Has Auburn football reached rock bottom?

Saturday’s 30-24 loss at home to Tennessee, a team that hadn’t won a SEC game in 11 previous tries, suggests that it has. The Tigers are trending down, no question, and if things don’t turn around in a hurry, this season could get very ugly.

The Tigers are 4-3 overall and 1-3 in SEC play. Forget about division titles; forget about a New Year’s Day bowl. As it stands, the Tigers will have to get things fixed or face the real possibility of sitting home entirely for bowl season.

Auburn fans have seen this monstrosity play out before, usually at the tail end of a coach’s tenure on The Plains. You could go all the way back to the days of “Shug” Jordan, for whom the stadium is named. Following a 10-2 season in 1974, Jordan’s Tigers went 3-6-2 the following year, Jordan’s 25th and final season at Auburn.

Doug Barfield followed, went 8-3 in 1979, and 5-6 in 1980 before being shown the door. Then there was Terry Bowden, 10-3 in 1997, and only made it to a 1-5 mark the next season before being replaced.

Tommy Tuberville, same thing; 9-4 in 2007 and booted out a year later after a 5-7 campaign. Even Gene Chizik, who won a national title, was out two years later after completing a slide that ended with a 3-9 mark.

Last season, Auburn beat Alabama, won 10 games including victories over two No. 1s, and played for the SEC championship.

Yes, it’s beginning to look as bleak as turnaround seasons from the past. So much so, in fact, that Shreveport could be a pipe dream as a bowl destination if the Tigers don’t pull themselves together. A win next week against Mississippi in Oxford is a must for the Tigers with Texas A&M, Georgia, and Alabama still left on the schedule.

Statistically, Saturday’s game was evenly matched. Auburn held a 22-16 advantage on first downs and outgained the Vols 448-396. But key mistakes and lack of execution in clutch situations helped to make this game — and this season — one of despair for the Tigers.

An offense that began to sputter from a lack of consistent running game lost its starting running back in the third quarter on Saturday. Freshman JaTarvious Whitlow went down with an injury; a long-term injury could add to Auburn’s woes.

But the shortcomings in the run game have been compounded by a lack of protection in the passing game, resulting in a general breakdown on offense. It’s a surprising development given that Stidham threw for 3,000-plus yards last season and only appeared to be headed for bigger and better things this year.

But with a lack of protection has come a lack of confidence, and the Tigers are looking for leadership.

If that weren’t enough, now Auburn’s defense isn’t playing up to par. Sure, the lack of offense has something to do with that, and perhaps frustration has seeped into the locker room?

Whatever the case, this situation falls squarely on Malzah, who will have to do perhaps the best coaching coach of his career to keep the Tigers afloat.

“I’m very disappointed in our performance,” Malzahn said after Saturday’s game. “I thought we would play better and we had a solid week of practice. I’m disappointed for our players, I’m disappointed for our fans, and I’m not happy.”

He has one week to turn the frowns upside down, or the Tigers might fall all the way to a 1-7 SEC record.