AUBURN'S CLIMB

Auburn Tigers: Headed to Pasadena

From Worst to First

In 2012 under head coach Gene Chizik the Auburn Tigers won three games and none of those were conference games. It did include a narrow win over Gus Malzahn's Arkansas State team, and a win over Alabama A&M. After winning the 2010 Championship it didn't look as if would ever be that good again. Then they fired Chizik and hired Malzahn back to the team. After all, most Auburn fans knew that Malzahn had been the guy responsible for the championship. It has been said that Gene Chizik was the worst coach that ever won it all. He did little before or after that to say any different.

I didn't expect a huge turnaround from the 3–9 (0–8) season. Unrealistically I expected an 8-4 season with losses to LSU, Texas A&M, Georgia, and Alabama. It did seem like a bit much seeing the season they'd had a year before. Malzahn was the reason I believed Auburn could go 8-4. At the very least I knew he'd get us to a mid-level bowl game. Never in my wildest dreams did I imagine he'd secure an SEC Championship and shot at the National Championship. He'd said he could win with the talent at Auburn and he did. Malzahn pulled off the best turnaround that I've ever seen.

How Did They Turn it Around?

In reality I don't think there was that much change that needed to be made. It was Malzahn's offense that lured Cam Newton to Auburn, and it's that offense that won the National Championship over Oregon, but it's also the same offense that has Auburn in line for another BCS title this season. The players that were at Auburn were recruited for Malzahn's offense and Chizik could not win with those players once Gus was gone. The first part of the problem was solved.

Malzhan had to change the culture in Auburn. Chizik had published his book leaving the coaches and players pissed at the lack of credit they were given. He lost the respect of the locker room. Malzahn cleaned house firing all of Chizik's coaches. The right coaches were put into place, and the second part of the problem was solved.


LSU
 
Auburn entered the LSU game with a 3-0 record and coming off of a win over Mississippi State. The good start and the Malzahn offense had the Tigers believing they could beat LSU. Under rainy conditions they got off to a bad start. They fell behind early and came up short of the comeback. 


Texas A&M

Auburn had gotten their season back on track with wins over Ole Miss and Western Carolina. They entered the game against Texas A&M with a 5-1 record and new found confidence. Auburn had learned a lot in the loss to LSU. It taught them how to win. They beat Texas A&M 45-41. It was a team that had blown them out the year before. It set up everything that was to come.

Georgia

 When Auburn had been beat in the air they'd always managed to outscore their opponent. They jumped out to a quick start on the Bulldogs, and they needed to. Georgia behind Aaron Murray would make a comeback. It would force Auburn to throw the miracle pass. Murray had ripped the Auburn secondary to pieces. The connection on that miracle pass snatched the victory from Murray and the Bulldogs.

Alabama - The Iron Bowl

The Tigers played with the best team in college football and they beat them. Alabama were the defending National Champions and had not been defeated in their quest to win it all again. Auburn never really outplayed the highly talented team, but they hung around with them all night. That would give Auburn the chance to win it. Nick Saban and the Alabama football team challenged one second back on to the clock. That would set up the field goal/kick off that beat them.

SEC Championship Game

Tre Mason ran for 304 yards and 4 TDs as they beat Missouri 59-42 to win the SEC Championship. Neither team could stop the other offense, so it would go on to be the highest scoring SEC Championship game ever. Mason broke several records, including Bo Jackson's yards in a game and Cam Newton's TD in a season. James Franklin followed a blue print created by Aaron Murray, but the Mizzou defense couldn't stop the Auburn rushing attack.

BCS National Championship Game

Auburn Tigers Update

	Why This Should Be Best Iron Bowl Ever BleacherReport.com
	Auburn Climbs in Latest BCS Rankings BleacherReport.com
	Latest BCS Rankings Winners, Losers BleacherReport.com
	Malzahn Not Changing Approach for Iron Bowl AL.com
	Get Hyped for Best Iron Bowl Yet BleacherReport.com
	Auburn Defenders Laud McCarron AL.com
	Seniors Expect Emotional Final Home Game OANow.com
	Debate: Which Team Has the Better Offense, Bama or AU? BleacherReport.com
	Confidence, Clutch Victories Key to 2013 Turnaround Ledger-Enquirer.com
	Malzahn: I'm Pretty Motivated All the Time MontgomeryAdvertiser.com
	Week 14 Bowl Game Projections BleacherReport.com

"THE NFL : A Bad Lip Reading" — A Bad Lip Reading of the NFL

AUBURN FOOTBALL NOTEBOOK: Kiehl Frazier moves from safety to wide receiver - OANow.com: AU Football

AUBURN FOOTBALL NOTEBOOK: Kiehl Frazier moves from safety to wide receiver - OANow.com: AU Football

Auburn vs. Florida 2007

Best Dubstep Ever [Orgasmic Vibrations]

Game Recap: Auburn vs Arkansas State

		1	2	3	4		T
ARST		3	0	6	0		9
AUB		14	7	7	10		38

Nick Marshall

I'd said last week that I thought Nick Marshall needed to improve. That's exactly what I saw from him in the Arkansas State game. He finished the day 10 for 17 with 147 yards and two touchdowns through the air and added 53 yards on the ground. There must be more improvement from him this week as he starts SEC play against Mississippi State.

Running Back University

There has always been good running backs at Auburn. This season is no different. Between Mason, Payne, and Grant, Auburn may have the best trio of RBs in the entire league. Auburn has almost always been a run first team, and nothing has changed with Malzahn's Hurry-Up-No-Huddle offense.

RUSHING	CAR	YDS	AVG	TD
C. Grant	16	186	11.6	2
T. Mason	29	172	5.9	2

 The Defense

There are some issues with the defense. They seem to play with a bend but don't break philosophy. I don't believe the kind of defense they've played will work over the course of the season. There are some bright spots in what has been an overall mediocre defense. I believe it will improve and it will have to in order to beat the better SEC teams.

Game Recap: Auburn vs Washington St

Auburn - 31
Washington St. - 24


Washington State was a perfect first opponent. The question marks surrounding this Auburn team was in their pass defense. I figured a Mike Leach led offense would pass at a 80/20 ratio. We needed to know whether or not we could stop a pass heavy team, and for the most part we did. It exceeded my expectations. There was no reason in the world for me not to expect a game that both teams didn't score in the forties. The Auburn defense was much better than I expected and they were put under extra pressure by their own offense.

I was not sold on Nick Marshall at quarterback. He was constantly overthrowing receivers. It was his first game and I'm sure he was nervous. He never looked comfortable passing. When he ran the football he looked right at home. It was easy to see that Marshall has a run first mentality. There is little doubt that Malzahn will work with him on his passing. I wouldn't be surprised if there weren't visible improvements in the next game against Arkansas St. Even with a run first approach we'll need more than 100 yards a game passing to win SEC games.

	WSU	AUB
1st Downs	28	16
Total Yards	464	394
Passing	344	99
Rushing	120	295
Penalties	5-21	5-30
3rd Down Conversions	7-17	4-14
4th Down Conversions	2-4	0-0
Turnovers	3	1
Possession	31:27	28:33

Auburn was out gained in total yards 464 to 394. In a close game that could have went either way the three turnovers made all the difference for Auburn. The next game against Arkansas State will tell more of the story. They're a more balanced team and should be able to test us a little more.

Six Days Until Game Time!

Washington State and Mike Leach Bring "Air Raid" Offense to Jordan-Hare

Spread Offense - Downhill Running Game & Great Defense/Coverage keys to Winning

     For what it's worth this will be a pace-setting game for the Tigers. This game will set the tone for the rest of the season and show just how much progress the team has made since Gene Chizik was let go last December and Gus Malzahn returned "home." That feeling is rolling around and I for one am anxious to yell, "WAAAAAAAAAAARRRRR EAGLE! HEY!!"

 Air Raid Offense

     For those who are thinking this game will be a walk in the park think again. Mike Leach, much like Gus Malzahn, is an innovator in the offensive style and the creator as it were of the Air Raid Offense. Leach had quarterbacks with three consecutive years of 3,000+ passing yards and receivers that easily had 1,200+ receiving yards if not two. The offense works by spreading out the defense with multiple WR Sets (sound familiar?) with multiple reads by the quarterback. This allows for massive amounts of yards at a time [chunks] while also keep defenses honest and exploiting cover weaknesses. You may remember that Mike Leach's teams would score a lot of points and his players would have a lot of yards but they also played a sound defense. I for one am not expecting to be upset but I wouldn't bolster expectations too high and think it will be a walk in the park for our Tigers.

The video below shows Mike Leach going over the Air Raid Offense...

Gus Malzahn and the Refreshed Tigers

     Anyone who hasn't heard, Gus Malzahn and the Tigers are back! Well, perhaps not officially back but their swagger and bite seems to be back. Much like Chizik before him Malzahn has assembled a world class staff with some of the best assistant coaches and recruiters in the country. We have Rhett Lashlee who's been with Malzahn since High School and pretty much knows the offense inside and out. Dameyune Craig, a former Auburn standout QB and dual threat man who coaches the WR and is a recruiting legend. Ellis Johnson with the 4-2-5 and is a defensive guru with stops at South Carolina, Bama, and Miss among others. Charlie Harbin has been coaching for years and handles the DBs. Tim Horton is an old pro with RBs and handles them and the list goes on and on. We've read about tremendous improvements on the defensive side of the ball but there is one thing that worries me....Safeties and Corner-backs. We've seen Kiehl Frazier switch over to safety (and a hulk safety he is at 6'4" and 225lbs) and have lost Senior Demetruce McNeil which is a huge blow with experience. Brandon King hasn't been making a splash lately but is looking to be the backup or third string in the DB order. With all this I hope we're prepared for some bumps because the Air Raid is no joke and Mike Leach can coach a program up with his players. This is his first year with his selected players so I look for it to be quite a fight.

Gus Malzahn going over his spread offense...

 Ellis Johnson and his defense...

Final Thoughts

     Don't come away from this believing that Auburn will surely lose as I do not believe that to be the case. All I am pointing out is that this is a real fight the first game and WSU being they are WSU shouldn't be overlooked with Mike Leach coaching them. I look to see us come out and play hard, have a few bumps and bruises [blow assignments, missed reads, dropped passes, a fumble or two, an interception or two, and missed tackles] but to ultimately win by a 14 point margin and look better on the defense than we have the past couple years. WAR DAMN EAGLE!