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BASKETBALL
Practice begins tomorrow for Coach Bruce Pearl's third Auburn team. Some form of postseason play should definitely be in the mix for the Tigers if they can stay healthy. We should have a preview of the basketball team sometime in the next few days.
Auburn got a new basketball commit this morning. For 2019. I'll have more on that in a bit.
SOCCER
Yet another accolade for Kristen Dodson, as she was named ESPNw Player of the Week for her pair of braces last week.
FOOTBALL
Ryan Sterritt developed his own rankings system last year, and he's back with it this year. The first rankings are out! There are some head scratchers in there (Troy), but remember that once teams get into their conference schedules, a lot of that will settle out.
I put out two "how they've done so far" articles yesterday. One was planned and one wasn't. The planned one discussed how Auburn has handled the first four games of the season that everyone knew would be so critical for the Tigers back before the season began. The second one was because I kept reading message board comments by people who have made up their mind that Gus Malzahn only plays upperclassmen (89% of the offense has been by underclassmen, but ok) because they're upperclassmen and that's the only reason a horrible wide receiver like Tony Stevens has been playing. I didn't think Tony has been all that bad. I checked the stats and I was right.
During the SEC Teleconference, yesterday, South Carolina head coach Will Muschamp was asked about the Auburn defense. He had a lot of praise for what Kevin Steele has done with them and said the defense is fun to watch.
Rhett Lashlee said Auburn's red zone issues will catch up to them if they're not fixed. Well, yeah, they already have in a number of games and almost cost Auburn the game last weekend. Auburn should have won the LSU game in a blowout.
See the official site's story on Lashlee taking over as the full-time play caller for Gus Malzahn. It's not the first time he's called his own plays. He was the offensive coordinator at Samford in 2011. I may have something out on that if I get a chance, soon.
The only player on offense Lashlee mentioned as being a bit banged up is Kamryn Pettway, but he's practiced in pads and is still expected to play this weekend. It wouldn't shock me if he doesn't or only plays a bit, though.
Alex Kozan is a semi-finalist for a post-graduate award for his football play, academics, and community service work.