Defensive Response

In response to this article about jumping on the Gus Bus, the author left the impression that he had some angst about how well the AU defense would play. I left this comment...

Please don’t take this as a personal attack. It is not meant to be.
I feel all the angst about running a HUNH offense, but I truly believe it is all misdirected. The amount of time any defense spends on the field of play, is solely the responsibility of that defense. No one has delivered a concrete argument showing how an offense scoring in 49 seconds has any real deflating effect on an effective defense.
I believe quite the opposite. If your offense can score at will, the defense should be more pumped to get back out there and get the offense the ball back the quickest way possible.
There is not an offense in the country that is directly responsible for the amount of time any defense spends on the field. Ideally I would like to see the AU offense back out on the field in less than two minutes after finishing a drive in the end zone. That is how defenses should approach their mission.
WAR EAGLE!

 Let me know what you think about this in the comments below.

WAR EAGLE!
 

Malzahn Chooses Experience

 As the staff at Auburn continues to grow, I have become more impressed with Gus Malzahn and his ability to hire experienced, hard nosed football coaches. It's no secret that Malzahn was not the first choice on my wish lists of coaches. However, as his transition into Auburn's head football coach continues, I have come to see what the selection committee did throughout its search process. Gus Malzahn is the right man for the job.

 The addition of Melvin Smith to the defensive coaching staff is another master stroke by Malzahn. Smith coached the Jim Thorpe Award winner last season, which is given to the best defensive back in America. His groups at Mississippi State have led the SEC in takeaways or interceptions two years in a row. Auburn had been sorely lacking in that department.

 With SEC experience on this staff nearing the century mark, our team should have no trouble learning what it will take to compete at the highest level in the toughest conference in America.

 Thinking along those lines, that much experience on the defensive side of the ball should allow Gus time to dial up more diabolical plays for the upcoming season.

 I can hardly wait to see what he has in mind.

WAR EAGLE!

Gus Malzahn speaks at Super 6 banquet 12-5-12

Introducing Charlie Harbison

 According to 24/7Sports.com Gus Malzahn and Auburn defensive coordinator Ellis Johnson have chosen to hire Clemson defensive backs coach and Co-Defensive Coordinator Charlie Harbison. Harbison's defenses have consistently ranked among the best in college football in most passing departments. 

 Saturday evening Auburn defensive lineman Greg Robinson his approval.
@NineORhino: Auburn fans coach Cheese aka coach Harbison is a great hire man good recruiter too!...#WDE

 The following video is from a pre-game press conference where Clemson was preparing to face Troy.


 The following is from the official Clemson University athletics site:

• In 2011, he coached cornerback Coty Sensabaugh, who had 14 passes defended and was drafted by the Titans.
• Clemson was in the top 26 in the nation in pass efficiency defense in 2009 and 2010.
• Coached first-team All-American DeAndre McDaniel in 2009 and 2010. McDaniel led the ACC and was tied for third in the nation in interceptions (8) in 2009. He was also named First-Team All-ACC both seasons.
• Named one of nation's top-25 recruiters by Rivals in 2010.
• Helped Clemson to a top-25 ranking and the ACC Atlantic Division title in 2009. Clemson had 21 interceptions, fifth-most in Tiger history and tied for fifth-most in the nation. Clemson was seventh in the nation in passing defense.
• From 1995-97, he helped the Tigers to three bowl games (1996 Gator, 1996 Peach, 1998 Peach).
• Coached great players in the 1990s at Clemson, including nine-time Pro Bowl selection Brian Dawkins. He was an All-American and led the ACC in interceptions in Harbison's first year at Clemson (1995).
• Came to Clemson from Mississippi State, where he was defensive coordinator and safeties coach. The Bulldogs were seventh in the nation in pass defense and 20th in the nation in pass efficiency defense in 2007.
• Has had two tours of duty at Alabama (1998-00, 2003-06). He helped Alabama to five bowl games in seven total years, including 1999 when the Crimson Tide won the SEC title. Alabama finished ranked #8 in the nation that year. He coached defensive backs in his first tour of duty and wide receivers the second time around at Alabama.
• Coached at Louisiana State under Head Coach Nick Saban in 2001 and 2002. The 2001 team won the SEC title and ranked #7 in the final AP poll with a 10-3 record. Louisiana State played in two bowl games in his two years there.

Coach Lashlee on Quarterbacks

 Here is a short video from al.com with Gus Malzahn, and Rhett Lashlee talking about the challenges ahead installing their offense.
Click on this LINK if video fails to appear. 

 

WAR EAGLE!

Meet Auburn's New Coordinators

Thanks goes to Aaron Brenner and wareagleextra.com for the video provided.

Looking Forward: The HUNH Offense

 It seems like an eternity since we had a functioning offense at Auburn doesn't it? While I won't speculate on rumors or hearsay about why the 2011 AU offense wasn't as productive as the previous two versions, I'll say that I am looking forward to the unbridled, non-haltered, and unabridged version of the Gus Malzahn HUNH offense.

 I will attempt through video, to give you some examples of what we can look forward to. The first video shows Gus himself explaining his famous Buck Sweep



This video shows us some actual footage of the AU Counter play. Enjoy some of this vintage footage from happier times. Can you name all of the players in this one?



The next look we get is the Mad Scientist again describing his use of the Wildcat.



Next we see ESPN analyst Todd McShay going into detail on the high powered Auburn offense.




 Clearly we are in for a treat offensively. We know that this offense can and does produce scores in a hurry. I always felt that Auburn was in every game when Malzahn led our offense, and that we had a legitimate chance to win every game. I am looking forward to that feeling making its return in the fall of 2013.

WAR EAGLE!

Blame the Defense

Defenders of freedom, and the Auburn Family

 I am going to boldly make this statement, and debunk a myth that many in college football believe. A true (HUNH) Hurry Up No Huddle style offense has absolutely no bearing on a defensive unit being tired or worn out at the end of the game.

 It is the sole responsibility of the defensive unit to get off the field in just three plays. If a defense can't get off the field in three plays, then it is to blame, not the offense. No matter how fast your offense scores and puts your defense back out on the field, the defense needs to only be back on the field for three plays.

 So, the next time you hear some big time sportswriter talk about how the NASCAR style offense is the culprit to blame for a team's defensive unit being tired, tell 'em the defense is to blame, not the offense.

 The most important piece of the puzzle for newly named head coach Gus Malzahn, is defense. Malzahn is a smart guy, in fact, many say he is an offensive genius. Figuring out what it will take to be successful in the SEC as a defensive unit will be his biggest hurdle. I hope he gets it right.

WAR EAGLE!

Get On Board!

 Now that the suspense is over, and we know that Auburn has hired Gus Malzahn, the Auburn family can come together again, and support our 26th head football coach.



  First here is a statement released by Malzahn:
“I’m grateful for the opportunity to become the head football coach at Auburn University. It’s an outstanding institution with a storied football program that I had the pleasure of experiencing first-hand for three years,” Malzahn said in a statement. “I deeply appreciate the confidence that Dr. Gogue, Jay Jacobs and the search committee had in my ability to turn this program around and to bring Auburn back to national prominence. This is a homecoming for me and I look forward to being reunited with the Auburn family.”

 Here is the arrival at the airport...



 USA Today ran an interesting article on Malzahn as he prepared for his first ever game as head coach at Arkansas State. Click HERE to read that story. 

  There are numerous reasons to be excited about Gus returning to the Plains. We are going to examine a couple of them here.

Recruiting:
All of this Auburn team has been recruited while Gus was at Auburn. The staggering support this will create among the players is vital to turning things around quickly, and creating a "Winning Attitude" that is necessary during the long grueling months of preparation for the next season.

 In his first talk with the team prior to the introductory press conference Malzahn said: "I told the team it's an honor to be back. Our expectations are to win championships. 

Nobody will out work us."

 Almost unanimously the recruiting class has responded by stating via twitter that they are on board with the Malzahn hire. 

Offensive style:
 We already knew the plan would be to have a fast paced offense. Which is good news considering that almost every player on the team was recruited for that style of offense. I am interested to see how Gus will use Jay Prosch. I know that Jay was largely wasted in the Loeffler play book.

 The QB play again will be key, I'll get into why later and in another post, but for now, these QB's are about to get back to playing fast paced fun football. 

 All of the current AU running backs should be extremely excited. Malzahn had Onterrio McCalebb averaging 8.6 yards per carry in 2010 & 5.7 ypc even after losing nearly the entire offensive line from the 2010 BCS National Championship team.

WAR EAGLE!

Reflections

 Looking back is always easier to do than trying to peer into the future. So, with that in mind, let's look at some memorable moments from this past season.

 Trovon Reed will get the team Honor Award from this writer for wearing the jersey number of his fallen team mate LaDarious Phillips during the Homecoming game against New Mexico State. The fact that he scored a touchdown while doing so, is a memorable moment from 2012. A few mentions are due for the efforts that these men displayed while trying to wade through arguably one of the worst seasons in AU football history.

courtesy of al.com

Tre Mason for his reaching the 1,000 yard mark in rushing. Considering how inept this offense appeared at times, I think this says a lot about this young man. His effort wins Tre the Offensive Player of the Year from this writer.

courtesy of Todd VanEmst

Jonathan Wallace for his valiant efforts, and making his way into the starting position.



 So, here now is the "Play of the Year" for your viewing pleasure starring the 2012 Defensive Player of the Year, Mr. Daren Bates.



WAR EAGLE!

What Will It Take?

Looking forward to 2013

There are many questions, and areas of concern for this Auburn team heading into the 2013 football season. Whomever is selected by the committee to turn things around as the new head coach will have a job on his hands. What will it take to put Auburn back into contention in the West division?

 First, the attitude of this team needs some "tough love" adjustments. The defensive line needs to be told they played soft this past season. The difference seemed to be that when the helmets were strapped on, their personalities never changed. 

 As a defensive lineman, once those pads and helmets are on, your inner mean streak is what should take over. You have to take on the attitude that you are willing to scratch, claw and fight your way to defend your position.

 Taking on double, and sometimes triple team blocks should be looked at as a badge of honor. That unit has got to establish that Auburn defense is the roughest toughest place to enter in the country. It's evident that hasn't been the case in quite some time. Now is the time for change!

 The rest of the defense has to play with a fierce determination to stop the ball carrier in one on one situations. Too many times we saw Auburn safeties, and defensive backs diving at feet, without their hands and arms reaching for the legs of the opposing runner. We must tackle better. That is an attitude that must be enforced by the incoming coach.

 Offensively, Auburn has to find some players to step up for two very good graduates. Phillip Lutzenkirchen, and Emory Blake are going to leave a void in the pass catching department at AU. While we have recruited very well in that area, the results have been far from convincing that we are ready to be successful at catching passes thrown our way. Sammie Coates may be the exception to that.

 A very young offensive line has been through the wars, and should be much better in 2013. Auburn has recruited the top offensive line class in the last two cycles, so, the talent is there, and we have one of the best O-line coaches in the country in Jeff Grimes. I have every confidence that this unit will be a huge plus heading into next season.

 The number of Running backs is low, compared to most top programs. The Jovon Robinson issue may have an impact on just how many RB's get recruited to The Plains. Whether or not Robinson is able to return, will determine how many RB's AU tries to recruit in this class. The returning guys are good, with Tre Mason being a returning 1,000 yard rusher. 

 The biggest challenge to any coach coming in at Auburn, is to recruit and develop quarterbacks. Realistically, we are not in the best of shape at this position. Clint Moseley has been hurt most of his career at Auburn, and his shoulder is the big area of concern. When he was forced into playing time this year, he limped into his first huddle. Unfortunately, it didn't end well for Moseley. 

 Kiehl Frazier went through the typical sophomore jinx in his development this past season, looking as though he wasn't getting what the coaches were trying to instill in his play. I blame the coaches more so than Kiehl, because we have seen what he can do, and what a great improviser he can be with the ball in his hands. 

 Kiehl looked as though he was having to count his steps, and make sure his feet were in an exact place before he could start his actual reads. He was playing constricted. Way too much emphasis was placed on how, and not enough on his actual talent, which is move around and make plays. Those are the things that made him the #1 Dual Threat QB out of high school. Not being forced into becoming a pocket passer. Round peg, meet square hole!

 Jonathan Wallace was a true bright spot in the otherwise gloomy QB play. His development may be the biggest key to how quickly this team can return to competing for the Western Division title.

 I would imagine the overall mental state of this team needs molding. It's going to take a task master, with an attitude to get the slack out of these AU players and make winners of them. They have it in them, of this I am sure. The question is, who will be chosen to bring this team into a football state of mind?

 WAR EAGLE!

Making Sense

The hot topic is the AU coaching search. Who would make the most sense to bring to Auburn? How would certain styles of offense and defense work in the league? Who among the believed names among the myriad lists of candidates, would get the most out of our current recruits? All questions that are bringing emotional responses among the AU faithful.

 Auburn has recruited for the spread offense that last four years. We have some of the top talent in the country. How can I say that? AU was constantly rated among the best in recruiting and those top 10 schools over the past four years have consistently competed for conference and national championships. No way the percentage of those recruits that did not pan out all landed at AU. That indicates that the talent is already at Auburn.

 Most of you know, that I liked Gene Chizik. Although Chizik gambled and lost on his BCS title giving him more than one year to change his philosophy, he still has my respect. He made a terrible mistake to change to the pro-style offense. 

 Why do I say that? Because Alabama has lost four games in the last three years. Those losses have come to AU running a  Hurry Up No Huddle spread attack, and Texas A&M running the same style of attack. The other two losses were to LSU, and South Carolina. Alabama missed 3 or 4 FG's which would have won them the game against LSU. Using that as a criteria, Chizik should have never left the HUNH spread attack.

 That would seem to narrow the search list, or would it? Chris Peterson is on that list, and he runs that style of offense. My personal choice of Gary Patterson runs an exceptional offense, and very inventive defense. Patterson is the one guy that has a proven record of coaching up the talent, and also making the changes needed to adjust to different styles of offense that he faces. Read this STORY then come back and tell me you don't agree.

 The other name on the popular lists is Gus Malzahn. Malzahn would fit the easiest with the current staff, and players. He has worked very successfully with the offensive coaches, winning a BCS title. I'm sure he would replace Coach Loeffler with Rhett Lashlee, as offensive coordinator. The rest of the offensive staff he would be comfortable with. That would keep the recruiting class mostly together.

 There are some other names out there that could be great hires, too many to name here, these three are three that I wanted to highlight. We will come back and look at more, unless a coached is named soon.

WAR EAGLE!

Ugghhh The 2nd

The sun has set on Auburn's 2012 season

 It was the most embarrassing display of football I have seen in years, months weeks days. Ugghh I hate feeling this way. I can only imagine how bad the players feel. let's look at the glaring things wrong from a fans prospective.

 Offensive production, no wait, that is an oxymoron. How about the lack of any offensive production can best be described by this statement from al.com
 Auburn's final three SEC opponents scored touchdowns on 16 of 18 first-half possessions.

 What about defensive prowess? Here is the most horrid of all stats from the game, as provided by the war eagle extra...
Alabama led 42-0 after 30 minutes, its largest halftime lead ever on Auburn. Never before in the Iron Bowl’s 77-game history had one team banked 40 points in back-to-back matchups.

from twitter
Bama's defense has now gone 2 consecutive years w/out giving up any points to Auburn.

This is from Joel Erickson at al.com 

Faced with a barrage of questions about whether or not Gene Chizik is the man to pull Auburn out of this hole, the Tigers stood united on one key point.

The Tigers want Chizik and his coaching staff back.

"He should be back," quarterback Jonathan Wallace said. "They know exactly where this program needs to go, and they know what to do. I hope they are back next year. I really have no doubt. I really do believe they will be."

"Of course I want him back," Mason said. "But that's not my decision to make."
"I don't think there are any quitters on our team," Mason said.

 To finish, we have this video of Jake Holland with the media after the game.


 The waiting will soon be over, and the news of Gene Chizik's fate will be told. Until then, we will hope for the best for these players.

WAR EAGLE!

Read more here: http://www.wareagleextra.com/#storylink=cpy

Jonathan Wallace Impresses

Every time that the media interviews Wallace, I come away impressed with his intelligence, and poise. Enjoy this video courtesy of al.com

Jay Jacobs To Remain?

Jordan-Hare stadium, home of Auburn Tiger football

 Published reports indicate that Jay Jacobs will remain the Athletic Director at Auburn University. Jacobs job has come under attack by many fans and message board posters for the perceived lack of  improvement in Auburn's four major sports programs. Most recently the failure of the football program to win any of its conference games. There is still Alabama to play this season, and many fans have already written that off as a loss.

 Increasingly the cries for removal of Jacobs along with his first football coach that he hired, Gene Chizik, have echoed loud and strong across the state of Alabama and indeed the country. According to the report by al.com contributor Charles Goldberg "Gogue defended Jacobs at a recent university event,"

 The report goes on to state...
"The university's Board of Trustees will meet Friday morning in Auburn in a regularly-scheduled meeting in which both Gogue and Jacobs will attend. Jacobs is scheduled to address a proposed renovation of baseball's Plainsman Park. Football is not on the agenda." 

What does this mean going forward for Gene Chizik and the athletic department?

 It is my opinion, that if Jay Jacobs indeed keeps his job, that Gene Chizik will be allowed to stay on as head coach of Auburn football.

 This certainly will not sit well with many of the Auburn family that believe that Chizik is the problem at Auburn, and that his style of coaching is perceived as why player development is lacking.

  Until all this unfolds we will be in the dark as to the future of Auburn football, and indeed the entire athletic department. Hold on.

WAR EAGLE!

Early Evaluations Part 2

  The title seems to be a joke of sorts since Auburn President Jay Gouge has decided to wait until after the season to evaluate the state of the football program. I don't have to wait, and I see no reason to wait, so I will give my honest evaluations now.   Your criticisms and comments are welcome below, all you have to do is click on the  word comments.

 Part 2 looks at the linebackers and defensive backs. Without a lot of hoopla, lets get to it...

 Defense wins championships. However you choose to look at it, Auburn is about as far away from having a championship defensive unit as you can get. So, this is where we find out why.

 I could go on and on about how we don't tackle well, and how we miss the proper alignments in crucial situations, but Brian VanGorder beat me to the point. Listen as he describes the agony in ways that I could never explain. Being that he, you know, has a vast amount of football knowledge. 

Early Evaluations Part 1

Defense wins Championships

 The title seems to be a joke of sorts since Auburn President Jay Gouge has decided to wait until after the season to evaluate the state of the football program. I don't have to wait, and I see no reason to wait, so I will give my honest evaluations now. 

 Your criticisms and comments are welcome below, all you have to do is click on the  word comments.

 This is "Part 1" and we will break this team down by groups, so we don't have a multiple page post. Hopefully this is better for you, as I know it is for me. On to it...

 Let us start up front with the defensive line where we anticipated a much improved unit, and a steady stream of sacks and tackles for losses. None of that ever actually happened, and many AU faithful are asking themselves "why?"

 We have seen the results and listened to commentators talk all year of our defensive linemen being out of position during plays. Why are they still out of position, and not making plays? Does the current coaching staff not see these problems? Were we not promised an "unleashed" defensive front, that would supposedly cause havoc in the backfield? Who is to blame for this failure? Most importantly, how do we fix it? Tough questions.

 It's evident that our Defensive front is still not strong enough to compete throughout the entirety of the game. We went into the 4th quarter of several games this season with a reasonable chance to win. The defensive front for Auburn has been pushed around all season long, period!

 After the first couple of games, most of these nuances have normally been corrected, yet we continue to see the same mistakes game after game. Why?

  So far this season, Auburn only has 56 tackles for a loss. The defensive line is credited with 26.5 of those losses. Out of 719 plays so far, only 26.5 tackles for a loss. So much for the havoc being created in opposing backfields. PATHETIC!

 The start of every half has seen an opposing offense march up and down the field scoring with ease, and putting this team behind. While that may seem to be a coaching problem, and I am sure some of it may be, there also has to be an attitude amongst the defensive players that no team will score on us. That attitude is sorely lacking. Why can't the coaches get our defensive front to play with aggression?

 We have seen so little of this attitude from the linemen on defense this year, that I have to grade the entire unit as a failure. I'll let you decide if it is because of scheme, coaching, or lack of effort. I know one thing for sure, in all my days watching and cheering for Auburn football, I have never seen a more porous defensive front.

War Eagle!

Senior Day 2012

One last Tiger Walk for the Senior class of 2012

Dengelo Benton
 
Anthony Morgan
Ikeem Means
T'Sharvan Bell
Onterio McCalebb
Daren Bates
Jonathan Evans
Phillip Lutzenkirchen
Ashton Richardson
John Sullen
Jamar Travis
Emory Blake
Travante Stallworth

 This week Auburn plays host to Alabama A&M. While it is the first time ever for A&M to visit Jordan-Hare, Auburn will honor the Senior class of this football team. That means the underclassmen will have plenty of incentive to send the Senior's on this team out with a victory in their last home game. 

 Above are the names of those who have experienced the joys of Championships, and the misery of this season. If you go to the game, please give the honor and respect they deserve. They have truly been through it all.

WAR EAGLE!

Ughhh...

 No other expression is needed. No other phrase to be uttered. Just the total disgust, and exhausted feeling that this nightmare may never end.

 This should just about sum up how I feel about the fantastic job Auburn has done on offense this season. Powered by the brain trust that is Scot Loeffler, Auburn has sunk to new lows in conference play. 

 Let's start with a look at scoring.
  Points scored per game 17.3 
  Points allowed per game 28.4

 Don't like those numbers? How about offensive production?
  First Downs total 156, Out of 584 plays that Auburn has had the   ball, only 156 first downs.
  Rushing per attempt 3.74
  Third down conversion Out of 122 third down plays that Auburn had thus far this season, they have  only made a first down 35 times. That is a 28.69% rate. 4th down is just as bad at 28.57%.
  Red Zone rates are really good, until you see how seldom AU actually gets into the red zone. Only 23 times this season. 23! Converting 18 of those trips into points.

 Let's look at these numbers from a SEC perspective, shall we?  Next to last in scoring offense, 12th in rushing offense, next to last in passing offense, dead last in first downs, dead last in tackle for loss allowed, and last but not least, dead last in 3rd down conversions.

 Any questions as to why we looked so bad against our cousins from UGA?

 Normally, I am as positive an outlook as you could hope to find when it comes to my Tigers. Right now, I just don't see anything to be positive about. That saddens me. Because after the way this team played in the second half against New Mexico State, I thought that they would prepare much better for Georgia, and really fight them tooth and nail. It doesn't look to be getting any better either.

WAR EAGLE!

Dee Ford & Coach Thigpen Video

 Dee Ford has been impressive in his time with the media. Despite a losing season, he has tried to stay focused, and continue to get better.

  “It would be a huge difference,” Ford said, “not just for us, but for the whole defense. Our turnover ratio would increase. It’ll be a wholesale effect on the defense.”

 On dealing with a losing record this season. 

  “It’s hard, but it’s not as hard for me because I focus more on development,” Ford said. “Especially when we’re in a losing season like this, you know; Are you getting better? Or are you kind of skating through, or are you going backwards? And I just focus on my development, and especially the development of the D-line"


 Coach Tommy Thigpen got in on the chat about getting ready for UGA.