I think I as well as many Auburn fans might be being a bit too harsh on Ted Roof. Here's the way I see it. Ted Roof is trying to run a scheme he's not used to. The Tampa 2 is Chizik's D and it's being ran by a guy who likes to run multiple fronts and blitz a lot. I really think Ted Roof may be a good coach who is simply trying to fit a square peg into a round hole. I'd like to see Roof run HIS defense for once. Looking over his coaching career it's obvious that his past defenses were no where near this bad. He always seemed to field a top 20 defense where ever he went when he was DC. I honestly think we may have a problem at Auburn in difference of philosophy and it's not meshing well. Chizik wants it ran his way and Roof is having to do things he's not used to doing.
Either we need to allow Roof to run it his way or we need to find a guy whose defensive philosophy matches Chizik's and who is well versed in the Tampa 2.
On another note we absolutely need to let Lolley go. I really think he's the weak link in all of this and that Roof because he's the DC is taking the majority of the heat for it.
If we can get a better position coach for our corners and safeties and Roof is allowed to implement his defense, I feel like we'll be alright. But, we do need to make some changes. There's just no putting lipstick on the Lolley pig. He's terrible.
Either let Roof go and find a Tampa 2 coordinator or let Roof run his defense I guess is what I'm getting at.
I've noticed that Roof has did a good job with the linebackers. Believe it or not they did improve over the year. I remember the first game where Holland for example allowed that 3rd and 20 completion because he made a mistake in not getting back into coverage. Several games later he did not make the same mistake. On basically the same play he was back there and made the pick against FAU. Eltoro and Holland both played better down the stretch. Had Holland not been so banged up all year things would have looked better.
But our secondary is terrible. They're constantly out of position. They rarely(other than Bell who was a safety) look for the ball. Our corners blow bump and run assignments like crazy and put our safeties in the tampa 2 in bad positions.
Personally I wished we'd move away from the Tampa 2. People have developed ways to exploit it especially people like McGee at Arkansas. I'd rather run a 4-2-5. It's harder to exploit and easier to bring pressure at any time and be multiple.
Fire Lolley. Move Thigpen to LB coach(which is his forte anyways) and let Roof run his defense from the press box.
Looking at post game interviews, it looks like Roof is staying based on his comments. OK fine. At least let him run his defense next year and find us a better position coach for our Dbacks.