Well, T'Sharvan Bell said it best "they aren't ranked #1 on accident". Their defensive linemen were as fast as any DL I've seen in a long time. There may have been more strong, physical DLs, but in terms of pure speed they take the cake....
that being said, the Auburn Offensive line had as poor of a showing as I've seen from Auburn in the 3 years that Coach Grimes has been at Auburn. Unfortunately, I don't feel it's his fault completely. I simply don't feel that we're very talented on the left side of the offensive line, and our Center being a true freshmen (while very, very talented) does cause some problems. Chad Slade simply doesn't have the quickness, nor does John Sullen, to handle the pulling responsibilities that are necessary in this offenses' running game. If you go back and watch the film from last year, Byron Isom and Mike Berry were literally step by step with one another in perfect harmony and always got to the outside with more than enough time for the RB to be able to read what was developing since they were there so quickly. I felt so bad for Moseley getting his first start under those conditions AND on the road on the Bayou.
This game was absolutely one that could've gone dramatically different but, if we're honest, the better team did win. Auburn was playing great defense after LSU's strong first drive for a TD, but penalties and the coinciding plays that LSU made with those penalties were the difference in the game. The second half probably could've and should've been 7-3 or Auburn could have even taken the lead had they not made penalties and had gotten stops on 3rd downs instead.
The special teams all around were very lackluster when compared with how we've performed as a unit there all year. Steven Clark, possibly the nation's best punter when right, had his worst game of the year. He consistently was putting the ball 10-20 yards short of where the LSU punt returners were, which is very unusual for Clark. He has been consistently hitting punts 43+ yards with over 4 seconds of hangtime, on the year. For Auburn to hang with LSU, I knew that we'd have to dominate field position using Special Teams, but that obviously never happened.
Overall, I don't think too many people felt that we could win this game, being so young and on the road with a first time starting QB against the #1 team in the country. Auburn is certainly better than they played on Saturday afternoon, and Chizik has been fantastic at getting his teams to bounce back after tough losses, and I expect this to be no different. I expect this team to respond against Ole Miss on Saturday night the same way the 2009 team responded on Halloween '09 with a big win over Ole Miss at home and head into the bye week with a 6-3 record and get ready to face a UGA team on the rise at home. That game scares me because it will be yet ANOTHER top 25 team on the road for this young bunch, but hey at least it's not a top TEN road game.
WDE guys, and I'm excited about what the future is shaping up to look like for this young bunch.
Sunday, October 23, 2011
Tuesday, October 18, 2011
Clint Moseley will start at QB on Saturday.........
on the road against LSU. Best of luck, Clint.
He looked very good in his half of football against a good UF defense. He's a bit of a gunslinger, but in my opinion, that is needed to go into Redstick and come out with a win.
He looked very good in his half of football against a good UF defense. He's a bit of a gunslinger, but in my opinion, that is needed to go into Redstick and come out with a win.
Friday, October 14, 2011
Week 7 picks:
Sorry to be so brief...not a lot of time as I'm about to make my way down to "The Loveliest Village on the Plains"!
Auburn- 31 UF- 24
Michigan- 24 MSU- 28
Baylor- 24 Tx A&M- 38
USCe- 41 Miss St.- 21
LSU- 44 Tenn- 24
Ok St.- 59 Texas- 28
UAT- 45 Ole Miss- 10
See y'all at the game this weekend! If you are close stop by. The wifey and I are section 10, row 7, seats 7-8! WDE!
Auburn- 31 UF- 24
Michigan- 24 MSU- 28
Baylor- 24 Tx A&M- 38
USCe- 41 Miss St.- 21
LSU- 44 Tenn- 24
Ok St.- 59 Texas- 28
UAT- 45 Ole Miss- 10
See y'all at the game this weekend! If you are close stop by. The wifey and I are section 10, row 7, seats 7-8! WDE!
Wednesday, October 12, 2011
Auburn University cleared of any major violations by NCAA
Auburn University has received a letter from the NCAA enforcement staff stating the NCAA has concluded its investigation, and no major rules violations were found.
"After conducting more than 80 interviews, the NCAA has concluded its investigation into Auburn University," the NCAA said in a statement. "The NCAA enforcement staff is committed to a fair and thorough investigative process. As such, any allegations of major rules violations must meet a burden of proof, which is a higher standard than rampant public speculation online and in the media. The allegations must be based on credible and persuasive information and includes a good-faith belief that the Committee on Infractions could make a finding. As with any case, should the enforcement staff become aware of additional credible information, it will review the information to determine whether further investigation is warranted."
Auburn Athletics Director Jay Jacobs said, "We appreciate the NCAA and thank them for their professionalism and thoroughness during this exhaustive investigation. We are pleased to put this matter behind us.”
"After conducting more than 80 interviews, the NCAA has concluded its investigation into Auburn University," the NCAA said in a statement. "The NCAA enforcement staff is committed to a fair and thorough investigative process. As such, any allegations of major rules violations must meet a burden of proof, which is a higher standard than rampant public speculation online and in the media. The allegations must be based on credible and persuasive information and includes a good-faith belief that the Committee on Infractions could make a finding. As with any case, should the enforcement staff become aware of additional credible information, it will review the information to determine whether further investigation is warranted."
Auburn Athletics Director Jay Jacobs said, "We appreciate the NCAA and thank them for their professionalism and thoroughness during this exhaustive investigation. We are pleased to put this matter behind us.”
Tuesday, October 11, 2011
Nope, no shake-up at QB..........
Chizik just announced that Trotter will, in fact, be the starting QB. I can tell you this, if the head coach has to announce something like that, it means there was consideration made to the alternative. Also, I have no doubt that Trotter will have to perform exceptionally well or else he will be pulled in favor of Moseley.
Potential shake-up at QB on the Plains?
There are rumblings today that Moseley could be named the starter for the UF game this week, as they have been splitting reps during practice (including Sunday night). If this is going to happen, this is the week for it to happen, in my opinion, as you don't want your first start to be on the road at Baton Rouge (see: Jacoby Brissett).
Monday, October 10, 2011
Vadal Alexander has committed to LSU
Vadal Alexander, OG from Buford, GA., has committed to LSU. He took his final OV to them this weekend and more than likely gave his commitment to them on his visit. Great pickup for the other Tigers. Picked LSU over Auburn and Bama.
He's in the ESPNU150, and a 4* on all sites.
He's in the ESPNU150, and a 4* on all sites.
Friday, October 7, 2011
Picks for Week 6...........
UGA 31 @ UT 21
Too much Crowell for the thin Tennesse front 4 to handle, and Murray makes some mistakes to keep it closer than the score shows.
Vandy 14 @ Bama 41
Somehow the smart guys of the SEC score 14 and keep it close for the first half, but the Bama team is too deep and really turns it up in the second half for the blowout.
UK 10 @ USCe 31
Too much Lattimore, but the passing game still looks shaky with Connor Shaw taking over (Spurrier continues to throw his visor a bunch and wonders why him!)
OU 45 @ Texas 21
The Red River Rivalry will flow with the blood of Texas. The young Texas team will get taken to the woodshed, FSU 2010 style. Texas scores late to make it less of a blowout.
UF 10 @ LSU 27
This game won't be in question very long. Congrats Jeff Driskel, you get to make your first collegiate start against LSU at Red Stick. Sorry, but I think we'll get to see some of Jacoby Brissett for UF as well because the team just won't click behind Driskel. QB controversy ensues and Brissett will be named the starter and make HIS debut on the road next week @ Auburn! (I'll be there!)
Auburn 27 @ Arkansas 41
Arkansas just simply has too much firepower for Auburn right now. The OL will show some improvement against a weak, and somewhat hampered, Arkansas front 4 and Dyer gets 150+ again, but Trotter tries to force some plays because of inconsistent pass protection and Arky's offense turns the TOs into points. DeAngelo Benton goes for over 100.
Too much Crowell for the thin Tennesse front 4 to handle, and Murray makes some mistakes to keep it closer than the score shows.
Vandy 14 @ Bama 41
Somehow the smart guys of the SEC score 14 and keep it close for the first half, but the Bama team is too deep and really turns it up in the second half for the blowout.
UK 10 @ USCe 31
Too much Lattimore, but the passing game still looks shaky with Connor Shaw taking over (Spurrier continues to throw his visor a bunch and wonders why him!)
OU 45 @ Texas 21
The Red River Rivalry will flow with the blood of Texas. The young Texas team will get taken to the woodshed, FSU 2010 style. Texas scores late to make it less of a blowout.
UF 10 @ LSU 27
This game won't be in question very long. Congrats Jeff Driskel, you get to make your first collegiate start against LSU at Red Stick. Sorry, but I think we'll get to see some of Jacoby Brissett for UF as well because the team just won't click behind Driskel. QB controversy ensues and Brissett will be named the starter and make HIS debut on the road next week @ Auburn! (I'll be there!)
Auburn 27 @ Arkansas 41
Arkansas just simply has too much firepower for Auburn right now. The OL will show some improvement against a weak, and somewhat hampered, Arkansas front 4 and Dyer gets 150+ again, but Trotter tries to force some plays because of inconsistent pass protection and Arky's offense turns the TOs into points. DeAngelo Benton goes for over 100.
Tuesday, October 4, 2011
Auburn 16 - South Carolina 13
Boy oh boy, what a game! If that didn't remind you of the ole' Tubershell offense type of games then I don't know what would. Auburn leaned on the go-to guy in Michael Dyer at RB on offense, then played great defense and special teams and controlled the time of possession. It was a thing of beauty and a welcome change of pace. Now on to the grades.....
Offense:
Well, this game certainly wasn't the smooth flowing offense we've all become accustomed to from Gus Malzahn. It was ugly, gritty, tough, and in the end clutch. I almost feel that certain players will deserve higher (and some lower) than what the overall grade will be. I understand that the strategy installed by Chizik was to control the ball and keep the Auburn defense off of the field for the most part. If there were any higher grade than an A+, Michael Dyer would get it. He toted the rock 41 times (FORTY ONE!!!) for 141 yards and, in my opinion, did so behind a poor offensive line performance. Most of his yardage seemed to come on second and third efforts all day. Watching the game again, AJ Greene was absolutely abused routinely. I do believe that he has a lot of talent, but he flat out hasn't been using it. I honestly don't feel that he has that killer mentality that some of the other recent Auburn greats at Left tackle have had. The guards haven't exactly been bright spots either, in my opinion. I feel that, at some point, Auburn is going to have to enact the full-on youth movement on the offensive line. But, if they don't do it soon, there is no use in burning the redshirt years off of Christian Westerman and Greg Robinson. Everyone raves about how angry, nasty, and aggressive these two true freshmen play with. Well, I'll say one thing, they can't be much worse than what we've seen so far. Even the most amateur of OL should be able to abide by the old rule of "if you don't know your assignment, kill the person closest to you that isn't wearing the same jersey color". That's something that we haven't even been seeing.
Regarding QB play, there seemed to be so many things working against Trotter. Malzahn only ran the ball 3 out of 35 times on first down. That is not good when you're trying to be unpredictable on offense. And if you're predictable in your playcalling, it is setting your players up for failure. The only times that Trotter was passing, USCe knew we were passing and the DL were able to pin their ears back and attack the QB. We definitely have to continue to feed Dyer the ball a LOT, but at the same time have to have some form of balance out there or else the OL and QB will be playing behind the 8 ball all year. On a side note, Kiehl Frazier looked great out there in his limited duty (about 10% of the snaps). Chizik believes Kiehl is not ready to take over the full repertoire of Gus Malzahn's offense, but whenever he is ready I don't think there's much doubt that he's going to be very special. Even when USCe knew he was running, he gained big chunks of yards. Frazier looked a LOT like a former Auburn QB that won the Heisman recently (hint: not Pat Sullivan).
Overall the offense played good enough to win, Dyer showed guts, and Trotter was clutch. Trotter is definitely developing a certain level of trust from the players with his gutsy performances down the stretch of games, and that can't be overstated. Props to Trotter on that. But, our defense isn't going to be able to win games consistently for us if we can't put up more than 16 points, no matter what the strategy is, if we can't develop some sort of a passing game against LSU, UF, and Bama.
Offense Grade: B
Defense:
A major tip of the cap is due to the defense for their performance this past Saturday in a hostile Columbia crowd against the 10th ranked team in the country, and one of the top running backs in the country in Marcus Lattimore. It was pretty obvious that Ted Roof and Gene Chizik's plan was to stop Lattimore at all costs and make, the wildly inconsistent, Stephen Garcia beat them. He couldn't. Garcia did hit one big play to Alshon Jeffery that could've been called pass interference, but what happened happens when you have a 175 lb DB covering a 6'4, 255 lb WR. Bell was simply overmatched AND got shoved before the ball arrived, then dragged into the endzone. But Auburn stood strong for the remainder of the game, actually grabbing some momentum right away with a blocked extra point by.......
Corey Lemonier, who REALLY seems to have turned a corner. He was completely unblockable by the freshman LT of USC. There were many, many opportunities for the referees to make holding calls, but they let them play for the most part. Even so, there were still times where it was so obvious that they had to call it. Corey was a beast, plain and simple.
You had to be happy with the play of LaDarius Owens as well. He's taking his new opportunity, with Dee Ford's season ending with an injury, and running with it. He's made impact plays in each of the last two games. Very happy with the play of the DL overall, but could still use a little more push from the DTs on passing downs.
The linebackers looked worlds better as well. They played with great discipline and tackled much better overall. Bates actually wrapped up with a great sack of Garcia early, which shows he's taken note from the times last year where he got to the QB and went for the knockout blow (sometimes injuring himself: see Jordan Jefferson). I'm very, very excited about the potential that Jawara White has. He might be our best LB right now. Also, Eltoro has played with much better discipline and showed a great ability to shed blocks this past game and get to the ball carrier. Finally, our depth at LB has improved dramatically with Jonathan Evans being back from injury.
The secondary made two big interceptions when Neiko Thorpe and DeMeatruce McNeal each got their second interceptions of the year. It really seemed like they played with great discipline as well and were always where they were supposed to be. In my opinion, their coverage in our zone blitz plays was crucial in confusing Garcia and give the blitzers time to get to the QB. Bell did get beat once by Jeffery, but we discussed that earlier, but he played very well for the remainder of the game and did really well in run support. Our corners tackling well and making Garcia be perfect seemed to be their individual gameplan, and they executed very well.
Overall the defense made huge strides by holding the #10 team in the nation to only 13 points at home and they got better, and should get confidence from this win.
Defense grade: A
Special Teams:
We might as well just skip this segment (but we won't) every week, as they have been the strength of the team in 2011. Cody Parkey should be receiving All-American mention for his kickoffs. A kicker that can consistently boot the ball to or through the back of the endzone is a huge weapon, as it prevents the returning team from stealing momentum back by making a big special teams play. Parkey leads the conference, and is second in the nation in touchbacks. Parkey did miss an extra point that could've been very costly if we hadn't been able to score on our final drive, but it didn't seem to effect him for the remainder of the game.
Steven Clark, punter, was named SEC Special Teams player of the week. He averaged over 37 yards per punt, including 5 kicks downed inside the 12 yard line (two being inside the five). He was vital in making the USC offense be predictable in their playcalling.
Quan Bray did a good job filling in for Trovon Reed, but he still never had time to really make anything happen because of punt blocking. He did make one fair catch he shouldn't have, but I'll take that over a muffed punt anytime.
Special teams grade: A
Overall:
This team went into a hostile road crowd, facing the #10 team in America on the road and came out with a win, as a double-digit underdog. You have to love a team that just knows how to win, and this team seems to know how. Great job all around by gutting this one out. Now, on to the next battle in this ridiculous October schedule in Arkansas on the road. They're coming off of a huge comeback win against Texas A&M as well, so should be pumped.
Overall grade: A-
Offense:
Well, this game certainly wasn't the smooth flowing offense we've all become accustomed to from Gus Malzahn. It was ugly, gritty, tough, and in the end clutch. I almost feel that certain players will deserve higher (and some lower) than what the overall grade will be. I understand that the strategy installed by Chizik was to control the ball and keep the Auburn defense off of the field for the most part. If there were any higher grade than an A+, Michael Dyer would get it. He toted the rock 41 times (FORTY ONE!!!) for 141 yards and, in my opinion, did so behind a poor offensive line performance. Most of his yardage seemed to come on second and third efforts all day. Watching the game again, AJ Greene was absolutely abused routinely. I do believe that he has a lot of talent, but he flat out hasn't been using it. I honestly don't feel that he has that killer mentality that some of the other recent Auburn greats at Left tackle have had. The guards haven't exactly been bright spots either, in my opinion. I feel that, at some point, Auburn is going to have to enact the full-on youth movement on the offensive line. But, if they don't do it soon, there is no use in burning the redshirt years off of Christian Westerman and Greg Robinson. Everyone raves about how angry, nasty, and aggressive these two true freshmen play with. Well, I'll say one thing, they can't be much worse than what we've seen so far. Even the most amateur of OL should be able to abide by the old rule of "if you don't know your assignment, kill the person closest to you that isn't wearing the same jersey color". That's something that we haven't even been seeing.
Regarding QB play, there seemed to be so many things working against Trotter. Malzahn only ran the ball 3 out of 35 times on first down. That is not good when you're trying to be unpredictable on offense. And if you're predictable in your playcalling, it is setting your players up for failure. The only times that Trotter was passing, USCe knew we were passing and the DL were able to pin their ears back and attack the QB. We definitely have to continue to feed Dyer the ball a LOT, but at the same time have to have some form of balance out there or else the OL and QB will be playing behind the 8 ball all year. On a side note, Kiehl Frazier looked great out there in his limited duty (about 10% of the snaps). Chizik believes Kiehl is not ready to take over the full repertoire of Gus Malzahn's offense, but whenever he is ready I don't think there's much doubt that he's going to be very special. Even when USCe knew he was running, he gained big chunks of yards. Frazier looked a LOT like a former Auburn QB that won the Heisman recently (hint: not Pat Sullivan).
Overall the offense played good enough to win, Dyer showed guts, and Trotter was clutch. Trotter is definitely developing a certain level of trust from the players with his gutsy performances down the stretch of games, and that can't be overstated. Props to Trotter on that. But, our defense isn't going to be able to win games consistently for us if we can't put up more than 16 points, no matter what the strategy is, if we can't develop some sort of a passing game against LSU, UF, and Bama.
Offense Grade: B
Defense:
A major tip of the cap is due to the defense for their performance this past Saturday in a hostile Columbia crowd against the 10th ranked team in the country, and one of the top running backs in the country in Marcus Lattimore. It was pretty obvious that Ted Roof and Gene Chizik's plan was to stop Lattimore at all costs and make, the wildly inconsistent, Stephen Garcia beat them. He couldn't. Garcia did hit one big play to Alshon Jeffery that could've been called pass interference, but what happened happens when you have a 175 lb DB covering a 6'4, 255 lb WR. Bell was simply overmatched AND got shoved before the ball arrived, then dragged into the endzone. But Auburn stood strong for the remainder of the game, actually grabbing some momentum right away with a blocked extra point by.......
Corey Lemonier, who REALLY seems to have turned a corner. He was completely unblockable by the freshman LT of USC. There were many, many opportunities for the referees to make holding calls, but they let them play for the most part. Even so, there were still times where it was so obvious that they had to call it. Corey was a beast, plain and simple.
You had to be happy with the play of LaDarius Owens as well. He's taking his new opportunity, with Dee Ford's season ending with an injury, and running with it. He's made impact plays in each of the last two games. Very happy with the play of the DL overall, but could still use a little more push from the DTs on passing downs.
The linebackers looked worlds better as well. They played with great discipline and tackled much better overall. Bates actually wrapped up with a great sack of Garcia early, which shows he's taken note from the times last year where he got to the QB and went for the knockout blow (sometimes injuring himself: see Jordan Jefferson). I'm very, very excited about the potential that Jawara White has. He might be our best LB right now. Also, Eltoro has played with much better discipline and showed a great ability to shed blocks this past game and get to the ball carrier. Finally, our depth at LB has improved dramatically with Jonathan Evans being back from injury.
The secondary made two big interceptions when Neiko Thorpe and DeMeatruce McNeal each got their second interceptions of the year. It really seemed like they played with great discipline as well and were always where they were supposed to be. In my opinion, their coverage in our zone blitz plays was crucial in confusing Garcia and give the blitzers time to get to the QB. Bell did get beat once by Jeffery, but we discussed that earlier, but he played very well for the remainder of the game and did really well in run support. Our corners tackling well and making Garcia be perfect seemed to be their individual gameplan, and they executed very well.
Overall the defense made huge strides by holding the #10 team in the nation to only 13 points at home and they got better, and should get confidence from this win.
Defense grade: A
Special Teams:
We might as well just skip this segment (but we won't) every week, as they have been the strength of the team in 2011. Cody Parkey should be receiving All-American mention for his kickoffs. A kicker that can consistently boot the ball to or through the back of the endzone is a huge weapon, as it prevents the returning team from stealing momentum back by making a big special teams play. Parkey leads the conference, and is second in the nation in touchbacks. Parkey did miss an extra point that could've been very costly if we hadn't been able to score on our final drive, but it didn't seem to effect him for the remainder of the game.
Steven Clark, punter, was named SEC Special Teams player of the week. He averaged over 37 yards per punt, including 5 kicks downed inside the 12 yard line (two being inside the five). He was vital in making the USC offense be predictable in their playcalling.
Quan Bray did a good job filling in for Trovon Reed, but he still never had time to really make anything happen because of punt blocking. He did make one fair catch he shouldn't have, but I'll take that over a muffed punt anytime.
Special teams grade: A
Overall:
This team went into a hostile road crowd, facing the #10 team in America on the road and came out with a win, as a double-digit underdog. You have to love a team that just knows how to win, and this team seems to know how. Great job all around by gutting this one out. Now, on to the next battle in this ridiculous October schedule in Arkansas on the road. They're coming off of a huge comeback win against Texas A&M as well, so should be pumped.
Overall grade: A-
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