I am not really one to have a rebuttal to another person’s article but ole Finebaum wrote an article here that really got me thinking. If you don’t want to read his gibberish, I will sum it up for you. "Calm down Auburn fans! You have beaten no one yet. You can talk trash when you beat some one significant." He takes a shot at West Virginia by saying he already picked Auburn to win and he pokes at the mediocrity of his alma mater of Tennessee as well. So Paul, tell me when Auburn fans can get excited? Your show talked about how Auburn would struggle against LA Tech. How did that work out for you? Do we have to beat LSU at night in Baton Rouge, or will they be overrated or something. What if we can somehow beat Alabama… will you find a way to downplay that win as well? You drive me nuts.
Over Tommy Tuberville’s tenure at Auburn there is little doubt that Auburn fans got used to winning. Granted last year was an overwhelming flop, winning consistently is one thing that Auburn has done over the last 10+ years. With that said, Auburn has not had the aggressiveness that the 2009 squad has shown in a long long time… maybe not ever. In the magical 2004 season, Auburn was dominate in eleven of the thirteen games. The Tigers struggled against LSU (10-9 win), and had two bad halves one against Tennessee in the SEC Championship Game and the other against Virginia Tech in the Sugar Bowl. Although those 2004 Tigers owed other teams that season, they never kept the hammer down for four quarters.
The 2009 version of the Auburn Tigers seem to play to win ever single down. If they win every play, there is little doubt they will win the game, right? You can see that attitude on the players’ faces, coaches’ faces, and fan’s faces. Whether you are sitting in Jordan-Hare, or in front of your flat panel, you can feel it. Hell, you can see it. Watch the coaching staff after something happens. They are jumping around like the players are. After Coleman’s pick-six… Trooper Taylor was going bananas. I could see it if he was Ted Roof, Tracy Rocker, Philip Lolley, or Tommy Thigpin, after all they are defensive coaches. But it was Trooper Taylor who was leading the excitement. Granted I say "leading" the excitement everyone on the sidelines was ecstatic. Even Gene Chizik was going nuts. I for one love it. On the flip side of that, after the punt block for a TD, Chizik was in the ear of Boulware. That shows me that this staff has passion, and the best way to lead is to lead by example. If the staff has passion, the players will play with passion, and the fans will follow suit. Tell me the last time you saw that sort of passion from a Head Coach on the Auburn sidelines for something other than a bad call. You better think really hard.
What are Auburn fans supposed to do at this point in the season? The players are playing their collective hearts out. The offensive line, which was faced much criticism last season, has turned out to be nothing short of fantastic. The defense is thin but doing well under the circumstances. The coaching staff is about as energetic as any staff I have ever seen on any team, much less and Auburn team. I am as happy as a dog in the sunshine right now. Will that change if Auburn loses to the Mountaineers? I doubt it. It might change my thoughts for the rest of the season on the Win/Loss scale, but that will be about it. Things are not going to be this good all season, most Auburn fans understand that. There are going to be bumps in the road. As long as the coaching staff can continue to make adjustments and the players continue to play hard, I am going to be happy.
There is one thing that the 2009 version of the Auburn Tigers are doing win or lose. They are fun to watch. Even the old school fans are laughing and excited to see that Gus Malzahn has lined up for our viewing pleasure. Hopefully the days of seeing a run off tackle for 2 yards, run up the middle for a loss of 5, slant pass complete for 6 yards and punt are over.
This Auburn squad may not have beaten anyone yet Paul… but they sure have brought the fun back to the Plains.
War Damn Eagle
