Monday Down South: Moving on from Gus Malzahn is Auburn's biggest gamble yet
Weekly takeaways, trends and technicalities from the weekend’s action.
Gus’ last dance
Auburn 24, Mississippi State 10. When you agree to be the head football coach at Auburn, you understand on some fundamental level that you’re signing up to be fired. Not right away – maybe it takes 4 years, maybe it takes 10. Maybe you enjoy enough success along the way that, for a fleeting, optimistic summer or two, the ending doesn’t seem so obvious. Maybe this time will be different. But then even for the winners, the track record speaks for itself.
Terry Bowden: Best winning percentage in school history, undefeated record in 1993, 3-2 record vs. Alabama. Fired. Tommy Tuberville: 8 consecutive winning seasons, undefeated record in 2004, 6-game winning streak vs. Bama. Fired. Gene Chizik: National championship in Year 2, fired in Year 4. And now, inevitably, Gus Malzahn: 8 straight winning seasons, a wildly improbable run to the national championship game in 2013, 3 wins over Bama in an era of historic Tide dominance under Nick Saban. Officially fired Sunday, just a few hours after wrapping up a 6-4 regular season at Mississippi State. With that, he’s the 5th consecutive Auburn head coach sent packing with an overall winning percentage of at least .635.
Still, somehow, for a guy who spent most of the past decade squarely on the hot seat, the end was hardly a foregone conclusion. Besides consistently finishing in the black, Malzahn’s position was fortified by an infamous $21.5 million buyout and a pandemic that ostensibly took long-term, big-picture moves off the table. “Fire Gus” sentiment was swelling on the heels of back-to-back losses vs. Alabama and Texas A&M, but nowhere near high tide. And there were no signs that he’d “lost the locker room,” or anything like that. Does this look like a man on the cusp of unemployment?
We win..
WE DANCE, BABY! pic.twitter.com/pBDrHIrTbj
— Auburn Football (@AuburnFootball) December 13, 2020
When it’s time, it’s time. And for the segment of the fan base that expects Auburn to contend for SEC championships and Playoff berths on a regular basis – the deep-pocketed members of that faction, especially – Malzahn’s time had long passed. Since his miracle debut in 2013, the Tigers have won the SEC West just once (in 2017), played in 2 major bowl games (losing both in ’16 and ’17), and posted at least 4 losses every year. Three times in that span (’14, ’15 and ’18), the Tigers opened in the top 10 in the preseason AP poll only to finish outside of the top 20 and 4th or worse in the division standings.
Nothing about going 6-4 with blowout losses at the hands of Georgia and Alabama amid the weekly chaos of COVID-19 protocols altered that trajectory. Bo Nix, arguably the most prized recruit of Malzahn’s entire tenure, made no discernible progress from Year 1 to Year 2. (Nor, for that matter, did Malzahn’s last prized QB get, Jarrett Stidham.) His reputation as an offensive innovator grew stale over time, to the point that he was finally compelled to give up play-calling duties to first-year coordinator Chad Morris; Auburn tied for 8th in the SEC in scoring offense, matching its worst finish on Malzahn’s watch. The Tigers went 0-3 vs. top-10 opponents, dropping their record in that column to 2-8 over the last 3 years. They didn’t beat a team with a winning record.
As always when it comes to canning a winning coach, though – especially one who’s broadly liked and respected, and whose tenure hasn’t generated a whiff of scandal at a place that has seen its fair share – the bid to raise the bar at any cost is accompanied by a warning to be careful what you wish for. Bowden, Tuberville and Chizik all went out on meltdowns. Malzahn’s exit is a statement: “Good enough,” as defined by a steady run of 8- and 9-win seasons that top out in a noon kickoff in the Peach Bowl, isn’t good enough.
The mandate for the next guy is championships, plural, or bust. And at the going rate, the busts are only going to keep getting more expensive.
https://twitter.com/AyeyoKEJO/status/1338287525752926210?s=20
To some extent, Malzahn’s legacy will depend on whether that gamble pays off: If the story of the next few years is Auburn successfully leveling up to the point that November rivalry dates with Georgia and Bama are consistently arriving with Playoff implications, the last 9 years may be remembered as frustrating ones when the program never quite realized its full potential. If not – if it’s more of the same old cycle of fleeting success and eventual disappointment for the 4th consecutive decade and counting, or worse – Malzahn could just as easily go down as a winner for whom expectations (yet again) outran reality.
In the meantime, all the recognition he’s due is contractually obligated to land in his bank account within the next 30 days and in equal installments thereafter. When his successor arrives, the debate over the gap between where Auburn football is and where it potentially could be will rage on as intensely as ever around a new locus. Exactly where the Malzahn years fall on that spectrum is in the eye of the beholder.
The agony of de-cleat
LSU 37, Florida 34. For an aspiring Playoff team, an inexcusable loss every level: LSU limped into the Swamp as a 23-point underdog with a hopelessly depleted roster, a true freshman quarterback making his first start, and nothing to play for after getting ritually slaughtered by Alabama its last time out. Above and beyond all of that, though, it was a dumb loss. Objectively, historically dumb, joining the ranks of the dumbest losses on record. A first-ballot entry into the Dumb Loss Hall of Fame.
Florida was flagged with unsportsmanlike conduct after this play: pic.twitter.com/BBsmOu64j9
— ESPN (@espn) December 13, 2020
How else to describe that instantly edible moment in SEC history? The official play-by-play entry – Max Johnson pass complete to Kole Taylor for 4 yds to the LSU 29 FLORIDA Penalty, Unsportsmanlike Conduct (Marco Wilson) to the LSU 44 for a 1ST down – doesn’t even try. Florida coach Dan Mullen made a feeble attempt on Sunday to classify Wilson’s impulsive, dead-ball cleat toss as “part of a football move,” which, seriously, come on. No one who watched it would ever convey it that way to someone who didn’t. They’d call it what it was: Dumb as hell.
In fact, of all the conceivable ways to lose in American football, a defender needlessly extending a do-or-die drive in the final 2 minutes of a tie game by randomly flinging an opponent’s shoe 20 yards downfield following a crucial 3rd-down stop might be the dumbest. It’s certainly in the running, right up there in the top 2 or 3 with the peeing dog celebration that cost Ole Miss the 2019 Egg Bowl – all the more so given that the cost for Florida, a relatively healthy team with everything to play for, was so much higher. It effectively eliminated the Gators from the Playoff.
Now, in fairness to Wilson, the eternal goat of what was likely his last home game at UF, getting to the point where the season hinged on a moment of irrational exuberance was a total team effort. Although Florida gained 609 yards of total offense against a severely shorthanded LSU defense, in many other ways it seemed determined to give the game away: The Gators finished –3 in turnover margin, including a pick-6 in the first half, and came away empty on 4 trips inside the LSU 35-yard line, including a goal-line stand on the game’s opening possession. During a critical stretch in the late 3rd and 4th quarters, the offense went 3-and-out on 3 consecutive possessions, ceding the lead in the process. And even following Cade York‘s 57-yard, go-ahead bomb through the fog to put LSU up with 23 seconds to play …
57 yards.
In the fog.
For the win.Cade York's 57-yd FG was the longest in @LSUfootball history‼️ pic.twitter.com/EAO0Q9zdmW
— SEC Network (@SECNetwork) December 13, 2020
… Florida still managed to put itself in position to force overtime on a 51-yard attempt by the usually reliable Evan McPherson. Right up to the end, almost everything that could have gone wrong enough for the Gators to offset a career-high 474 yards passing from Kyle Trask did, much of it self-inflicted.
At this point, it’s hard to say which is less likely: The prospect of Florida managing to sneak into the Playoff with 2 losses by virtue of an upset over Alabama in the SEC Championship Game, or the prospect of the Gators beating Bama in the first place. The Crimson Tide are 17-point favorites in Vegas and boast an 89% chance of winning according to ESPN’s Football Power Index, up substantially on both counts since Saturday night. Suddenly the vibe is less “winner take all” and more “keep it respectable” – less dramatic, but probably closer to reality.
– – –
I have just one more observation about this game: The full-time Madden Cam angle from behind the offense that ESPN switched to out of necessity due to the surreal fog that descended in the second half?
More of that, please! This is a common replay angle, but in real time it was an eye-opener. It captured the violence in the trenches, offered a much fuller view of receivers downfield, and put the audience in the quarterback’s point of view in a way the conventional live sideline angle can’t come close to approximating. It was a key component of what made the end of this very strange game so intensely compelling. I’m sold — the more Madden Cam going forward, the better.
DeVonta does it all
Alabama 52, Arkansas 3. You wouldn’t know it from the score, but Arkansas actually succeeded in its primary objective of limiting explosive plays through the air – Bama’s receivers as a group turned in season lows for yards (227) and yards per catch (8.4) with no touchdowns and a long gain of just 23. DeVonta Smith, who’s spent the entire season blazing a trail of destruction through SEC secondaries, finished with a grand total of 22 yards on 3 receptions and was held out of the end zone as a receiver for the first time since Jaylen Waddle‘s injury in mid-October. And yet …
Devonta Smith with his first punt return TD in his career! pic.twitter.com/ouUlqK2zGP
— CBS Sports HQ (@CBSSportsHQ) December 12, 2020
It’s a testament to the Tide’s unmatched balance that holding them relatively in check on paper can still yield a 38-3 halftime deficit, and it’s a testament to Smith’s balance that his most pedestrian stat line of the season didn’t stop him from advancing his case as a legitimate Heisman contender.
For any wideout who manages to play his way into that conversation, one of the major challenges is establishing himself as a playmaker independent of his quarterback, who (like Mac Jones) is often a contender in his own right, and usually a more conventionally viable one. Making a splash in the return game is a tried-and-true way of emerging from that shadow. And for a receiver as prolific as Smith, who leads the entire FBS in receiving yards and the Power 5 in touchdowns, frankly it shouldn’t take much more convincing.
According to the conventional Heisman wisdom, the SEC title game sets up as a decisive showdown between the quarterbacks, Trask and Jones, who have topped the straw polls for most of the second half the season. If the game turns into a Bama runaway, though – again, a very real possibility now – the actual debate could come down to Jones and Smith and how voters value their respective roles. The status quo favors the QB by default, but in this case Smith and his week-in, week-out explosiveness may be just special enough to hold up as the exception to the rule. Another convincing night on the biggest stage of the season could put him over the top.
Superlatives
The best of the week.
1. LSU LB Jabril Cox. Cox, the touted transfer from North Dakota State, delivered his best game as a Tiger in the upset over Florida, finishing with 6 tackles (including 1 for loss), 3 QB hurries and 2 passes broken up. If he winds up as a first-rounder next spring, Saturday may have been the performance that propelled him there.
2. Florida WR Kadarius Toney. Toney asserted himself in the absence of injured (?) TE Kyle Pitts, finishing with career highs for catches (9) and receiving yards (182) while also adding 56 yards rushing in a losing effort. For the season, he’s accounted for nearly as many yards from scrimmage (977) as in his first 3 years on campus combined.
3. Auburn RB Tank Bigsby. Bigsby roared back from injury in the Tigers’ win over Mississippi State, ripping off a career-high 192 yards on 7.4 per carry against a typically stout MSU run defense — his total on the ground was easily the best individual effort of the season against the Bulldogs, and surpassed the team totals for each of their first 8 opponents except Alabama. The next coach will have an All-SEC workhorse to build around.
4. Georgia’s Offensive Line. The Bulldogs’ massive front paved the way for UGA’s second consecutive 300-yard rushing effort as a team in a 49-14 blowout at Missouri, with the RB rotation of Zamir White, Daijun Edwards, Kenny McIntosh and James Cook collectively racking up 331 yards and 4 TDs on 8.3 per carry. In their first 7 games, the Bulldogs topped out at 215 yards, and bottomed out with just 8 yards on 0.4 per carry vs. Mississippi State on Nov. 21.
5. Alabama DEs Christian Barmore and Byron Young. Barmore and Young led a dominant effort from Bama’s front 7 at Arkansas, combining for 10 tackles, 3 sacks and a fumble recovery that set up a short-field touchdown.
https://twitter.com/AlabamaDieHards/status/1337839043795709953?s=20
Honorable Mention: LSU QB Max Johnson, who had a breakthrough night in the Tigers’ upset at Florida, finishing 21-for-36 for 239 yards with 3 TDs and 0 INTs in his first career start. … LSU Kayshon Boutte, who continued his emergence as the Tigers’ next great wideout with 108 yards and 1 TD on 5 receptions. … Georgia WR George Pickens, whose 126 yards and 2 TDs vs. Missouri reminded UGA fans that when healthy he’s still the elite downfield target he’s supposed to be. … Tennessee WR Velus Jones Jr., who hauled in 7 catches for 127 yards and 2 TDs in the Vols’ 42-17 win at Vanderbilt. … Auburn LB Owen Pappoe, who finished with 9 tackles and 2 sacks in the Tigers’ win at Mississippi State… Florida LB Ventrell Miller, who turned in a team-high 16 tackles with 2 TFLs vs. LSU. … And LSU kicker Cade York, who hit all 3 of his field-goal attempts against the Gators and connected on the Kick of the Year to win it through a hellacious fog.
– – –
The scoring system for players honored in Superlatives awards 8 points for the week’s top player, 6 for 2nd, 5 for 3rd, 4 for 4th, 3 for 5th and 1 for honorable mention, because how honorable is it really if it doesn’t come with any points? The standings are updated weekly with the top 10 players for the season to date.
It just goes to show you how lopsided the SEC is this season. After Bama and UGA the next next level is…..everyone else with UF and aTm leading the pack.
This conference needs Auburn, Florida, aTm, Tennessee, LSU and any of the other teams to step up or else we start to look like the ACC.
I don’t care what happened last Saturday, Tennessee is not on the same level as Florida nor is Georgia on the same level as Bama. Sorry to burst your bubble.
Sorry, didn’t read the sentence about Uf and aTm but I stand by what I said about Bama and UGA
right tony, and that’s ok, if it doesn’t happen every year.
It still boggles the mind how much buyout money is involved. After Texas, Auburn might be the toughest place for a hc.
Auburn = tough but lucrative.
People said the same thing about Bama before they landed Saban. Remember Franchione? Rich Rod? They had some issues getting a quality coach for a while. I would argue UT is a tougher job. They play Bama, UGA, and UF every year, and the recruiting grounds aren’t as good as at Auburn.
I agree. Tennessee pretty much started national recruiting in the SEC because of a lack of Div.1 talent in state.
Rich Rod never came to Bama. He went to Michigan and was a failure.
A&M would have loved to have given Franchione back to them. He was the worst coach in Aggie history.
We have a couple of mutual memorable coaches that both schools loved, but Franchione was a big disappointment to both.
Auburn is a tough place to coach just based on expectations and nothing else. Fairly, Alabama is likewise and Georgia, Clemson, Ohio State..you get the picture. But the record of firing winning coaches has got to have the attention of a lot of coaching prospects. Its funny, Gus could have a five hundred record at Arkansas and there would be no talk of firing. Its ok to have high expectations, but still……
To be fair to Auburn, they deserve to have those expectations. Auburn is a top 15 job in all of America to most. They have been to 2 national titles in the past decade. Auburn should be playing for SEC titles and playoff appearances.
I’d agree with both of you. Auburn can win big consistently, but the landscape of the SEC right now, with both Alabama and Georgia, our two rivals, being the premier programs in the conference, just doesn’t favor us realistically being able to win the division or conference regularly. Eventually, one of those two will drop off and that window will open for us again, but for now it’s just not there. Beating Alabama every three years or so, and competing for the SEC Championship those years, is about our ceiling as long as those programs are where they are, and that’s where our short-term expectations need to be.
LSU has been a better program than Auburn and the Aggies are on the rise. Auburn has a lot more to worry about than just Alabama and UGA.
@LSUSMC That’s true, but Auburn and LSU games can generally go either way. For some reason or other, LSU isn’t the same beast for Auburn teams the way Bama and UGA are, even though LSU has at least consistently been better than UGA.
define ‘consistently better.’
since gus took over at aub, lsu is 73-27 and uga is 79-25.
What does UGA have to do with this.
the aub fan above brought them up. i was curious as to the basis behind his last sentence
That’s crossed my mind when someone mentions that Auburn should move to the East and swap with Missouri, which makes some sense. But I figure everyone wants to keep the Alabama/Auburn game as the permanent crossover and you still play Georgia every year so I dont think it changes much.
Thanks Ricker, I missed that line.
Try being Tennessee. We have UF, UGA, and Alabama every year and all 3 of those teams are consistently elite while we’re trending down once again because Pruitt sucks
@PTheRicker No problem. LSU plays in a tougher division where they have to play Bama every year and only have two more losses than UGA in that time span. Since Gus took over, LSU has won a national championship, beaten Alabama, beaten Clemson, and, most importantly, has blown UGA out twice. They’ve also beaten Texas, a team UGA lost to. I’m not insinuating that Georgia is bad by any stretch, but they’ve failed to reach the highs LSU has achieved and don’t really have a higher floor. It’s not like UGA has this massive recruiting advantage on LSU, either. That’s all I’m saying.
And the money Auburn is paying Gus to NOT be the coach has got the attention of those coaching prospects as well.
Any place that considers itself a contending program has high expectations, especially when they are paying the 7th highest salary for those expectations to be met. Gus did not get fired for 4 losses this year. He got fired for 7 straight years of 4 losses or more, a stagnation of a offense and program, and an inability to develop players. he was about to lose Nix.
True. We will never know if Nix has the right talent or not. The Morris hire was such a huge mistake. I wonder how much interest there would be if Nix went to the portal to keep his NFL hopes alive. I guess it depends on who they hire. Freeze might make him look like a world beater.
The same guy I got the heads up on about Gus last week said that Bo and his dad were in discussion about him transferring. With Gus there, it was his only shot at the NFL. To lose a legacy player because he can not be developed would be a killer to recruiting. Gus was fired for more than his record this year, as I said. The program was about to nose dive.
Kyle Trask, Kyle Pitts and Kaderius Tony Will ALL Come Back Next Year….WATCH !!!!
Man I hope so.
No reason for Pitts to return to school. His draft spot is secure. The other two are a maybe at best.
Well those first 2 are first rounders, so good luck with that. Not sure where Tony is right now. You are still going to be stuck with Mullen.
Toney is projected 2nd-3rd round but I think he’s a little better and should go early-mid 2nd
Mullen is the best coach in the east. Smart is a great recruiter, but that only gets you so far.
Looking forward to seeing The Shoe sequel!
I think a scoreboard gif with fans tossing a shoe onto the field.
AUforever they need to change the name of the Swamp to The Shoe, It would only be a 3 letter change.
Pitts will not come back, he’s a 1st rounder
First round TE? Not many of those, agree the guys a beast though.
He is a beast, he can line up as a receiver as well as a end. He will go 1st round.
That’s where he is projected to go. And there have been a decent amount of FR TEs, mostly from Iowa in recent years. Pitts is currently expected to go in the mid first round this year. The only thing keeping him from for sure being there is the injuries.
marco will be back — the man’s a playmaker!!!
The Ole Miss receiver came back and redeemed himself quite well. Marco needs to put in the work during the offseason and do the same.
Auburn fans are a strange lot. Was our worst road trip of all the ones we took. They hate everybody and everything. They liked Pat Dye, but I don’t remember him winning much. They ran Gene out on a rail after winning them their one championship? Then for whatever reason never liked Gus, even though he had a darn good record beating Alabama compared to others. Like I said, they are a strange lot.
So 3-8 is a good record against Bama? You do realize that there are more games in a season than the Bama game? Gus did not get fired for his record against Bama, he got fired because there are 11 more in a season and he lost close to 4 of them other than Bama.
Dont remember Gus being head coach for 11 years so kind of hard to go 3-8 against Bama. How about 3-5, not great but still the best among active coaches.
Another bama trailer dweller messing round with fake facts.
How do you know he is a trailer dweller? For all we know he could be living in a mansion. Maybe you live in one.
My bad 3-5. I was thinking 8 games. The point still stands.
Not a mansion but my own home, just bought a new car and it and utilities are all I have to pay in a month. I could buy a mid 5 figure trailer with cash and still be able to furnish it.
@Tide
How can the point still stand 3-8 isn’t a good record against Bama. However considering Bamas record against every other team 3-5 is pretty darn good.
3-5 is pretty great against Saban. Most coaches(Mullen, Smart, Jimbo, etc) never get a win against Saban
Pat Dye did not win much? ok I am going to chalk your remark up to ignorance. Maybe because USC was an independent in the eighties you were not aware Dye won 4 SEC titles. Go back to sleep!
to be fair to malzahn, aub has been the toughest place in the country to coach the last 4 years of any team with any realistic expectations of competing for div, conf and potentially nat’l championships.
– you’ve got the best coach in college football in your own state at your school’s biggest rival. that same school has been the biggest juggernaut in all of football, with exception to possibly clemson in the same breath
– you’ve got your 2nd most heated rival winning and/or tying for the east division every year
– you just witnessed one of the greatest team feats ever just last year in lsu….of whom you probably played the closest of anyone
– recruiting is beyond tough with the local flagship schools (bama, uga, lsu & uf) cleaning up within their own states
– the other teams in your division all seem to be on the rise, as opposed to slide
it’s a tough job! malzahn knew what was in front of him and the one time he publicly said anything about losing several games in a season as not necessarily bad…he got pounced on. whoever comes in to replace him, i doubt they really know what’s in store for them.
Unfortunately Mcgarity bent over for Auburn and SEC and now Auburn and UGA will be playing in October…you would think a guy who “covers” SEC football would recollect that things like this…and if that didn’t kill credibility (for this week) Cade York’s Honorable mention is garbage, school record could barely see uprights and it’s his third kick of night near definition of clutch…hope someone else takes this column next season..
Kick of the Year: Cade York
No, no no. That already happened at Vandy, remember?
Or do you have to be re-educated?
2 more kicks of the year happened there this weekend. They got as much ink for hitting 2 from the 3 as York did for hitting one from 57.
Well, Kick of the Year by a MALE in a MEANINGFUL GAME in a FOG INFESTED RIVAL’S stadium!
Auburn should stop this trend (or not for all Dawgs fans), eventually one of these could end up being like the UT Fulmer firing.
Yeah it was their best move. That winning percentage means that the last 6 coaches have averaged over 4 losses a season. It isn’t like AU had a quick trigger. AU had become the 6th best team in the conference, due to offensive stagnation, and recruiting, and other teams are showing signs of ascending. You can not be eternally satisfied with 4-5 losses a season and still consider yourself a serious contender, in that case you are just hopeful for a lucky year. Also you do not pay a coach the 7th highest salary in the country for that kind of result, you can get that for a lot less. AU did the right thing and at the perfect time. I salute them for doing what they had to do, even though it was to a nice guy with lots of class.
Agreed. I would add that he never had real success with a qb he coached for more than 1 year. You can’t be an offensive guru if you don’t develop qbs. Didnt you post on al.com under the same name?
You are right. Yes I did. I just found this a week or so ago. Nice to see you.
I wish Gus the best but his time was done. Games like the State game were just too common. Games that Auburn should be winning handily and we have to sweat through them. Last year Ole Miss driving late for a game-winning TD until the last second pick? Losing to Minnesota in the bowl game, losing to Tenn and Miss St in 2018? Sweating it out against Mercer in 2017 and losing to UCF in Peach Bowl? Granted the overall record against UA,UGA and LSU was poor, but too many times we struggled in games that should have been easier wins.
Then there is the stagnant 5 play handbook on offense, even with Chad Morris running the show, it was still Gus’s playbook. One series against State, they threw 3 consecutive bubble screen passes to WR on a 3 and out series. That play, other than the line plunge on 1st down, is the biggest waste of a down when 9 out of 10 times the defense is already set to blow the play up for nothing. Play action practically non-existent, TE play wasted. All that in addition to everything else mentioned.
A couple of 10 win seasons would have kept Gus around. But 9-4 and 8-5 is what fans hope for in places like Kansas and Indiana.
How many coaches have been fired after losing (not loosing as most think) to South Carolina? Smart was LUCKY he didn’t get canned last year!!
Give Malzahn a fiddle and rename him Nero. Any questions?
Heisman New Math:
0 TD Passes + 0 TD Runs (Jones) > 2 TD Passes + 2 TD Runs (Trask)
That’s not a credible statement. Turnovers matter.
The point is that Trask is a one man show and has to do pretty much everything. Jones plays on a superior offense backed up by a superior defense, and can do nothing and move up in the Heisman voters’ biased eyes. That’s not how it should be.
Well it probably more about 3 turnovers moving Trask down…
LSU just got blown out the week prior by Bama… LSU is not a good team and were missing a lot of players.
Except one pick was fluky and not at all Trask’s fault and the fumble was kinda freak but still needs to be put on him. I would still say 4 TDs and 3 turnovers (only 2 of which were on him) is better than 0 and 0.
So do TDs produced. 4 > 0.
Only 1 pick was on Trask. The other was a freak pick, ball thrown to UF receiver, not close to any defender, UF receiver bobbled ball toward an LSU defender, ball bounces off that LSU defender’s helmet, lands in second LSU defender’s hands. If that’s on Trask, you never played football.
Nice copout line at the end. Just proves you are reaching. Trask got outplayed by a true freshman making his first start. I like Trask, but he definitely hurt himself against LSU. Jones didn’t hurt himself in the 50 point win. Jones also leads the country in several categories.
I’ll buy it Scribe. Now, if you can only convince Coach Mullins.
sorry Mullens.*
So …
Pat Dye was in the heart of a scandal that involved numerous recruiting violations. That scandal forced him to step down as Athletic Director and then as Coach. Auburn was put on probation for what occurred under his watch.
Terry Bowden resigned after a 1-5 start to his final season. He also oversaw a period of a lot of mismanagement off the field.
Tuberville was probably the only guy on the list who got a raw deal. He and some super-boosters were mortal enemies. Jetgate and Jetgate II were the epitome of unnecessary meddling.
Chizik … let’s remember he came from Iowa State with a 5-19 record. That’s 5-19 … And anyone with a brain realizes that the 2010 season was due solely to Cam Newton–a type of athlete who is once in a lifetime. Without Cam in 2010, I doubt Auburn would have done better than 7-5. You can count on one hand the total number of players drafted from that 2010 team over the next 2 years. So, Auburn wasn’t exactly doing great.
As for Malzahn. He had a losing record against the big 3 rivals (Bama, LSU, UGA). He had a losing record in bowl games (posting 2 wins against Memphis and Purdue). And he never ever developed a great quarterback. Nick Marshall did fine as a zone-read guy in year 1 … but after that? Johnson, White, Stidham, and now Nix … they’re all undeveloped. That’s not to mention the number of quality quarterbacks who have left the program due to bad coaching decisions.
Keep in mind that Mac Jones of Alabama was a 3-star player, but I’d take him over any of the 4 and 5 star quarterbacks that Malzahn has had.
Auburn’s offense has been stagnant for a number of years and it has shown no promise of ever improving because Malzahn doesn’t know anything else. His “system” is one of stubbornness.
And then there’s the future under Malzahn, or potential future. The high number of high-caliber recruits who have departed the program recently has been of concern. And recruiting has really ground to a halt because I think word is out that if you have any ounce of talent, you don’t go to Auburn … you go somewhere else. There were some rumors that Nix and his Dad were exploring their options in regards to the portal. He’s a sophomore … does he stay at Auburn where he descends into mediocracy, or does he go to another program where he’ll be properly coached?
Personally, I hope they give Kevin Steele the job and allow him to keep whichever assistants he wants. Steele has done a solid job building the defense over the past 5 years. He’s a good recruiter and having him stay on would lessen the instability to the program that always follows a program with a coaching change.
The problem is with the offense. Allow Steele to get a competent offensive coordinator and I think Auburn does better.
It is easier to hire a coordinator than a head coach. But, Auburn is the same place that hired 5-19 Chizik. It’s the same place that hired Smoke and Mirrors Malzahn. It’s the place that gave Malzahn an absurd extension for simply having a single good season. So I don’t really expect them to be smart about this.
It’s a lot easier to keep a HC than a coordinator. As soon as an O coordinator shows promise, someone wants to make him a HC. Steele has been an excellent DC for Auburn, but I don’t see an upgrade by making him the HC. Therefore, I am all in favor.
As an annual rivalry opponent, I second this^
A first-ballot entry into the Dumb Loss Hall of Fame……that’s hilarious
To be clear, LSU is a better program than every team in the sec except bama. There is no other team in the country who has won more natties than lsu since 2003 than lsu. Lsu had the longest 8 game winning seasons in power 5 football at 20 straight until this shortened season. This weird historically different season is an outlier, so they’ll be back in contention for natties soon!
more natties other than bama since 2003
Well maybe. After another long USA Today article posted today, I don’t know.
Well I will admit 2.5 Natties > 2 (UF, Clemson)
Is the half for the crazy ’07 season? lol
young will muschamp needs a job—he’ll take the AU position for $6-7 million!
My guess is that the powers to be didn’t want to give Gus another year because he would likely win 10 next year and so they had to make a move now or be stuck with him for two more years after a 10 win season.
Its just how AU is built. They would return 8 to 10 starters on Offense. Similar numbers would return on Defense.
Looking forward AU would be favored next year to start 5-0 before facing likely Georgia at home. They would likely be favored in 9 of 12 games. With A&M losing almost their entire offense they could be favored in that game as well to make it 10.
I figure they thought they better move now or it will be at least another two years
I consider myself a pretty good scout…
…Cox is not first round material
also precise to point out that the Georgia line(s), that’s plural, the OL and the DL, clearly decided the outcome of the Missouri game and most every other game Georgia won this year.
Alabama will dominate auburn and the SEc while nick is in town–when he leaves, they’ll go after dabo.