I now hold it as a point of pride that I saw the last real A-Day at Auburn. I believe it was 1988 when I was still a student at Auburn. Starting quarterback Reggie Slack was tiptoeing down the sidelines trying to pick up some extra yardage when starting safety and big hit man Carlo Cheatum just laid him out knocking him out of the game. Yes I understand the stupidity of getting your quarterback hurt in a scrimmage game and so on but I also know that whenever a football player steps between the lines even wearing a no-contact jersey there is a chance he gets hurt. I also would like to see an A-Day that somewhat resembles a real game. Those days are long gone.
Now I will recognize that the 2011 Auburn squad is a special case. After losing a whopping 35 players in the offseason for various reasons this Auburn team is about as thin as it gets and can ill afford to get any player on the two-deep hurt. Everyone knew that no critical starter would play past the first or second series. However not getting to watch anyone but walk-ons play a substantial part of the game is just part of the problem. The other part is the ridiculously vanilla play calling. Coach Gus Malzahn verified this fact again stating after the game that they did not want to show any of our opponents anything.
Again I understand what he is saying and after watching the lengths those who hate Auburn will go (see my last post) he definitely has a legitimate point. However I think he needs to take it a little further. After watching the lengths certain Bama interests will go to attack Auburn there is no doubt in my mind that they can get video of any closed practice. Heck they probably have a "sleeper agent" as one of the team managers. Anybody who thinks I am exaggerating has not been paying attention. With that in mind I think Auburn might be better off calling some crazy stuff to make it harder for future opponents to prepare for us by giving them a lot to think about.
The main point is that if we cannot get anyone hurt and we cannot show anybody anything, what is the point of playing the game? I guess it is to give about 50,000 people a reason to come to Auburn, tailgate on hopefully a nice day and spend money. Mission accomplished I guess on that front.
As for the "quarterback race" that has been the media storyline for the game, I think Barrett Trotter is the clear starter. I do not think it is a race. Trotter looked great last A-Day and I do not think anything has changed other than the one quarterback on our roster better than him has left. He has looked poised and unafraid every time he has come into a game. This comes from a guy who was never a fan of Trotter before I saw him play. Hopefully Moseley will be a capable backup and maybe Kiehl Frazier will be good enough to get in and add something in the fall.
As for the rest of the team, other than some minor shuffling most of the starting lineup is set simply because we do not have many players. There might be some freshmen that come in and add some depth in the fall but that is about it. The 2011 season will probably be a tough one but no matter what they will be the defending SEC and National Champions.
I have finally hit the wall. It is simply ridiculous the lengths certain people will go to to make Auburn look bad. I will not dignify the whole HBO garbage with much as it was a complete hatchet job and just as biased or more than I am. As I told somebody the other day, the NCAA can do whatever they want but someone trying to pass that garbage as the lowest level of journalism is a joke. You always show at least one snippet showing the opposite point of view (especially when you interviewed hundreds of Auburn players trying to find the final four with the axes to grind). Not only did HBO not do that but I heard they opened with Tyrone Prothro talking about how clean Bama is when they committed confirmed NCAA violations the year they won the national championship but nobody ever talks about that. However when I heard the executive producer for HBO Sports was a Bama grad it all started to make sense.
The point of this post was really to point you to Track'em Tigers where Jay Coulter wrote an outstanding article on Auburn's current predicament and what they need to do about it.
I agree wholeheartedly with Jay and he is spot on right. The Auburn leadership sure need to listen.
Finally, I started this post with the national championship logo as a tribute to all the Auburn haters out there and now I want to end this post with these thoughts as they continue to be the last word for me on this subject...
Last year at this time I wrote a blog post with the same title.
Signing Day just seems like a good time to do a "state of the program" look at Auburn football along with looking at the newest class of Auburn Tigers who will go a long way toward determining how the program does in the coming years. The first thing I made clear last year is that here at STR I like to stick with big picture common sense looks at the Auburn football program or whatever else. For detailed breakdowns on the actual recruits please check out one of the sites I have in my "Auburn Links".
The state of Auburn's football program is about the best it can be after going undefeated, winning the SEC championship and winning the national championship game plus adding another Heisman Trophy and about a dozen other player and coaching awards. It was an unbelievable run and an incredible job of coaching and recruiting. The only negative to be found now is having to deal with the void left by Tommy Tuberville's last two awful recruiting classes. The current coaching staff has gone a long way toward filling that void through two top five recruiting classes however it is still going to hurt some. I will also say that Tommy Tuberville deserves a lot more credit than he is being given for this year's national championship team but again he will deserve a lot of blame for the lack of juniors and seniors the next two years.
Last year I started out pointing out that I was not as enamored with coach Chizik as the rest of the masses. One SEC and national championship later I guess I have to say coach Chizik has proven himself. I will say as I did last year that time will still tell the whole story. Coach Chizik will now always hold a special elite place in Auburn history but time will tell how great his legacy will be.
I made it clear in my post last year that winning the division and winning in Atlanta was the ultimate goal and determination of success for an SEC coach. I said Gene Chizik must reach that goal to be considered a good coach. Well he did and he has now entered that exclusive club of coaches who have an SEC Championship game ring. Now the question is can he entere an even more exclusive club and that is coaches who have won multiple SEC championship games. That list right now only includes: Steve Spurrier, Phillip Fulmer, Mark Richt, Urban Meyer and Nick $aban.
Last year I gave major kudos to coach Chizik for keeping his staff completely intact. I wrote: "I have to give major kudos to Chizik for keeping the staff together. In today’s big-time college football (and after watching the Tommy Tuberville staff merry-go-round for a decade) it is pretty amazing to see any staff stay completely intact for consecutive seasons. Even if you throw out the performance factor, you have to be amazed the personality factor did not rear its ugly head especially for a first year staff. A football staff is a pretty large group and many times some of the coaches just do not mesh. Auburn has seemingly hired a good football staff and kept them together going into a second season."
You can multiply those kudos many times for keeping this staff completely intact for a third season AFTER WINNING THE NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP (!!!). I boldly predicted before the season that Malzahn would be gone and he would have if the right opportunity would have come along but lucky for Auburn it did not (a monster raise did not hurt either). I am shocked that a program has not come along and made a move for Trooper Taylor. He is a phenomenal coach and recruiter. Somehow someway Auburn was able to keep these guys together and they will definitely be needed next year.
The coaching staff not only led Auburn to SEC and national championships but they also just pulled in their second consensus top five recruiting class. Last year they were #4, #5 and #4 in ESPN, Scout and Rivals. This year they are #3, #2 and #7 (???) in ESPN, Scout and Rivals. Recruiting is not an exact science but is an indicator of the job the coaches are doing. On the field and on the recruiting trail this coaching staff is excelling.
As coach Chizik stated this week, this recruiting class "scratched all the right itches" loading up on offensive linemen and defensive backs. It also appears that there is a lot of talent in those groups. I still wanted that true left tackle but hopefully that void can be filled with the talent in-house. The biggest area of need outside of those two positions was at defensive tackle. A couple of good prospects were brought in with this class but I wish they could have gotten a couple more. Also included in this class was the probable quarterback of the future, a couple more good wide receivers and linebackers plus some highly rated athletes that can help where needed. All in all, a very good looking class. Add to that fact that the majority of the class is from Alabama and Georgia and it looks even better. For the first time since Nick $aban came to Tuscaloosa Auburn got more of the top ten recruits in-state than Bama did. Another huge accomplishment for this coaching staff.
My only big concern after getting this recruiting class is defensive tackle. I do not think many people understand how dire the situation is. We now have only two true defensive tackles ON THE ENTIRE TEAM before these freshmen come in the fall. Kenneth Carter and Jeffrey Whitaker are it. Coach Tracy Rocker did everything he could to get these guys ready giving them a lot of playing time however the jury is still out on them in my opinion. It is still unknown whether they are really true SEC-caliber starters but right now Auburn has no other options. Journeymen Derrick Lykes and Jamar Travis who "back them up" on the depth chart are certainly not SEC-caliber. Tracy Rocker will once again have to get true freshmen ready to back up his starters however this time his starters are not Nick Fairley and two seniors but two true sophomores. Just as I guessed from looking at the depth chart I heard the coaches will look at moving Nosa Egaue inside but defensive tackle still looks like a glaring weak spot for this Auburn team next season. The player Auburn will miss the most is not Cam Newton but Nick Fairley.
Let me take a very short moment to address the ridiculous Cyrus Kouandjio situation that went down this week. First I will say I am sickened at the hypocrisy of the media and some Bama fans after Bama used two player's parents and families to turn them at the last moment and NOBODY SAYS ANYTHING while everybody piled on Cecil Newton all season. The words "hypocrite" and "two faced" do not even seem to cover it anymore. For me I have tried to keep recruiting at an arms-length since it just consumes me as I know how important it is. However I got caught up in the whole Kouandjio debacle. The SEC has hit a new low as now you cannot even get excited when a kid announces he will attend a school on ESPN. I learned my lesson well and I will make SURE in the future to not get excited about any prospect till his LOI is in the house.
It hit me on Friday that Kouandjio made up his mind to go to Bama in those fateful hours after his "announcement" but was waiting to send in his LOI so he could do it right next to the Super Bowl to cover up the crime. Everyone's focus is on the Super Bowl and not what Bama did to "get him back in line". Again everyone piles on Auburn and Cecil Newton all year and then two highly rated prospects commit to Auburn and their parents are outright hostile toward their own kids and no one says anything. However as a friend told me, Auburn is national champions and has a great offensive line class without Kouandjio. Why let this situation get us upset? I have learned my lesson. Again I will continue to keep recruiting at an arm's length and only get excited about a player when his LOI is in the house.
Final words... the state of the program is great but I believe Auburn will have a tough season next year. Auburn has a lot of talent but will be breaking in a new quarterback and will have almost completely new offensive and defensive lines. Auburn will do this and face a brutal schedule. The schedule includes road games against Clemson, South Carolina, Arkansas, LSU and Georgia while Florida rolls back on the schedule and of course Bama will still be very good. I think people are underestimating how tough this job will be next season. However with a battle-tested coaching staff and two top recruiting classes, maybe there will be some good surprises next year as well. Regardless I will certainly enjoy the offseason as Auburn sits on top of the college football world.
Auburn not only won the SEC and national championship. Auburn not only came back from 24-0 down to beat Bama in Tuscaloosa. Auburn not only matched Bama's undefeated championship run that included a Heisman. Auburn not only did it in a season when Bama started the season #1. Auburn's monster season makes things look a lot different overall in the state now. This information has been making its rounds on the Internet and definitely deserves some more attention. Thirty years is a long time and pretty much encapsulates modern football. Lets take a look at some facts from these years, again just the facts...
National Titles since 1981
Auburn: 1 (2010)
Bama: 2 (1992, 2009)
SEC Titles since 1981
Auburn: 6 (1983, 1987, 1988, 1989, 2004, 2010)
Bama: 5 (1981, 1989, 1992, 1999, 2009)
Undefeated Seasons
Auburn: 3 (1993, 2004, 2010)
Bama: 2 (1992, 2009)
Iron Bowl Wins
Auburn: 16 (1982, 1983, 1986, 1987, 1988, 1989, 1993, 1995, 1997, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2010)
Bama: 13 (1981, 1984, 1985, 1990, 1991, 1992, 1994, 1996, 1998, 1999, 2001, 2008, 2009)
Total Wins Since 1981
Auburn: 254 (11th nationally)
Bama: 226 (22nd nationally) This accounts for 30 wins they had to forfeit due to NCAA sanctions.
SEC Wins since 1981
Auburn: 141
Bama: 129
Bowls since 1981
Auburn: 22 (15-6-1)
Bama: 19 (12-7)
Heisman Trophy Winners since 1981
Auburn: 2
Bama: 1
NCAA Probations since 1981
Auburn: 1
Bama: 3
To sum all that up, since 1981 Auburn has won more SEC titles, won more games, won more SEC games, had more undefeated seasons, won more Iron Bowls, been to more bowls, won more bowl games, and had more Heisman Trophy winners than Bama.
Finally as many Bama fans have gone on and on about allegations against Cam Newton they have also been convicted of breaking the rules more than Auburn.
I think the facts here speak for themselves.
This is from Jerry Hinnen at War Blog Eagle who returned with a vengeance today. Here is the complete post and here is a strike that compares with Cam's Hail Mary at the SEC Championship game...
"I used to care about whether or not Auburn won a national championship with an ineligible player. I used to think we’d owe the rest of college football an apology if we did, in fact, find out that someone had cheated on Auburn’s behalf to help us win that championship. And I’ll still feel bad for Oregon.
But after spending three straight months seeing Auburn and the Newtons crapped on at every conceivable opportunity, after seeing our program given less-than-zero benefit of the doubt on anything, after seeing writer after writer decide that they’d rather award our team an asterisk than award them credit, college football can kiss my burnt orange-and-navy blue ass.
Our team went to Glendale and won. Their team didn’t. We got to go to Glendale and celebrate. They didn’t. And there’s not a damn thing they or anyone else, the NCAA included, can do about that. Which is why I’ve spent the entire week laughing, laughing, laughing."
Yep I think that about sums it up.
Auburn rolled over Oregon to win the National Championship 22-19. Just like Michael Dyer rolled over an Oregon defender to make the biggest play of the game. Just like Nick Fairley rolled over (and through) the Oregon offensive line again and again. Just like Gene Chizik rolled over all the criticism of him by everyone (including myself) when he was hired. Just like Cam Newton rolled over the most scrutiny ever put on one player in the history of college football to help Auburn win one more. Just like Auburn's defense rolled over the #1 offense in the country to 75 yards rushing and 19 points.
The 2010 Auburn football Tigers finished a season for the ages in their customary cardiac style winning on a last second field goal by Wes Byrum. It was an incredible ending to an incredible season and here is what I thought about it...
THE GOOD
I have to start with the defense led by Nick Fairley. The job they did against the nation's #1 offense that everyone has gone on about all season was mind blowing. Auburn completely shut down the vaunted Oregon rushing attack and the nation's best running back in LaMichael James. Auburn dominated the line of scrimmage. Props to my man "The Rock" Tracy Rocker. Once again he had his guys ready to play. Rocker has truly made the leap from great player to great coach and has done a similar great job with Nick Fairley that Malzahn has done with Cam Newton. Of course, just like the rest of the season, the pass defense was weak at times and Oregon rolled up almost 400 yards passing. However the defense got it done when it counted holding the Ducks to 19 points.
Next up is offensive MVP Michael Dyer. I just kept saying over and over again about halfway through the first quarter: "Where is Dyer?". It was obvious that he would be the key in this game and not McCalebb. They finally started feeding the big dog and he delivered. He did it of course behind the best offensive line to ever play at Auburn. Ziemba, Pugh, Berry and Isom delivered one more time paving the way for the team to rush for 265 yards and roll up over 500 yards of offense one more time. I was surprised that the Ducks stopped us a couple of times. They did play some good defense. Finally, Cam Newton delivered one more time with a couple more great passes and couple more great runs. He did not have his usual dominating game but he still was the focal point of the offense and it looked like he played most of the second half in a lot of pain. Of course the layoff destroyed his passing touch but more on that later.
