every run our line gets pushed five yards back. I am sick of it! I would rather blitz every down and give up up throws over the top than get pushed all over the stupid field.

Our defensive line is awful and now we are fixing to lose some of the best of them. Who is going to replace these guys? I don't see it on our two deep, not guys that are going to stop some of these blanking streaks. I don't see it yet in our current recruiting class. We need more big strong linemen!!! I don't know how many times it has to be said. You can't win championships without them! I mean it is not a coincidence that the last time we beat Georgia (and Bama in the same year) was Marcus McNeil's last year. Our offensive and defensive lines have slowly eroded since that year (thanks Tuberville) to their current state. If you need more evidence that linemen are the key to championships look across the state. Yes they have several awesome playmakers including the probable Heisman Trophy winner but $aban has recruited more linemen that anything since he has been at Bama, especially in his first two classes. The game is won in the trenches. That has and never will change.

Alright, back to yesterday's debacle...

THE GOOD

Our offensive and defensive blitzkriegs to start the game 14-0 and Demond Washington's kickoff return for a touchdown. Those were awesome to watch.

THE BAD

Pretty much the entire rest of the game other than the two things listed above.

THE UGLY

Once again, an entire class at Auburn did not beat Georgia and they now own a four game winning streak over us.

So here we are with only a whipping by Bama, a scrub bowl, a nerve-wracking recruiting season and wait for it... Auburn basketball to look forward to for the next few months. Wow, looks like it is time to get some work done around my house.