Tigers Make Solid Strides....

[Mr. Sensible]

Rival's = The only source for Recruiting/Da Skreets

Whatever. 

[jmar]

This is probably the best recruiting class ever at Auburn-ALREADY. Alabama has almost always out recruited Auburn save for several back to back classes by Dye and a few by Tubs amidst the chaos in Tuscaloosa. Bryant owned this state in terms of recruiting. Auburn was like a sharecropper. Georgia and Tennessee have nearly always out recruited Auburn. LSU wasn't poop until Saban arrived. Miles can't continue that string the way he coaches. If they keep him LSU will be reminiscent of the Charlie McClendon days, just a hair better than Mississippi.

One has to have gone through the Barfield years to have a sense of how far Auburn has come. Dye's troubles and subsequent undoing don't even compare to the apathy surrounding the program during that era. It was, okay we are going to see some long runs and some fancy foot work by one of college football's greatest trio of backs ever assembled before we get beat. That was the mentality then. We had a handful of real players that played their guts out. That is why I pull so hard for the undersized and under talented kids that shine here.

But with this current staff, Auburn has actually just started recruiting nationally, not just in the surrounding states. I guarantee you that Tommy Tuberville had no idea that Ben Tate from Maryland would turn out to be THIS GOOD. Sure he knew the kid could play, but I'll bet he thought that there were probably two or three in this state that would be better in the long run, but he couldn't get them.There is something to be said for the type of individuals that come to Auburn and thrive here where they might just get lost in the shuffle somewhere else. I've often wondered how we seem to continue at this level, when everyone else seems to out-recruit us. Hell if we had just split with Arkansas, Georgia and LSU, there wouldn't be this discussion.

We have been beaten on both sides of the line by Georgia the last four times we have played them. IMO they are a good barometer of how tough we are because I think Auburn mirrors Georgia, or at least we have since Vince Dooley was there. Auburn has to get a handle on Georgia-and at least split with Alabama to get where it needs to be, and stay there. Trips to the SEC Championship Game will follow.

Alabama didn't push Auburn around like it did Texas, or many other SEC teams for that matter. McCoy, Bradford, Stafford and Mallett can make an offense click. You play differently against a kid that knows what the phuk they are doing as opposed to a team with a "game manager". But either way you have to out-execute the other team, and finish. But you can't do it with any consistency without depth, which is what Auburn is lacking.

Chizik and staff have done an incredible job so far, exceeding what most were willing to predict. Chizik lets his coaches coach. Malzahn's spread is the most exciting offense ever at Auburn. Yes I loved the wishbone, and the west coast, but this can be the best of both with the right QB. We knew there were pieces missing, and it would take a couple of years. As far as I'm concerned, Auburn is ahead of schedule. Who could think differently knowing how low the quality numbers have been along with the turmoil of last season? Malzahn might be ahead of the curve as far as offense goes, but he doesn't necessarily have to aspire to becoming a head coach just because you or I or or ESPN thinks he should. It is a different animal. Perhaps observing Chizik will give him the insight he needs in order to decide.

I predicted we would win at least 8 games this past season with or without a bowl victory. And barring wholesale defections and or injuries which is always possible, I think the record will improve. I do not see any reason to display any anxiety, negativity or lack of confidence in Chizik or the staff which seem to have delivered far better than any of us thought possible. I don't need any Bammer to tell me that my team is improving.     

 

   

[Kaos]

The very long post above contains myriad misconceptions and untruths presented as fact. Too many to address. 

[jmar]

Do you mean we can't be friends, or are you just pressed for time. Let's do lunch!

[Kaos]

Just ate. Tomorrow?

[jmar]

blue

[RWS]

This is probably the best recruiting class ever at Auburn-ALREADY.

Wow....and they haven't even played the first down of college ball. I can certainly understand you guys being excited about the potential of this class. No doubt. But crowning them as possibly the best EVER, and they haven't even done anything yet?

[Kaos]

Lengthy observation
 

  

Just FYI?

"Alabama has always outrecruited Auburn" = FALSE  Between 2002 and 2008, Auburn "outranked" Alabama five of the six years. Georgia and Tennessee haven't traditionally outrecruited AU either.  That's a fallacy.
 
Your characterization of Ben Tate's recruitment and the mental processes Tuberville and his staff "must" have gone through during it is delusional at best.  

While Georgia currently owns a four-game win-streak over us (one of the longest in series history) getting "pushed around" on the line is hardly the culprit.

Maybe you have, but I haven't seen nearly enough to convince me Chizik is the answer for even another season.  We were not that much improved over 2008 and in some ways (particularly defensively) we were way, way worse. (Insert Tuberville, BBQ, lazy ass recruiting justification here).  The only difference between 2008 and 2009 were Pat White being gone at WVU and Ole Miss failing to live up to expectations (as is Houston Nutt's pattern).  There was a difference against Alabama in terms of intensity, but the team was so mentally fucked up at the end of 2008 that I consider that game nothing but an anomaly. It was indicative of nothing beyond the team psyche at the moment.

Malzahn for all the accolades, really didn't light it up against a single quality opponent.  LSU, Georgia, Alabama, Arkansas and even Kentucky all put the clamps on us.  

I'm ready to be encouraged. But it's just not there yet.  

And now you've made me go and do it.

[jadennis]

Wow....and they haven't even played the first down of college ball. I can certainly understand you guys being excited about the potential of this class. No doubt. But crowning them as possibly the best EVER, and they haven't even done anything yet?

We're obviously talking about the quality of class based on evaluation on signing day....why would you bring "haven't even played a down yet" into this?  Duh...no one in any class at any program has played a down yet. 

If we're not simply talking about the quality of the class based on current expectations, then why do any of us follow recruiting at all?  Why aren't we talking today about the recruiting classes of 2004?  I mean, now that they've all played out, we should be arguing about who had the best class. 

But, as I suspect, you already know, that's not how we (anyone anywhere) do it.  We talk about the quality of a class based on their fictitious ratings.  We declare if we did well based on how many recruiting battles we won for those highly ranked players.  Again, I know you already know this....

[jadennis]

Just FYI?

"Alabama has always outrecruited Auburn" = FALSE  Between 2002 and 2008, Auburn "outranked" Alabama five of the six years. Georgia and Tennessee haven't traditionally outrecruited AU either.  That's a fallacy.
 
Your characterization of Ben Tate's recruitment and the mental processes Tuberville and his staff "must" have gone through during it is delusional at best.  

While Georgia currently owns a four-game win-streak over us (one of the longest in series history) getting "pushed around" on the line is hardly the culprit.

Maybe you have, but I haven't seen nearly enough to convince me Chizik is the answer for even another season.  We were not that much improved over 2008 and in some ways (particularly defensively) we were way, way worse. (Insert Tuberville, BBQ, lazy ass recruiting justification here).  The only difference between 2008 and 2009 were Pat White being gone at WVU and Ole Miss failing to live up to expectations (as is Houston Nutt's pattern).  There was a difference against Alabama in terms of intensity, but the team was so mentally phuked up at the end of 2008 that I consider that game nothing but an anomaly. It was indicative of nothing beyond the team psyche at the moment.

Malzahn for all the accolades, really didn't light it up against a single quality opponent.  LSU, Georgia, Alabama, Arkansas and even Kentucky all put the clamps on us.  

I'm ready to be encouraged. But it's just not there yet.  

And now you've made me go and do it.

I see a few misconceptions in here too though.  You're right about a lot of it....but Georgia has out-recruited us on average over the last decade....that's just the truth, they have had top 10 classes every single year that Richt has been there.

You can't (or shouldn't....i know better than to tell you "you can't") downplay the improvements on offense with qualifications (such as, we didn't do well against a single good opponent) and pump up the defensive failures without also providing qualifications to that.  I'm not one to put anything on any BBQ or bird hunting, but the fact, regardless of how or why, is that we played an entire season with 2-3 scholarship linebackers.  3-4 of our primary players in our secondary were not available.  There is just no logical way to pretend that didn't play a major, I mean major role in some of the overall numbers this defense surrendered.  Completely explain it away? No, but you shouldn't igore it either and act like Chizik just came in a ruined the defense.

On offense, Alabama put the clamps on us, but we produced more against them than any other SEC team.  Don't skip past that.  It was more than any other SEC team produced against them.  We also produced 457 yards against Tennessee, which was the second most gained on them all year.

I don't think we're looking at going 12-0 next year, but to say the improvement over last year is hardly noticeable and only due to the loss of Pat White and a down Ole Miss team is crazy.  We lost to Ole Miss last year (when they were 9-4) and beat them this year (when they were 9-4).  We lost to WVU last year (when they were 9-4) and beat them this year (when they were 9-4).

Couldn't agree more about the Ben Tate thing though.

[Kaos]

I see a few misconceptions in here too though.  You're right about a lot of it....but Georgia has out-recruited us on average over the last decade....that's just the truth, they have had top 10 classes every single year that Richt has been there.

You can't (or shouldn't....i know better than to tell you "you can't") downplay the improvements on offense with qualifications (such as, we didn't do well against a single good opponent) and pump up the defensive failures without also providing qualifications to that.  I'm not one to put anything on any BBQ or bird hunting, but the fact, regardless of how or why, is that we played an entire season with 2-3 scholarship linebackers.  3-4 of our primary players in our secondary were not available.  There is just no logical way to pretend that didn't play a major, I mean major role in some of the overall numbers this defense surrendered.  Completely explain it away? No, but you shouldn't igore it either and act like Chizik just came in a ruined the defense.

On offense, Alabama put the clamps on us, but we produced more against them than any other SEC team.  Don't skip past that.  It was more than any other SEC team produced against them.  We also produced 457 yards against Tennessee, which was the second most gained on them all year.

I don't think we're looking at going 12-0 next year, but to say the improvement over last year is hardly noticeable and only due to the loss of Pat White and a down Ole Miss team is crazy.  We lost to Ole Miss last year (when they were 9-4) and beat them this year (when they were 9-4).  We lost to WVU last year (when they were 9-4) and beat them this year (when they were 9-4).

Couldn't agree more about the Ben Tate thing though.

UGA has out-recruited us over the last decade.  I was more referring to the general consensus that UGA "always" out rectuits us.  I don't buy that. 

Bama doesn't either (unless you only count in-state, aka inbred, titles).

As for the defense, it faced practically the same situation the previous year.  Short on players then, too,  and we didn't hand out yards like beads from a mardi gras float. 

Didn't say there was no difference or that there wasn't improvement.  But the improvement was minimal, it wasn't a meteoric rise like a phoenix emerging from the ashes as some are want to paint it.  There were steps forward. There were steps backward (sometimes the same steps). 

[jadennis]

UGA has out-recruited us over the last decade.  I was more referring to the general consensus that UGA "always" out rectuits us.  I don't buy that. 

Bama doesn't either (unless you only count in-state, aka inbred, titles).

As for the defense, it faced practically the same situation the previous year.  Short on players then, too,  and we didn't hand out yards like beads from a mardi gras float. 

Didn't say there was no difference or that there wasn't improvement.  But the improvement was minimal, it wasn't a meteoric rise like a phoenix emerging from the ashes as some are want to paint it.  There were steps forward. There were steps backward (sometimes the same steps). 

I guess.  But even if this offense was inconsistent at times....it was light years better than last year's, and with the group of players.  Except for the fact that Darvin Adams was Jerry Rice, it was essentially the same, but with night and day difference in results.

I noted in another thread before, this year's defense actually outperformed last years defense in the last 6 games.  If you take the last 6 games of this year and the last 6 games of last year, this year's group gave up the same in points, but gave up over 35 fewer yards per game.

And we were somewhat short on players last year, but not nearly to the extent of this year.  And if we were, the fact that our defense went down hill in the last 6 games last year tells me this year's staff handled having no depth in a better way, as our defense didn't really get any worse over the course of the year, but in fact a bit better in the last 6 games.

[Kaos]

I guess.  But even if this offense was inconsistent at times....it was light years better than last year's, and with the group of players.  Except for the fact that Darvin Adams was Jerry Rice, it was essentially the same, but with night and day difference in results.

I noted in another thread before, this year's defense actually outperformed last years defense in the last 6 games.  If you take the last 6 games of this year and the last 6 games of last year, this year's group gave up the same in points, but gave up over 35 fewer yards per game.

And we were somewhat short on players last year, but not nearly to the extent of this year.  And if we were, the fact that our defense went down hill in the last 6 games last year tells me this year's staff handled having no depth in a better way, as our defense didn't really get any worse over the course of the year, but in fact a bit better in the last 6 games.

Ok.  I'll give you a cookie.

[jmar]

I don't think Tub's outrecruited the clowns as much as he "coached them up" beyond their supposed ratings, the ratings we try to follow.

Georgia does and has pushed us around consistently in recruiting. We lose the battle of the line of scrimage by the half of each game.

The conception or misconception is that Tennessee has a top ten class each season. That is what I have taken from following recruiting during every season of Fulmer until he faded toward the end. ( has a familiar ring to it)

We never heard of Tate like he was Seastrunk, Lattimore or Dyer. We did not. But more often than not we get word that Tub's is looking at a kid who can tote it from MARYLAND. My first thought was though Auburn is seen by many as RB U., Maryland is a long way to...Auburn,AL., which is why I am pumped about Chizik going more national in the search. I was not knocking one of the toughest RBs that AU has ever had. This guy, it turns out, is probably more durable than "most" of the others that I have seen.

No way this defense, with all of it's injuries and run-offs can be compared to the '08 bunch except by inconsistency. This D had no depth. They couldn't rest. The DL got gassed by the half and the DBs (see UGA) faltered late. Teams knew they could wear Auburn down. Northwestern! WVU last year was the same.
The effort was there. These guys manned-up all season against deeper teams.
We couldn't blitz enough early for fear of fading even faster. I think they went in against Alabama a bit differently.

 What else have I failed to address?
Alabama Georgia and LSU have way more talent AND depth.

Arkansas okay I concede that, but Kentucky (with the veteran DL stopped the run on many teams).

And I still think that this is already the best that Auburn has ever recruited  according to what we go by, look at the speed, this is LSU, Florida speed on paper(overall)

[boartitz]

See all that shit on the table in front of that motherfucker? That's why.

Meh. You can see that at Walmarks.

[boartitz]

No discussion needed on my part.  Luper seems legit.

Yall tired of Gus already?

[The Prowler]

Yall tired of Gus already?

Some dumbasses are, they'd just rather have Coach Franklin back....just so they can come back and say "told you so".   Then many years later they'd be able to say, "Remember back in 2010 when I was right about Auburn falling flat on their faces into a pile of steaming shit?  Well, that means I'm right about this subject (whatever the subject is)."

[boartitz]

Some dumbasses are, they'd just rather have Coach Franklin back....just so they can come back and say "told you so".   Then many years later they'd be able to say, "Remember back in 2010 when I was right about Auburn falling flat on their faces into a pile of steaming shit?  Well, that means I'm right about this subject (whatever the subject is)."

I thought yall set some offensive records this year with what was supposedly subpar talent. I want to see what happens when the hosses arrive. Should be fun times.

[Token]

Meh. You can see that at Walmarks.

An Arkansas fan attempting humor with Wal-Mart jokes?  There's a word for that.

[The Prowler]

An Arkansas fan attempting humor with Wal-Mart jokes?  There's a word for that.

Hi-fuckin'-larious