Yesterday, Gus Malzahn was asked a dumb question about Florida's soon-to-be vacant head coaching job. He answered appropriately and that's that.
Malzahn also discussed his faith in Ellis Johnson and his defensive staff, calling the veteran DC one of the best coaches in the league.
The 7-3 Tigers fell to No. 14 in the playoff rankings released last night, the highest slotted three-loss team in the nation. Next weekend's opponent, Alabama, jumped to number one after knocking off Mississippi State, who stayed in the top four.
On the injury front, Duke Williams is considered "week-to-week", and has not yet returned to the practice field. We also learned last season's second leading sacker, sophomore Carl Lawson, is unlikely to return this season from his preseason knee surgery.
AL.com's Joel Erickson posted his weekly Film Study session yesterday, with this week's focus on the weakest offensive performance in the Malzahn era. Erickson looked at the different formations used by the offense, and Quan Bray and CJ Uzomah trying to replace Duke's production at receiver.
In some ex-Auburn news, former Tiger great Kevin Greene was named one of 26 semifinalists for the Pro Football Hall of Fame's 2015 class. Greene was an All-American linebacker at Auburn in 1984, and retired as the NFL's all-tiome sack leader as a linebacker with 160.
Ben Tate, who was named the Cleveland Browns number one running back prior to the season, was dropped by the team yesterday, following a two carry, negative-nine yard performance on Sunday. He finished his time with the Browns in 2014 with 333 yards on 106 carries.
The War Eagle Reader posted a fresh Wishbone podcast from Van Allen Plexico and John RInger.
In other sports:
Auburn soccer is gearing up for Friday's NCAA tourney second round matchup with No. 11 Texas Tech in Gainesville. The match is at 2 p.m. and will air on SECN+. The winner will advance to the Sweet 16.
Auburn senior runner Ty McCormack was voted the U.S. Track and Field and Cross Country Coaches Association's South Region Runner of the Year. He will compete this weekend in the NCAA Cross Country Championships in Terre Haute, Indiana.
Also, sophomore swimmer Joe Patching was named the SEC Men's Swimmer of the Week.
Wrapping up today, 39-year old pitcher Tim Hudson says 2015 will likely be his final season in the major leagues. Hudson was a two-way All-American at Auburn and is currently a reigning World Series champion.