The article doesn't get into many specifics, but it does give a good insight concerning this staff's philosophy. When they speak to the discipline issue this way, it just further cements for me, that the program under Chizik was in total disarray. You get the sense that guys were doing their own thing with little or no accountability. cops-n-pastas al.com
AUBURN, Alabama -- By now, every member of Gus Malzahn's new coaching staff at Auburn, from the head coach on down, has been asked the same question at some point or the other. After a lack of discipline derailed Gene Chizik's final season on the Plains, Auburn's coaching staff has to create a regimented, disciplined atmosphere around a program trying to rebuild.
For their part, Malzahn's coaching staff has been careful to refrain from commenting on the previous staff's work, but it's clear that discipline has been a point of emphasis as Auburn's coaches conduct winter workouts and prepare for the start of spring practice on March 27. "That's the No. 1 thing we feel like we have to instill in our kids in the spring is discipline, on and off the field," offensive coordinator Rhett Lashlee said at a Montgomery Quarterback Club meeting in early February. "That's something we pride ourselves on."
Under Chizik, disciplinary issues ranging from legal to academic came to light after Auburn fired the former head coach, leaving room for the new staff to establish a new set of rules. And although Auburn's coaches haven't publicly listed any specific rules, Malzahn's coaching staff says expectations have been clearly outlined for the Tigers.
"We have a standard that we've got to hold them to, and that's every day," Auburn defensive line coach Rodney Garner said. "Whether it's class attendance, study hall, mentors, how they react in the weight room, how they clean up the locker room, just everything that they do." Enforcing that standard is built on a foundation of staff unity, according to Auburn's coaches. For the Tigers' players to meet the standard, every member of the staff has to be on the same page, enforcing each and every rule the same way, with no exceptions.
"You have to have everybody on the same page," offensive line coach J.B. Grimes said. "What happens to people, to coaching staffs, is one lets something get away, and one doesn't." Interviewed separately by reporters a couple of weeks ago, Auburn's assistant coaches all spoke about instilling a sense of responsibility and accountability into their respective position groups, giving examples that ranged from academics to offseason workouts to the practice field.
"It's been that way from the first day we got here. It's going to continue that way," Garner said. "We have standards set. Those standards are going to be demanded. We're going to hold them accountable." rimes put it another way. If a player's hand is supposed to be behind the white line, and even one hangnail slips over that line, that's non-negotiable. And if it's non-negotiable, it's unacceptable.
"At some point, it's what you're willing to bend on. There are some things in life that are negotiable, and there are some things in life that are non-negotiable," Grimes said. "It gets down to that detail right there is having the focus on those non-negotiable things and then never bending. You never bend."
Malzahn has already made one discipline-related decision. A week ago, Malzahn dismissed defensive tackle Devaunte Sigler for an undisclosed violation of team rules. Asked about the move last week, Malzahn responded by referencing the standards set for the team at the start of his tenure.
"We’re going to have high standards for what we’re doing," Malzahn said. "We’re going to move forward, and the guys that are with us are going to be representing us the right way."
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