After a first half of visible improvement on both sides of the ball, Auburn struggled at times in the second half. Struggled to hold onto the ball, struggled to score and put the game away when for all intents and purposes, it could have in the 3rd quarter.
The offense scored on three straight possessions, and then went 0 for 5, with two turnovers until kicking the winning FG. This left the defense on the field way too much. So much that the quality of play defensively suffered, and allowed the pesky ULM squad back into the game. Give them credit, the Warhawks never quit.
Right when things looked the most bleak however, our Tigers gathered themselves, played tremendous defense in overtime, and partially blocked the Field Goal attempt by ULM. Leaving the game in the fully capable hands, or leg in this case, of Cody Parkey.
Auburn's lack of depth at the linebacker position is starting to show, and the results are not good. I honestly don't know if Darren Bates ever came off the field for a series. His tackling was drastically better, although he had to be gassed towards the end of the game.
Seeing a 255 yard rushing performance does make me feel better, even if the opponent is a Sun Belt Conference team. Auburn has been in sore need for something to hang its hat on offensively, and the run game is what us the fans want to see. A rich tradition of running the ball is what defines Auburn in the modern era of college football, so yeah, lets see more of that!
Overall it was an improvement, with lapses back into the old habits of not playing very good. In other words, it was more of the same, with a better outcome. Lets hope the improvement continues, because the next five opponents won't be anything less than very good football teams.
Auburn did not win the time of possession in any of the four quarters, and still managed to find a way to win the game. That is a positive, and as good a place as any to move on to next week.
WAR EAGLE!
No comments:
Post a Comment