Tuesday morning buffet

Grab a plate and fill up.

• Junior continues to impress.  He’s yet to coach his first SEC game, but he’s going to get a rule named after him.
• Speaking of Junior, this is a timely question.  I don’t think Auburn fans are going to be too thrilled with the last answer.
• On a list of dumb things to do, grossly exaggerating facts to a showboating member of Congress would be right up there near the top.
• Jacksonville is all about the money, son.  And, yes, I did hear a number of Florida fans argue for moving the game out of Jax when Dooley had the Gators’ number.
• Spurrier – still “got game”, or “a bitter old man”?

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UPDATE: Jerry is miffed.

In Gus they trust.

I know there’s a lot of unbridled optimism on the Plains right now about Malzahn’s new, supercharged offense… and I know we heard a lot of the same stuff about Tony “Troy racked up 488 yards on Georgia” Franklin’s scheme… and I know that we’re being assured that it’ll be different this time…

but as a Georgia fan, I’ve got a responsibility to rain on their parade.  A little, anyway.

So take it away, Chris Brown.

… One brief thought on Malzahn, however. Gus’s big thing is that he believes in tempo. Of course, he hasn’t really had a chance to go breakneck speed yet at Auburn (at least by the reports of those who have seen both Tulsa, his former stop, and Auburn practice), though the offense is apparently looking much better already. Ironically, he’s improved — over both Tuberville’s prior offense and the Tuberville Franklin mash-up — by just bringing some sound, simple schemes. Sure he has a lot of window dressing, but that offense had just gotten bad. Yet, at least in year one I’ll be surprised if he works miracles.

What they did at Tulsa was wonderful, but Herb Hand — who brought the zone blocking aspect of the running game to go with Malzahn’s pace and power game schemes — was an integral part of the Tulsa attack: they were co-offensive coordinators for a reason. And though Malzahn seems reasonably committed to the running the ball, he was always a pass first guy, so we’ll just have to see how that flies without a true quarterback. And the X factor is Chizik, the head coach. Even if Malzahn’s offense is good, there are few defensive minded guys who appreciate a three-and-out (which can happen to any offense) that takes about eight seconds to occur. How long is his leash? Time will tell.

That strikes me as pretty accurate.  Auburn was a team last year that didn’t have the personnel to run the scheme.  The fact that the coaching staff couldn’t get on the same page just added to the train wreck.  So even if everyone is full of peace, love and understanding now, they still need a quarterback.

Is there a quarterback? Bueller?  Bueller?

… Chizik, who was in Robertsdale on Tuesday for the Mobile and Baldwin County Auburn Clubs’ annual scholarship dinner, said before the event that it could be late August before a starter is named. Kodi Burns and Neil Caudle got most of the reps during spring drills, but Chizik said he expects incoming freshmen Tyrik Rollison and Clint Moseley to join an ongoing competition this fall.

“The position has not been won; that’s the main point of emphasis,” Chizik said. “We’ve got some young guys who will come in and challenge for the job. Certainly the ones who have been on campus have an advantage of 15 days anyway, but the quarterback situation probably won’t be solved until right before the season starts.”

Uh, that’s “solved” in the sense that somebody has to trot out there on September 5th and take snaps from the center.  “Work in progress” might be a more accurate description.

Ironically, since he’s the new kid on the block, Chizik will have more time to allow the offense to round into shape than Tubby was granted a year ago.  The odds are he’s going to need it, although Auburn’s early schedule of four home games against two non-BCS conference schools, a diminished West Virginia team and SEC bottom dweller Mississippi State should give his team plenty of opportunity to start sorting things out at the position.

Tuesday morning buffet

What looks good to you this morning?

• Herbstreit really goes out on a limb with a Tennessee prediction:  “I will make a prediction right now that 2009 will be a tough year for [Lane Kiffin] to get welcomed into the conference.” ‘Ya think?  Insight like that is why Herbie gets paid the big bucks.
• You want more proof that Knoxville brings out teh stoopid?  How about this keen observation by John Adams concerning the fact that UT’s lost eleven kids off the roster since Junior rode into town:  “Mainstream Vol Nation shouldn’t be alarmed. In fact, it would have more cause for concern if the Vols hadn’t lost players.” Yeah, that’s it – up is down, black is white, dog is cat.  It’s all good.  By the way, John, there are those who would argue that “Mainstream Vol Nation” is an oxymoron.
• This is a nice piece on Mark Richt’s attention to the non-football issues that go along with being a head coach these days.
• After reading this post-spring practice summary on Oklahoma State and its own problems on the defensive line, I’m taking the under on total sacks in Georgia’s opener.
• Ray Keller gets shot down on his attempt to revive his lawsuit against the NCAA.  For some reason, this stuff is beginning to remind me of the Japanese soldiers they found twenty years after the end of WWII who thought the war was still going on.
• The Quad Countdown on #112 Iowa State is more interesting in its in passing comments about Gene Chizik than anything else.
• Add Tulsa’s Todd Graham to the list of BCS whiners.
• While we’re on the subject of the BCS, this editorial starts out all guns blazing on government action… and then kinda runs out of ammo when it gets to Utah AG Mark Shurtleff.
• Oops – add one more dumb observation about Tennessee to the list. “… the defense has nowhere to go but up.” I guess technically that would be true if only four schools played defense last year.

Mother’s Day buffet

Don’t forget mama today.  And here are some extra items to snack on:

• “Walker was as close to a one-man team as anyone ever has been or will be.”
• This is a pretty good snapshot of where the lines of tension in the BCS debate are right now.
• Speaking of which, both Utah senators up the ante by publishing a letter that seeks to interfere in the upcoming TV contract renewal.
• In response to the “hypocrisy” decried in this blog post, check out Year2’s analysis of all the factors that would have to be weighed in creating a player pay proposal.  Not as easy as it sounds, eh?
• Over at The Joe Cribbs Car Wash, Jerry gets all David and Goliath with us over Gus Malzahn.  If he’s right, that’s an awful lot of eggs to put in the basket of one coordinator, it seems to me.  And to be honest with you, there’s nothing in Chizik’s background to suggest he’s that good a judge of talent.

Just shut up and coach.

Urban Meyer gets all uppity with the new kids on the block (h/t Team Speed Kills):

STRETCHING RULES: You may have read where Auburn used stretch limos to parade recruits around the state of Alabama. The idea was that the limos would not only appeal to the kids but get Auburn plenty of attention because of the decals on the limos.

The real question here is whether other schools will follow suit or will the NCAA enact a new rule banning their use. We’ve seen the NCAA react to excessive meals and plane trips as well as text messaging. Can this be far behind?

“I think it should,” Urban Meyer told Dooley Noted when asked if the NCAA will get involved. “We’re trying to sell graduation rates and academics and [they’re] trying the sing and dance routine.

“The Florida coaching staff will not be riding around in limos or ripping off our shirts.”

Well, la-de-effing-da.  If Gene Chizik had the pipeline to recruiting talent that Meyer enjoys, he wouldn’t have to resort to prom night transportation either.

On the other hand, I can’t argue with the shirt crack.  Wild boyz – one more reason why Florida-Tennessee retains its number one ranking on my meteor games list.  With room to spare.

Tuesday morning buffet

You know the drill.

• See ‘ya, Terence Moore. Don’t let the door hit you in the arse on the way out.
• You know, this is one badass ride.  I can understand why they’d want tinted windows.
• No waiver for Richt to attend Chris Burnette’s graduation, evidently because the kid isn’t the class valedictorian.  I’ll never get the NCAA, I swear.
• The SEC East race is over before it even starts, according to these guys.
• Rich Brooks doesn’t go for that Twitter crap.
• Two days ago, the spin was that Stafford won’t succeed in the NFL because he gets too angry.  Yesterday, it’s because he won’t get angry enough.  I’m so confused.
• College faculty reps may not reach a consensus on a D-1 postseason format, but they know they don’t want ESPN making the kids play into February.
• Junior responds to B. J. Coleman’s allegations by forcefully saying a bunch of mush.  At least he didn’t blame the kid’s grandmother.

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UPDATE: Make sure you read Mr. Hinnen’s spot on obituary for Moore’s column.  Good stuff.

“From the outside, you see a guy who won five games at Iowa State.”

Auburn fans, you can’t say you haven’t been given fair warning about this season.

… Chizik believes he also was close to turning around Iowa State. He inherited a Cyclones team that went 4-8 in 2006, after going 7-5 in consecutive seasons under coach Dan McCarney in 2004 and ’05. Iowa State went 3-9 in Chizik’s first season in 2007. Last year, the Cyclones opened the season with victories over Football Championship Subdivision opponent South Dakota State and Kent State, but then lost their last 10 games to finish 2-10.

“I have no question in my mind that we were definitely on the right track,” Chizik said…

According to Chizik, he faces a similar rebuilding job at Auburn.

Hoo, boy.

“This is supposed to be a happy occasion. Let’s not bicker and argue over who killed who.”

The Wiz has posted a bunch of pics from Auburn’s spring game, including this scoreboard shot of Gene Chizik’s resume.

"Previously coached at Iowa State"... and?

Nothing like a little judicious skimming to clean things up.

Monday morning buffet

Rise and shine, campers.

• At Auburn, they’re excited about the new offensive coordinator, they ran the ball well at the spring game and they still don’t have a quarterback.  The more things change…
• MWC Commissioner Craig Thompson’s proposal to reinvent the D-1 football postseason doesn’t sound like it’s picking up steam heading into the BCS meetings which start today.
• What do you think the AJ-C would do with a story like this if it involved a Georgia football player and Mark Richt?
• “There is nothing written that says a coach becomes an offensive genius simply because he has the duty of calling plays.” True dat.
• The Fridge thinks Diddy should suck it up and take his medicine like a man.
  

Everybody talks about toughness, but it takes a Chizik to do something about it.

Look out, Tiger quarterbacks, it’s open season!

The Auburn coaches applied some extra pressure to their three quarterbacks, with a little help from the Tigers’ pass rushers. Kodi Burns, Neil Caudle and Barrett Trotter all saw action during the portion of Saturday’s 90-play scrimmage at Jordan-Hare Stadium when they were fair game for the defense and not protected from contact as usual…

Yeah, get after it.  Auburn ran the ball a lot and “got physical”.  Chizik tells us why that was necessary.

“There’s some means to the madness,” Chizik said. “We’ve got to get back to that physical mentality, and I think the kids responded.”

Why, it’s déjà vu all over again, I tells ya!  When’s the last time Auburn held a spring practice where the head man said nothing about trying to get his charges back to that “physical mentality”?

It sure as hell wasn’t last year.

The biggest difference, Tuberville said of Franklin, “is he’s going to set up the run by passing the ball. We’ve set up the pass by running the ball. I don’t doubt it’s going to work, but we’re still going to be a physical team. We’re going to run the ball more than we’re going to throw it.

Auburn will remain a physical offensive team.

“I’m a defensive coach and I know you have to be physical in practice to help your defense,” Tuberville said. “You can’t get better in games on defense. You have to practice hard and practice physical. We’ll have a lot of two-back in our offense next year.”

That worked out well, didn’t it?

Note to Gene:  concern about your guys being physical is great, but I think I’d worry about having the same batch of QBs back from last season that racked up the 106th best showing in passing efficiency more.