When it all boils down to it, comparisons in sports are mainly used as a reference points for prognostication. We see it all the time: Player X is compared to Player Y during draft time so that general managers have a line of demarcation as to how good, or bad, Player X can be in his career.

While it’s no mean an exact science, as rarely anything in sports is, it certainly has its place in the evaluation process.

As it pertains to my early prognostication of Auburn University this past offseason, I quickly referenced the newly minted national champion Ohio State Buckeyes as the ceiling for the Tigers as they appeared to be mirror images of each other in everything from personnel (players and staff ) to scheme.

Before OSU head man Urban Meyer reclaimed his perch, it was Auburn front man Gus Malzahn who was considered the architect for the new era behind a style very similar in approach to Meyer: spread-oriented approach centered on a Power-run game with passing concepts designed to make you defend every quadrant of the field. On defense, a unit that had just gained the premier mind in the sport when Malzahn somehow landed former Florida Gators head coach Will Muschamp, we knew that Auburn would be able to play an aggressive, multi-front scheme which would allow it the ability to rarely have to substitute against teams looking to go to a tempo pace, spread them out or run predominantly out of heavier personnel groupings.

And those are just the schematic similarities between the two programs.

Personnel-wise, Auburn possesses similar talent to OSU, too.

You want an explosive running back capable of winning a tilt virtually on his own like the Buckeyes have with Ezekiel Elliott (6’1″, 225 lbs)? Well, Auburn has a few to choose from: Roc Thomas (5’10”, 203 lbs), Peyton Barber (5’11”, 225 lbs) and former JUCO player of the year Jovon Robinson (6’1″, 230 lbs). What about receivers capable of stretching a defense like a rubber band? Auburn receivers Duke Williams, Ricardo Louis, Melvin Ray and Marcus Davis may be better than what the Buckeyes have in some aspects.

The Buckeyes’ offensive line has garnered plenty of attention but none more so than Auburn’s unit.

On the other side of the ball, the inside-out duo of Adolphus Washington and Joey Bosa are a collective pain in the butt to an offense’s rushing and passing scheme, but the same can be said for the Auburn duo of Montravious Adams and Carl Lawson. At the second level, which truly separates the Buckeyes from just about any defense in the country, standouts like weak-side linebacker Darron Lee, “Mike” backer Raekwon McMillan and “Sam” Josh Perry are versatile enough to never have to come off the field as they can play in reverse almost as well as they can attack.

But Muschamp can easily implement the same strategy with LBs Kris Frost, Tre Williams, Cassanova McKinzy or Justin Garrett. And rounding out the unit with secondary players the likes of Tray Matthews, Rudy Ford, Jon Jones and Blake Countess doesn’t hurt, either.

But it’s the similarity at the most important position of them all, quarterback, that really cemented it for me. Cardale Jones, all 6’5″, 250 pounds of him, has rose to prominence behind a cannon-like device for a right arm and sneaky athleticism for a man his size. He has proven to be exactly what the doctor ordered for a scheme that has built most of its success behind uber-athletic QBs like Braxton Miller and J.T. Barrett.

But stop me if that sounds familiar…

Newly minted Auburn QB Jeremy Johnson, 6’5″, 240 pounds, has the same exact cannon and sneaky athleticism, and he’s taking over for one of the most explosive athletes the position has ever seen, Nick Marshall. But his auspicious debut as the starter has many quickly writing off the Tigers as a legitimate threat to make the College Football Playoff. While that may seem a bit radical of a position to take after one game, especially when you consider it was in a win over a very game University of Louisville squad, it’s a sentiment I’ve heard shared countless times since Saturday.

But if I’m a supporter of this Auburn squad, I’d actually be feeling a lot better than one would think.

Johnson was the darling of the offseason having appeared on numerous magazine covers while having some over-zealous media types, such as myself, proclaim him the best QB in the country despite having under 60 attempts in his two seasons on the Plains. His start against Arkansas last season was so good that it had me thinking he would be the better option to Marshall despite the latter leading the Tigers to a BCS National Championship appearance the prior season.

But even his stat line against Louisville gave me cause to pause: 11-of-21, 121 yards, one touchdown, three interceptions. At times he looked bewildered and timid; it appeared as though he lost his confidence. But after I’ve had time to step back, and watch how Meyer helps out Jones, I’m actually feeling pretty good about the situation.

First of all, I needed to see Johnson in an unfavorable environment. Going against a talented Louisville defense, that’s architected by the by the mercurial Todd Grantham, is no small task — even with the loss of notable personnel by the Cardinals. Grantham is a wizard at providing QBs multiple looks in the pre- and post-snap process, so having Johnson gain reps against a defense like that, in the unfamiliar confines of the Georgia Dome, will be worth its weight in platinum for Johnson, Malzahn and offensive coordinator Rhett Lashlee when it’s all said and done with.

The first thing I’d like to see Malzahn do, which goes against conventional wisdom, is get Johnson involved in the designed run game. You got the sense by hearing the announcers talk that Malzahn may be afraid of injury or something as he did even less in that part of the game plan than I’d ever imagine. Sure Johnson’s best aspect is his ability to deal from the pocket, but it can be even more so with the sense that’s he’s a threat to run the ball; five attempts for 11 yards won’t cut it in certain games. He’s not fleet of foot like Marshall, obviously, but he can add a power element like we see with Jones.

Expecting either Johnson or Jones to be highly effective with read-option runs is like spitting in the wind, as using their speed to bend the edges only sounds good in theory, the reality of it is that you actually give the defense an out, but using them between tackles is extremely ideal.

CardalePower

Check out Jones on this QB Counter-Lead. This particular play stood out for me as it seemed like OSU ran it 100 times in its season-opening win against Virginia Tech. It seems as though Auburn usually runs Power with Johnson on critical down and distances; OSU ran this with Jones on first down most of the time.

JohnsonPower

Johnson is every bit the athlete Jones is, and he doesn’t shy away from contact, either. By getting Johnson involved in the run game on early downs, as opposed to here where it’s a short-yardage situation, you open up the playbook that much more.

I’d also like to see easier passing concepts to get him into the flow of the game instead of going deep early and often. The in-game announcers also remarked that it appeared as though everything was either deep or short for Johnson as Malzahn probably lost trust in him as the mistakes piled up — and I agreed.

But that’s not to say Johnson didn’t make poor decisions when provided fairly simple concepts.

Johnson1stpickLouisville

Case in point: On this variation of the Smash-Divide concept, you can tell his primary target was the inside receiver running a streak; once that wasn’t there he automatically assumed the Smash would be and launched with no regard to the underneath zone.

His other two turnovers were puzzling, too: throwing into triple coverage on a Post to Louis and bolting the pocket only to throw right to a defender on the sideline. But Johnson was due for a clunker and having it come in a win over Louisville is not at all a bad thing — especially when you consider how ferocious Barber and the offensive line looked in the run game; let’s not gloss over how the defense looked like a more cohesive group as well.

You know Malzahn is in the lab right now devising a plan to put Johnson in more favorable situations against Jacksonville State; expect both to gain their confidence back in time for a showdown at LSU.