Game Review: Alabama

Knee-Jerk Reaction
Sweet eight pound six ounce new born baby Jesus! Why this team insists on playing with my emotions I will never know but, one thing is for sure, I have yet to have a reason to complain about the outcome. Giving credit where it is due, Saban and his gang came out with an amazing game plan on both sides of the ball and their team executed it to perfection for about a quarter and a half. When Trent Richardson dropped an easy touchdown pass that resulted in them settling for a field goal seemed insignificant when it extended their lead to 24-0, little did they know it was the beginning of the end. Coach Chizik and the leaders on this team deserve indescribable credit for being able to keep their cool and never lose faith in the face of adversity and a deficit no Auburn team in their great football history had ever been able to overcome. Knowing we would get the ball first out of the half was critical for me continuing to believe there was hope. Hitting the long touchdown before the half was affirmation that this game was far from over. Most teams down 24-7 at the half would come out of the locker room hoping to play for pride though few usually do. This Auburn team is different if you hadn't noticed yet. Trailing by 17 at the break is nothing to fear. I said at halftime if we come out and get a score than it is a 10 point game and Alabama will tighten up. They know we have been coming back all year and as soon as we are within striking distance they will be playing not to lose which usually results in a loss ironically. Not only did Auburn overcome the early deficit but they did so in a flash. Auburn scored their third touchdown of the night with over four minutes left in the third quarter. What was thought by many to be an insurmountable deficit was brought to a three point game less than eight minutes out of the break. The only gaff of the second half was Quindarious Carr's fumble on an ill advised no fair catch decision. The previous punt he fair caught was well blocked and he had room to run and clearly that was in his mind. Alabama's gunners were running free right at him and he was hit in succession by two players moments after he fielded the punt. The second hit jarred the ball loose which led directly to the only points Alabama would score in the second half. A defense that had been shredded in the first half was lights out in the second half. Nick Fairley did his thing along the line, Eltoro Freeman had his best game as an Auburn Tiger and T'Sharvan Bell was the best defensive back on either team Friday afternoon. The game winning drive had a little bit of everything from this offense. There was balance in the running game with Cam, Dyer and McCalebb all getting carries. There were creative play calls hitting McCalebb in the flats after the fake to the jet sweep. There were gutsy play calls with the decision to go for it on fourth and three from mid-field. Best of all, it culminated with the best touchdown dance of the 2010 season when Philip Lutzenkirchen jigged his way into the end zone with the game winning score.

Positives
T'Sharvan Bell - No player on defense stood out to me as much as Bell did on Friday. With all the struggles we have had in the secondary it was nice to finally see a corner who can come up and lay a lick on a wide receiver (or quarterback) and even break up a couple passes along the way.

Nick Fairley - Another great game from possibly the best defensive player in the country. His poise to overcome the worst unsportsman like celebration penalty I've ever seen was as impressive as the two sacks he had on the afternoon. On the second sack he drove their guard four yards deep into the pocket and bulldozing McElroy, forcing a fumble and having the awareness to realize no one was there to recover it, crawling around the pile of crimson he created and jumping on the loose ball.

Cam Newton - With all of the hype about Cam's scrambling ability it is hard to fathom that in the same season that he set the SEC rushing record for quarterbacks he also broke Auburn's single season passing touchdown record. Never in our lifetime will we again see a player who breaks the single season rushing touchdown record and passing touchdown record in the same game. Remarkable statistic. Anytime you break a record currently held by Bo Jackson and Cadillac Williams you know you've done something special. Four total touchdowns while leading your team to a come from behind win in the 75th Iron Bowl on enemy turf just made it all the sweeter.

The team - Congratulations. You've just completed an undefeated regular season in the SEC. You are the #1 ranked team in the BCS. You have earned your spot among all the great teams in Auburn history. This is a special group of individuals who appear to trust and love each other as much if not more than the 2004 team which is saying A LOT. War Eagle!

Here We Are...

What a wild ride it has been. Looking back through some of my ramblings from earlier this year remind me of just how far we have come. The word I used to describe our win over Arkansas State was "ugly" and Cam Newton was listed in my "Negatives" section for the first three weeks of the season. I went as far in the Clemson Game Review to say "I think its safe to say Cam Newton isn't going to win the Heisman this year."

HAHAHAHA

Ok... that's enough.

The South Carolina game was the game that turned my attitude about this team. Seeing Newton completely take that game over and lead the team with a Tebow-esque attitude really proved that every time this team took the field they would have a great chance to win. I concluded the month of September with an article titled Expectations, They're A Sonuvabitch which laid out my belief that this team had what it took to go undefeated this year.

By the time Arkansas and LSU had been dismissed Cam Newton had reached superstar status. Alabama already had one loss on their record and we merely needed to survive the Rebels on the road and a struggling Georgia team at home (oh yeah, there was a scrimmage with Chattanooga in between there).

Unfortunately I can't talk about the roller coaster of this season without discussing the media onslaught we were bombarded with in the beginning of November and still lingers today. No sooner than we were celebrating being 9-0 there were stories beginning to break of potential NCAA violations during the recruitment of Cam Newton. Stories have been written, stories have changed, changed back and changed again. Sources have been quoted and other anonymous sources continued to leak "information" for weeks while Auburn stayed quiet and Cam continued to play. I have maintained my faith but it seems the rumor and innuendo have left few outside the Auburn family believing that we will come out of this situation clean. The fact that the story has died down (outside the obtuse local Alabama shock jocks) during our off week leading up to the Iron Bowl tells me that the unnamed sources and breaking news should be finished and all that remains is an official decision from the NCAA.

So in the end we are 11-0, have secured a birth in the SEC Championship game and if we win out we are in the BCS National Championship game. Perhaps the past month has soured an otherwise magical season but there is still plenty of football left to make this season possibly the best in school history.

Can we beat Alabama? Of course. Looking at our five common opponents this year there is no doubt which team has performed better. Auburn's point differential in those five games is +14, Alabama's is +4. Auburn's yardage differential is +112.4, Alabama's is +32.2. On a per play basis Auburn's offense is averaging nearly a full yard more than Alabama's in those five games while, surprisingly, Alabama's defense is holding teams to a mere tenth of a yard less than Auburn's defense. Perhaps most importantly Auburn went 5-0, Alabama went 3-2.

Here's the catch: Alabama has played much better at home this year. They have gotten off to fast starts in the first half and then lean on solid defense and grind it out offense to take home easy victories. The closest game they have had at home all year was a 23-10 victory over Ole Miss. In Auburn's three road games thus far we have avoided falling into the same first half holes we have tended to stumble into at home. That is likely attributed to the fact that our road competition hasn't been nearly as stiff as those who have visited the Plains. If Auburn gets down two touchdowns early again, climbing out of that hole in front of 102,000 fans cheering against them against a Nick Saban coached defense may be too tall of a task.

Alabama's offense is far more balanced this year than last. In their 2009 championship season they leaned heavily on Heisman trophy winner Mark Ingram with a fair amount of Trent Richardson mixed in. Greg McElroy has evolved from game manager to a quarterback capable of carrying his team when the running game runs dry. Auburn's defensive line is capable of containing Alabama's rushing attack much like they did last year. What Ted Roof's crew may struggle with is preventing McElroy and Julio Jones from playing catch up and down the field against our porous secondary.

No one has been able to stop Cam Newton and this offense all year and I don't believe that will change on Friday. This offense has progressed all year long and with a bye week to rest and perfect our game plan there is no reason it shouldn't come out firing on all cylinders.

This is a match up for the ages and no outcome would shock me. It is possible that Auburn could lose this game and still make it into the BCS Championship game but I doubt that thought has even crossed the mind of a single player or coach.

We're coming to win and Cam is coming with us.

Game Review: Georgia

Knee-Jerk Reaction
11-0, SEC West Champs. What else needs to be said? The Iron Bowl still looms large with national championship hopes on the line but this team's goal was to get to Atlanta and bring home an SEC Championship. They had to fight through the most difficult division in college football to get there but were able to lock it up before even traveling to play the pre-season favorite.

As for the game... this team has done it to us all year, why would we have thought this game would be any different? Cam did his thing and the defense did theirs. I was unfortunately tied up at a wedding (blasted fall weddings!!!) and the service began just as we went down 21-7 (I was streaming it live on slingbox on my iPhone in the church - Sorry God, I hope you understand). Seeing that we tied it by halftime was a relief and obviously the second half was what we've come to expect from this team. I did record the game and was able to watch it last night. The first quarter was almost worse than I remember. This team had everything going against it from penalties that were our fault (Isom head butting a UGA player uncharacteristically) to penalties that were bad calls (Mosley's holding call on McCalebb's 40 yard statue of liberty run), combined with dropped passes that became interceptions returned inside our ten (Emory Blake) in addition to dropped passes that would have been easy touchdowns (Mario Fannin). Considering those were two of Cam's three incompletions on the night give a little insight into the greatness he had on display Saturday. Multiple passes that Newton through were absolute laser beams put right on target, sometimes 30 yards down field, sometimes between three defenders. This was perhaps the first game that I believe Newton's passing ability showed legitimate NFL potential sooner than later which is an unfortunate thought for our chances of retaining his services through 2011. Another junior who is unlikely to stick around for his senior year is Nick Fairley. He was an absolute beast yet again and I don't give a rats ass about anyone calling him dirty. Was Lawrence Taylor dirty? Was Mean Joe Greene dirty? Was Warren Sapp dirty? Play hard. Play with aggression. Go after the quarterback with bad intentions. This is football and the best players know how to harness their ferocity and take it out on their opponent during every play. Yeah, maybe he shouldn't have planted his helmet in Murray's back a couple seconds after he released the ball but that is honestly the first late hit I've seen him commit all year and is not indicative of the type of player he is. I am glad he is on our team and everyone else wishes he was on theirs. Seeing Dyer embraced by Bo Jackson after he broke his freshman rushing record was one of the more special moments of a season filled with special moments. As Jackson lifted his arm in the air it was hard not to think of that as a figurative passing of the torch from Auburn's greatest running back of all time to the most highly rated running back ever signed by Auburn. To hear Zac Ethridge recount circling the stadium four times to celebrate with the fans one last time nearly brought tears to my eyes. This group of seniors have been through the gauntlet and they deserve this season as much as they all deserved to get the feeling of beating UGA for the first time in their careers.

Positives
Cam Newton - I mentioned his passing efficiency earlier but as usual he was an all-star running the ball as well. He was there to grind out the tough yards whenever they were needed and broke his share of big runs on his way to over 150 yards rushing and two TD's on the ground.

Onterio McCalebb - Easily the unsung hero of this offense this year. Cam gets the headlines, Dyer gets the hype, even the offensive line have been given as much credit as any offensive line can expect to get. But, McCalebb, who is averaging 8.8 yards per carry and has scored nine touchdowns on the year has not been mentioned at all. His speed to the outside stretches defenses wide and much of the space Cam is given in the middle is due to defenders chasing McCalebb to the outside on the fakes. His speed is elite and the other attributes of his running game are catching up. His 71 yard, three touchdown performance on Saturday was one of his best outings of the year despite having a 40 yard run negated by a penalty. He got it done blocking on the outside on some of Cam's long runs and he also showed the ability to cut it inside on a few occasions which hasn't been his forte this season.

Gus Malzahn - All the credit needs to go to Malzahn for keeping this offense moving all year. Obviously having Cam helps but too many times you hear about how a coordinator isn't using his team's talents to the best of their abilities. That maybe so and so should be getting the ball more or that so and so shouldn't be getting the ball so much. He has kept it balanced, kept Dyer fresh all year, kept McCalebb healthy all year, and kept defenses off balanced despite what the media tells you about this being a one man team. The offense clearly has evolved as the year progressed and Malzahn deserves all the credit for that.

Say It Ain't So, Cam

I am not going to rehash all the allegations and stories written over this past week but I will make one thing very clear: I am not worried about Auburn.

I believe in my University.

I believe in our coaching staff.

What I can not believe is that our athletic department would be so dumb as to commit career suicide by playing Cameron Newton when there is a looming investigation that could compromise his eligibility.

The most telling sign in this entire story is that Cameron Newton is still playing. Mississippi State reported potential violations to the SEC/NCAA in January and also submitted additional information in July. Auburn's compliance department has been aware of this situation since it began recruiting Newton. Auburn has done their due diligence, the SEC and the NCAA have had ample time to do preliminary investigations and plenty of time to tell Auburn that there could be issues with Newton's eligibility (remember that the NCAA was able to declare the UNC players, Alabama's Marcel Dareus, and Georgia's A.J. Green ineligible for actions over the summer). The only quote to come from the Auburn camp in relation to his potential recruiting violations: "Cameron Newton is eligible to play at Auburn University."

On the surface that is a bland statement, but when you consider everything else surrounding the situation that statement is fairly bold and very telling.

The only school which has been named or implicated by any of these reports is Mississippi State. Perhaps Cam took the advice of his father to choose Auburn due to potential recruiting violations at Mississippi State that could potentially hinder his eligibility at THAT school. I am not sure if that is the case but it certainly would explain a lot of the quotes that have been produced by both sides of the story.

I believe you will see over the next few weeks (or hopefully sooner) that the investigation in fact centers around Mississippi State, not Auburn.

Kenny Rogers said he never contacted Auburn and has no idea about the circumstances of Cam's recruitment with Auburn.

John Bond was quoted saying "this has nothing to do with Auburn."

If you believe in Auburn, than you aren't worrying.

I believe in Auburn and love it.

War Damn Eagle!

Cam Newton vs. LaMichael Moore

These statistics were made aware to me the other day and I thought they were blog worthy. Since Cam Newton's closest competition for the Heisman trophy is Oregon's LaMichael James and Boise State's Kellen Moore it would only be logical to look at their stats compared to Cam's on the season so far. No, no, no... not individually; that wouldn't be fair. Here are their COMBINED statistics compared to what Newton has accomplished on his own thusfar this season.

LaMichael James & Kellen Moore COMBINED:
Passing: 1865 YARDS, 18 TDS
Rushing: 1186 YARDS, 14 TDS
Receiving: 6 CATCHES, 126 YARDS, 2 TDS
TOTAL: 3177 YARDS, 34 TDS

Cam Newton:
Passing: 1573 YARDS, 15 TDS
Rushing: 1122 YARDS, 14 TDS
Receiving: 2 CATCH, 42 YARDS, 1TD
TOTAL: 2737 YARDS, 30 TDS

I think it is fair to say he is dominating the competition.

Game Review: Ole Miss

Knee-Jerk Reaction
Ok, since it's Tuesday evening this isn't much of a knee-jerk reaction but I'm keeping the title for the sake of continuity. The reason for the delay in this post is because I have entered into the world of the iPhone and have spent nearly every free moment I've had browsing apps and playing numerous addicting games. As for Saturday's game - IMPRESSIVE. So it started out a little shaky with the big run by Jeff Scott to give the Rebel Black Bears the 7-0 lead but the offense continued its domination of the SEC with another 500+ yards of total offense, 300+ yards rushing and 50+ points. Those are plateaus only Auburn's historically best offenses would reach against Sun Belt also-rans and D1-AA check collectors. The best part of Dr. Malzahn's latest creation was the number of players who got involved. We saw Mike Dyer have rush for 180 yards, McCalebb fall a yard shy of the century mark, and Darvin Adams, Terrell Zachery and Emory Blake each had at least five receptions and 50 yards. Noticeably absent from that list is our Heisman front runner Cam Newton. Ole Miss sold out to prevent Cam from getting his yards on the ground and they did a decent job. When Auburn designed running plays for Cam he still had success but where the difference was most noticeable was when plays broke down the Ole Miss defensive line did a great job of closing running lanes, keeping contain, and collapsing the pocket. Malzahn didn't call many run plays for Newton because he saw, both on film and in the game, that in selling out to stop Newton's running game Ole Miss exposed themselves to the pass and to the other play makers on our team. On the defensive side of the ball the lone big play was a huge one and that was Demond Washington's interception at the two yard line. After Auburn turned it over deep in our own territory Ole Miss had an opportunity to take the lead. Instead, Washington breaks up a pass in the end zone then follows that play up with an interception at the two yard line. 12 plays and 98 yards later Auburn scores the touchdown and extended their lead to 24-14. The next time Washington touched the ball was on a kick off return just before the half and he took it 95 yards to the house. Nick Fairley was pretty quiet due to being double teamed all night but Zach Clayton took advantage of that opportunity and had a huge game. A lot of backups got time in this game which is just what the doctor ordered and was an unexpected positive in an SEC road game. This was a survival game and Auburn did more than survive, they dominated.

Positives
Demond Washington - The interception was a game changer. Had Ole Miss scored there they would have taken a 21-17 lead. Instead the interception sparked a 98 yard drive and Ole Miss never got within 10 points again. His 95 yard kick off return for a touchdown showed excellent vision, explosion through the hole and break away speed. Now Auburn's all-time leading returner Washington deserves special recognition.

Mike Dyer - Dyer exploded for the best game of his brief career. He appears to really be hitting his stride at the right time and could be a force through Amen Corner. All the attributes that made him the number one back in the country last year were on display Saturday night. He showed great vision, an explosive burst, a great ability to break through arm tackles, break away speed and perhaps most impressive was the fight that he displayed every time he got the ball.

Zach Clayton - He didn't stuff the stat sheet like Fairly has the ability to do but the effort and tenacity that Clayton plays with in the middle of this defense is one of the main reasons Auburn has been so stout against the run. He wasn't blessed with exceptional talent but he more than makes up for it with his non-stop motor and pure strength to occupy blockers.

Wes Byrum - Wes had a big night and though this game didn't end up being very close, the main reason we were able to consistently pull away was because Byrum never let our drives end without points. He finished the night three for three with a long of 48 yards.

Negatives
Starting Defensive Ends - Antoine Carter and Nosa Eguae had very quiet nights and were unable to contain the outside runs nor were they able to get to Masoli for a sack. Carter had two tackles, one for a loss while Eguae did not record a tackle. Backups Mike Goggans and Corey Lemonier combined for five tackles and one and a half tackles for a loss. Defensive end production is one of the biggest areas in need of improvement to become a more complete team. Additional pass rush around the ends will also make the secondary look much better.

Looking Ahead: Chattanooga
Pfffffft. Get ready for a lot of backups, which is exactly what this team needs at this point.

IT'S A TRAP!

Admiral Ackbar has been warning us all year on the sign of The Diesel bar in Virginia Highlands. Considering the way this season has played out and the circumstances around the game, maybe the leader of the Rebel army should change his name to Nostradamus.

I said two weeks ago that I was more nervous about going to Oxford after a win over LSU than actually beating LSU. Having played three emotionally draining games in a row, defeating two highly ranked opponents at home, playing the ninth game in a row without a bye, and staring down a team who lost to Jacksonville State and Vanderbilt at home, how does the team NOT take an emotional step back?

The real question is, does the team who lost to Jacksonville State and Vanderbilt at home have enough fire power to take down the number one team in the nation even if they don't bring 100% effort?

I'll look at both sides.

Yes, they absolutely do. The only two road games Auburn has played this season were against Mississippi State and Kentucky. Both games were field goal wins. Both of those games were played following a blow out win over an over matched opponent so Auburn was fresh and focused headed into both match ups. Despite bringing everything we had we still weren't able to blow out inferior opponents.

That Mississippi State team has just broke into the top 25 but, what wins are they hanging their hat on? They got blown out by 22 at LSU, they beat a down-trodden A.J. Green-less UGA team in Starkville, went to Gainsville and beat Florida in a game eerily similar to Auburn's 2008 visit to Starkville that finished 3-2, then, returning home, the bulldogs snuck past UAB 29-24. Dan Mullen's squad has struggled with below average quarterback play all season and that is what saved Auburn in week two. MSU was driving at the end of the fourth quarter with a chance to win but Chris Relf was unable to exploit Auburn's weak secondary and Auburn eeked out the win.

How about those Wildcats? After beating up on weak opponents the first three weeks of the season Kentucky had their first test in week four against Florida (yeah, that same Florida team who only scored seven points against Mississippi State and has now lost three in a row) and they got drilled 48-14 in front of their home crowd. Then, Kentucky traveled to Oxford and fell to Ole Miss 42-35. The next week Kentucky returned home to take Auburn down to the wire with Auburn not kicking the game winning field goal until the clock struck 0:00. Kentucky now sits at 4-4 and 1-4 in the SEC.

Now looking at Ole Miss, sure they started out horribly but they have certainly turned things around. Since their 1-2 start they've defeated Fresno State by 17, they beat Kentucky by a touchdown then fell in two tough road games against Alabama and Arkansas but were competitive in both. A closer look at their game against Arkansas reveals they actually out gained the Hogs 512-464 in total yards. Jeramiah Masoli appears to be finding his stride in the Rebel offense contributing 425 total yards of offense against Arkansas (as a reference point the most total yards Cam Newton has had in a single game this season is 408 against Kentucky). Masoli has enough talent running and throwing to give Auburn's defense fits.

For the first time all season Auburn decided to lighten up at practice. Tuesdays are traditionally the designated "physical" practice. This week Coach Chizik decided to go in shells only (only shoulder pads and helmet) in an effort to allow the team to heal up from the knicks and bruises that eight straight games will give a team. Will this be noticeable on Saturday? Ole Miss defensive tackle Jerrell Powe is one of the SEC's best and a step back in physicality could lead to number 57 living in the Tiger backfield.

Extra Ole Miss energy, a dual threat quarterback capable of exploiting Auburn's weaknesses on defense and an Auburn team who is beat up, exhausted and ready for a break... that is the recipe for an upset.

Ok... that was painful.

Let's set the record straight. Ole Miss sucks. The only win they have to hang their hat on is a seven point home win against a Kentucky team who is 1-4 in the SEC. And upon further inspection, Kentucky out gained Ole Miss by 123 yards but lost the turnover battle 3-0. Against Alabama Masoli went 18/40 (45%) for 110 yards through the air. Alabama went up 23-3 in the third quarter and turned on cruise control. And that Arkansas game? The Razorbacks went up 21-0 and took a 21-3 lead into halftime before two lightning delays totaling nearly 90 minutes took the rhythm out of the game. Ole Miss got within 10 early in the fourth quarter but the game was never in doubt with Arkansas finishing with a 14 point victory.

Jeramiah Masoli, while a dangerous weapon, was bottled up for a half by a pitiful Arkansas defense and looked awful facing an Alabama defense which has had some struggles defending the pass this year. He's only completing 56.5% of his passes this year and has thrown six interceptions in seven games.

Ole Miss has struggled with injuries this year, particularly on the offensive line where they will start three freshmen along the interior of their line including one player who joined the team as a walk-on this summer. That player, Patrick Junen, is hobbled by an ankle injury but will try to go this Saturday while being matched up against... Nick Fairly. That should be fun.

Against Auburn's defensive line there is almost no chance that Ole Miss will be able to generate a traditional running game. Their defense is ranked eighth in the SEC in yards per game and dead last in points per game so the most powerful offense in the conference should have no trouble putting up points in bunches. The Rebels will have no choice but to turn to the pass early and often and let Masoli loose. This could certainly turn into their best offensive output of the season but more likely it will turn into a mix of explosive plays and devastating turnovers.

Auburn put up 31 points in the first half against Kentucky before going to sleep in the second half. I see no reason Auburn couldn't repeat that first half performance this week on the road, the only difference is Ole Miss doesn't have the offense to make the second half comeback and Auburn's offense won't go into a shell for an entire quarter again.

I haven't predicted a score all season so I won't start this week but I feel confident that Auburn will remain focused and do enough to roll over an over matched and over hyped Ole Miss team.

Game Review: LSU

Knee-Jerk Reaction
That was one of the most physically dominating performances I have ever seen against an SEC opponent, and for it to be LSU makes it even more impressive. The LSU defense was allowing 83 yards rushing per game and this offense racked up a staggering 440 yards rushing. Even if you take away Cam's 217 yards on the ground the rest of the rushing attack had nearly triple LSU's per game average. As for Cam... what can I say? What ever can be said has been said. He is amazing. I will go on record right now as saying he is the greatest running quarterback in college football history. I am going to take the next paragraph to give you some insight into exactly how dominating and rare a season Cam Newton is having.

Through eight games he already has the most rushing yards from the quarterback position in SEC history and with the addition of an SEC Championship game he will be well within reach of the NCAA single season rushing record by a quarterback (1,649), and possibly could eclipse Bo Jackson's 1,786 yards which would then be the greatest rushing season by any player in Auburn history regardless of position. He already has the Auburn record for most total touchdowns (27) in a single season with four, maybe five regular season games left. He is three touchdowns shy of tying Cadillac Williams and Bo Jackson's record of 17 rushing touchdowns in a season. With all of those amazing, long standing rushing records he is rewriting, you would think he isn't passing the ball at all. If Newton maintains his current pace and we make it to the SEC Championship game he would finish with the 10th most passing yards in Auburn history and would finish one touchdown pass shy of tying the school record set by Chris Todd last year (22). His current 2,441 yards of total offense already would rank 7th all-time in school history and if he maintains his current pace he would finish with 3,966 yards which would shatter Dameyune Craig's previous record of 3,277 yards. So, in summary, he is within striking distance of the single season records for rushing yards (at Running Back U!), rushing touchdowns (ditto), passing touchdowns, total touchdowns, and total offense. Uhh, wow.

Back to the game. As great as Cam has been the forgotten heroes of this undefeated team are the offensive linemen who completely dominated a LSU D-Line loaded with NFL talent. Coming into the game LSU DT Drake Nevis was neck and neck with Nick Fairly for Defensive Player of the Year in the SEC. He recorded two tackles. That's it. Speaking of Fairley, he was remarkable. I read over the weekend that one ESPN writer considered putting Fairley on his Heisman ballot. He's been that dominating. His 2.5 sacks and 3.5 tackles for a loss against LSU all but solidified his post season honors and put him firmly in the discussion for the Outland and Lombardi trophies. The last Auburn player to win those national awards was current D-Line coach Tracy Rocker.

Overall it was a great effort by the defense to keep pressure on the LSU quarterbacks all afternoon, keep the running game from breaking anything big and eliminate any big plays through the air (the one lapse there was the halfback pass for a 39 yard touchdown). Great game plan by Ted Roof and wonderfully executed by the team. Malzahn's game plan was fairly vanilla. He called a few deep passes to keep their safeties deep but otherwise kept the linebackers and ends on their heels with misdirection and zone reads giving this great offensive line all the advantage they needed to plow the way for all those rushing yards. Honestly the game wasn't as close as the score indicated. Auburn out gained LSU 526-243 and averaged 7.7 yards per play verse 3.6 for LSU.

Positives
Offensive Line - They get the top spot this week. Not only did Ziemba, Berry, Pugh and Isom rock out but, once again, Brandon Mosley held his own and continues to impress in his first year playing the position.

Cam Newton - Everything that needed to be said was said above.

Mike Dyer - Dyer quietly hit the 100 yard mark on just 15 carries. That alone would have been better than any rushing attack against LSU all year. He is hitting his stride at the right time and it is obvious he is developing into a special runner right before our eyes.

Onterio McCalebb - Squirrel did what he does best. Once he hits the corner not many players in the country are fast enough to catch him. What he does for this offense is so under valued by most fans. His 70 yard run was a perfect call by Malzahn because as soon as a defense stops respecting his outside run and tries to crash down inside on Dyer and Cam that is when McCalebb hits them for the home run.

Wide Receiver Blocking - Those kind of long runs don't happen without great blocking on the outside. On a night when we only threw for 86 yards a lot of credit needs to go to the guys on the outside who didn't get discouraged by the low number of passes and kept giving 100% in the other facets of their game.

Negatives
I got nothin'.

Looking Ahead: Ole Miss
As The Diesel (the bar in the Highlands, not Shaq) has been warning us all year, "It's A Trap!" After two huge home wins against nationally ranked opponents it would be easy for us to want to take a breather against a seemingly down Ole Miss squad. Now we have the #1 BCS ranking to defend and a streak of three straight road losses by the #1 team to break. Masoli had success through the air against Arkansas and also will prove dangerous on the ground as well. Their defense has talent but has struggled all year with a lack of focus and execution. The Rebel Black Bears are more than capable of pulling off the upset if we do not bring our 'A' game.

Cam Reaches Superstar Status

I'm your biggest fan
I'll follow you until you love me
Papa-paparazzi

Promise I'll be kind
But I won't stop
Until that boy is mine

Baby, you'll be famous
Chase you down until you love me
Papa-paparazzi

So I guess this is when all my blog readers find out (if you didn't know already) I'm a secret Lady GaGa fan.

When the Arkansas game was over, long after the midfield hugs and hand shakes, after the rest of the team had already been celebrating by the student section for multiple cheers, fight songs and sing-a-longs, and after Cam Newton had wrapped up his post game interviews, everyone in the stadium (still at least 60,000 remained 20 minutes after the final whistle) noticed the now legendary number two trotting towards the students. Keep in mind this is after one of the most exhilarating football games, setting a record for points scored, Cam Newton was now clearly the best player in college football, and for many of the fans who were still left cheering they are now realizing they are witnessing a once in a generation type football player. The screams of jubilation as Newton approached rivaled any of the eight touchdowns Auburn scored that night.

For those who have been fortunate enough to attend a great win in Jordan-Hare you know how loud the students get when the team runs over to celebrate the win with them. Multiply that times 10.

As soon as any photographer on the field realized that Newton had completed his interviews (and those who had never left his side) he was completely swarmed. He skipped towards the south end zone with his smile you could have seen from the upper deck while waving his white towel in the air. When he entered the gate and crossed through the hedges there were light bulb flashes from every direction going off multiple times per second as if the media members were afraid to miss even a single movement from this now epic figure.

Standing 42 rows up in section 16, one section adjacent to the student section, I started humming GaGa's "Paparazzi" song.

Cameron Jerrell Newton, quarterback for these undefeated Auburn Tigers, is on top of the college football world.

On Sunday night's BCS Selection show on ESPN they brought on Newton to do an interview.

On Monday afternoon he was interviewed on the Scott Van Pelt Show on ESPN Radio.

Monday night he made an appearance on TMZ when the director of "Friday Night Lights" was filmed highly intoxicated telling the cameras that Cam was his favorite, despite not being able to recall his name at the time, referring to him as "that Auburn quarterback, Cal something."

Word is that Newton will grace the cover of one of Sports Illustrated's up coming issues.

On Tuesday he officially took the lead in ESPN's Heisman poll.

Not only is he mentioned in the same sentence as Bo Jackson, many have dared to even say he may be better.

It is really hard to comprehend how he has gone from a junior college transfer with a checkered past and some serious questions about his ability to lead an offense to now being the biggest star in college football.

By the time LSU rolls into town on Saturday it will have been a full week since Newton's paparazzi moment. More eyes will be on him and this Auburn team than ever before. The biggest remaining test for him is to live up to the hype as the greatest player in college football and remain the humble leader that has gotten him this far.

Quick Observation

LSU's Schedule (sans McNeese State):

Opponent	Pass Yds.	Pass Rtg.	Rush Yds.
North Carolina	35th	26th	86th
Vanderbilt	101st	88th	60th
Mississippi St.	88th	NR	21st
West Virginia	57th	22nd	66th
Tennessee	71st	62nd	94th
Florida	84th	83rd	75th
Auburn	76th	2nd	6th

The only teams LSU has played to this point who are even ranked are Mississippi State (#24) and West Virginia (#20). Neither has a particuarly good offense (MSU is 55th, WVU is 64th) and the Bengal Tigers got both teams at home.

I am not going to say that LSU's defense isn't good. It is. But, perhaps it isn't as good as it has appeared thus far due to playing less than stellar competition.

The only category that Auburn doesn't stand head and shoulder's above the rest in is Passing Yards. But, when you see that the passing offense is ranked 2nd nationally in pass efficiency you can deduct that we simply haven't had to throw that often but when we do go to the air we do so with exceptional, nearly unmatched, efficiency.

The best rushing offense they've seen, the most efficient passing offense they've seen, on the road... not sayin', just sayin'.

Game Review: Arkansas

Knee-jerk Reaction
THEY ARE WHO WE THOUGHT THEY WERE! I don't need to beat a dead horse by going on about the weaknesses of our defensive secondary. Once again, in the end this team and this defense found a way to get it done and get the "W" in one of the best games I have ever attended. We knew going in that Arkansas had the best offense we would see all year. We knew their biggest strength, their passing game, would dominate our biggest weakness, our secondary. We knew the Hawgs had 4th quarter struggles all season. I expected a shootout, maybe not a record breaking 65-43 affair but that's what we got and boy was it fun. If there was any doubt before the game, it is gone now, Cam Newton is the best player in college football. He is the clear leader of not just the offense but this entire team. Newton is quickly entering Tim Tebow status with his leadership qualities. The offensive line once again plowed the way for a 300 yard rushing effort (3rd in as many SEC games). This was easily the "closest" 22 point win ever as it had the feeling of a one point win. We all have heard about it by now - the refs were horrible - but they were horrible both ways. Mario Fannin did not cross the plane with the ball and the Broderick Green fumble in the fourth was debatable but the pass interference call in the end zone was as bad as they come and the 4th down spot Arkansas received was extremely generous. It seemed as if the refs knew they kept making bad calls and would make other bad calls to make up for it. In the end all we got was a lot of bad calls for both teams. I was really happy to see Dyer break that run in the 4th quarter to get a touchdown against his home state team. Apparently he was ailing from an ankle injury which kept him sidelined for most of the game but he sure looked fine as he broke through the middle of the line and away from the Arkansas defenders. A lot of credit needs to be given to Arkansas' Tyler Wilson. Before Ryan Mallet went out he was completing 66.7% of his passes (below his average) for a measly 6.4 yards per attempt. Wilson's passes (prior to his two interceptions) were on the money all night and were as good as any quarterback could have done. While he did have guys wide open on a few occasions, more frequently the completions were a product of perfect passes despite some decent coverage. In the four drives Mallet led, two of them ended with punts (they only had three punts in the entire game). It is entirely possible that our defensive game plan was designed to stop Mallet (and was doing a relatively good job) and Wilson's style and ability caught us off guard and it took until half way through the fourth quarter to make the appropriate adjustments.

Positives
Cam Newton - The nation's Heisman front runner has reached super star status. He is getting interviews on every college football related show, he is being talked about across the nation, and Auburn fans can't get enough. The only question at this point is how will he handle his new-found fame.

Offensive Line - I can't single out a single player without closer film evaluation but I don't recall hearing a single holding call or false start. That is miles from where we were as recent as week three this season. If I had to single out anyone it would be Brandon Mosley for seamlessly stepping into the starting line up and not once standing out as a weakness.

Josh Bynes - His two interceptions were not easy plays. We all know he can fill gaps in the run game but if he had a weakness before this season it would be how he performs in pass coverage. Clearly he has a spot in the NFL in a Tampa 2 defense because he fills that middle zone as well as anyone I have seen this year. His drops are deceptively quick and deep and his ball skills are phenomenal for a linebacker. Definitely having an All-SEC season.

Craig Sanders and Demetruce McNeal - I have never had so much fun watching kick off coverage. These two true freshman are in a competition on who can get the most tackles in kick off coverage and it seems to be one of the two every time. The Hawgs only crossed the 25 once (got to their 34) in 10 kick returns. They are fast, aggressive and hungry.

Wes Byrum - Without his two first half field goals we would have been tied going into the break and his third field goal on the opening drive of the half made it a two score game. His 43 yard field goal from the right hash gave us our first lead of the game and was not an easy kick. He ended the night with 17 points, an absolutely huge number for a kicker.

Negatives
Secondary - I could call out Neiko but I don't know enough about coverage assignments, safety help or other details that could change where the blame should lie. The only thing we know for sure is that 428 passing yards is WAY too many and the two interceptions on the night came from Bynes, a linebacker.

The Refs - It was mentioned above, but the Refs were just horrible against both teams, and this isn't the first week we have seen multiple blatantly bad calls. The officials seem lost. They throw flags went they shouldn't, swallow their whistles when they shouldn't, they are indecisive on fumble calls and the replay booth doesn't seem to be able to find indisputable evidence to overturn any call.

Looking Ahead: LSU
LSU will have the best defense we have seen to date and possibly the best we will see all year. Their defensive line could give us fits similar to what Clemson's did. That being said, our line was challenged to be more physical after that game and has responded by leading the way for over 300 yards rushing against South Carolina, Kentucky and Arkansas. If there is any game in which our secondary could look good and perhaps build some confidence, it is this one. LSU's pass offense is among the worst in FBS and with our solid run defense and potent offense, they should be forced into some less than favorable passing situations. The last thing a bad passing team wants to do is get down early and be forced into 3rd and longs. I said last week that we match up much better against LSU than we did Arkansas and I stand by that. Our offense may struggle relative to what we have become accustom to but even a below average offensive output should be enough to out score LSU's offense behind what should be another amazing home crowd.

Nation's Top QB's Collide On The Plains

When Arkansas and Auburn meet up this Saturday the majority of the onlookers will be focused on quarterbacks Ryan Mallet and Cameron Newton.

Mallet's 349.6 passing yards per game trails only Hawaii's Bryant Moniz. He also leads the SEC with 13 touchdown passes. At 6'6" 240 pounds his size compares favorably to Newton's but his style of play is more reminiscent of Drew Bledsoe. He is a statue in the pocket and his ability to throw the ball to any part of the field on a frozen rope is what makes him one of the NFL's most coveted prospects.

Newton, as we all know by now, is simply a freak of an athlete. Despite being bigger than Mallet at 6'6" 250 pounds, he is elusive in the pocket, a threat running or throwing when he gets out of the pocket and when he decides to take it down and run his 4.5 speed and bulldozing style are the last things a defensive coordinator wants to try and defend.

Both quarterbacks, though, have their weaknesses. For Newton it seems as if his decision making ability isn't quite consistent enough. He knows what he should do but occasionally, without being pressured, he throws into coverage he has no business throwing into which has led to his five interceptions this season. In Mallet's case his interceptions occur when under pressure. After being hit a few times Mallet's footwork gets sloppy, he doesn't maintain proper technique and tends to unleash some errant throwswhich has led to six interceptions thus far this season.

Trying to game plan against these two players has to be one of the more disheartening experiences a defensive coordinator will have all season knowing full and well, despite their greatest efforts, they will appear to have failed at their job. Do you blitz? Do you drop seven into zone coverage or do you man up tight on the receivers?

When facing Mallet the obvious approach is to bring heavy pressure because that has seemed to be the only way to knock him off his rhythem. That being said, as the popular saying goes, "when you bring the blitz someone's band is going to play." Auburn's defensive philosophy thus far has been to focus on stopping the run and keep all the passing plays in front of us so as not to give up the big play. The best approach is likely a mix of the two.

No matter what we do they will get their yards. Alabama seemingly has fared the best of any of the Hawg's opponents holding them to a season low 20 points and forcing three Mallet interceptions but he still threw for 357 yards with a 65.8% completion percentage. Those will be the stats Auburn is going to hope for, and it may be more achievable than most think.

Auburn is ranked 19th in the nation (3rd in the SEC) in sacks and 14th in the nation (2nd in the SEC) in rush defense. With that combined with a roaucous home crowd Ted Roof's defense should make Arkansas one dimentional and some timely blitzes could lead to a turnover or two (the only game Mallet didn't throw a pick in was verse Georgia).

Ted Roof likely wont put this game on his highlight reel but as we've done all season long, I expect to be stout against the run, seemingly incompetent against the pass but do just enough to get the win.

Quick Observation

There are five SEC teams ranked in the top 12 of the AP poll, Auburn being the highest ranked at number seven. Three of the remaining four are Western division teams while the lone representative from the Eastern division is South Carolina. Three of the five have one loss, all of which came from another member of this quintet (Arkansas to Alabama, South Carolina to Auburn, Alabama to South Carolina). Every one of these teams still has a shot to play for it all as there are enough big games remaining on their schedules. Auburn still has three of the four teams left on their schedule not counting the potential SEC Championship game rematch with the Gamecocks.

The SEC's six team Western division has at least double the number of teams ranked in the top 12 than any other entire conference in the country. Teams from other conferences can talk about having tough games against top 25 opponents but none of them will have to beat four national championship contenders in their season, not even close.

It is also clear who belongs in the SEC's upper teir. Not much seperates the top five teams and in a round robin scenario any of the five could emerge on top without it being a surprise. The next highest ranked SEC team is Florida at number 22 and after getting crushed by Alabama and losing at home to LSU it is clear they are no longer in the SEC's top group.

Right now this is how I'd rank the SEC's teirs:

Teir 1 (National Title Contenders): Auburn, LSU, Alabama, South Carolina, Arkansas

Teir 2 (Not Ready for Primetime): Florida

Tier 3 (Dangerous But Not Complete): Mississippi State, Georgia, Kentucky

Teir 4 (Looking Ahead to 2011): Vanderbilt, Ole Miss, Tennessee

Game Review: Kentucky

Knee-Jerk Reaction
Despite the final score of this game, I never did feel it was in jeopardy. Maybe it was Cam's remarkable ability to make accumulating yardage and touchdowns look so easy, maybe it was because I was in the Highlands where the beer flows like wine. Either way, this Auburn team knows how to win close games; and that is quality of a championship team. The first half solidified Cam Newton's Heisman Trophy bid with 129 passing yards and 134 rushing yards and four touchdowns on the ground. He showed his poise and leadership on that final 19 play 86 yard game winning drive (in which he accounted for 74 yards) setting up Wes Byrum for a chip shot 24 yard field goal as time expired. The third quarter was one to forget (once again, we struggle to put together four complete quarters of solid play) and Cam deserves as much blame for the poor play as anyone. On his interception to open the half he had plenty of time in the pocket but decided to throw it to a player who was well covered. It seems that this is when nearly all of Cam's interceptions occur. They aren't because he is pressured and he makes a bad decision, and they aren't usually because he makes a horrible throw, they happen because Cam seems to get cocky. Every once in a while someone needs to tell him he isn't the Man of Steel and he can be stopped if he doesn't make the right decision. The first three drives of the 3rd quarter Cam went 0-4 with an interception. Whatever someone said to him or whatever changed in his mindset before taking over with four minutes left in the third, it worked. His first two passes of that drive were completed for 56 yards and he led us all the way down the field before his last completion was stopped short of the goal line and we settled for a 19 yard field goal. As for the running backs, it was very disappointing to see Dyer fumble again (on an almost identical hit) because if he wants to be our workhorse down the stretch than we need to be confident that he will be able to hold on to the ball. On the flip side Super Mario has had two successive weeks with out a fumble which is encouraging. He can help this offense in so many different ways so getting him on track is critical. Saturday night was McCalebb's first bad outing of the season. Kentucky seemed set on not letting any of our plays get to the outside (which is probably why the middle was so wide open for Cam). So if McCalebb's job is to stretch the defense to open up the middle, mission accomplished despite his lack of yardage. The defense... Oh, the defense. If you read my previous article, you know this game didn't surprise me. It played out nearly exactly as I expected it to so it is hard to criticise a unit for performing as expected. I see two ways of looking at it: The optimist in me says we held Kentucky to their lowest passing totals of the season, second lowest rushing totals of the season and held them to fewer total yards than Florida did (336 vs 352). Kentucky has a great offense and we have performed as well as anyone against them. The pessimist in me says that most of Kentucky's yardage in the Florida game came in the fourth quarter when the game was already in hand. Florida played the "bend don't break" style that we claim but our defense "broke" far too often while their defense held Kentucky to 20 fewer points. While the offense can claim one bad quarter, the defense was consistently porous, giving up 17 points in each half. We had become accustomed to great half time adjustments after shaky starts but we didn't get that this week. Plain and simple, our secondary is a liability. In the end we are 6-0, off to our best start since 2004 and have the top Heisman contender leading our team. Things could be worse.

Positives
Cam Newton - Career best 408 total yards is the top figure in the SEC this year. His first half explosion of 263 total yards and four touchdowns was one of the most dominant halves of football I have ever witnessed.

Offensive Line - Cam had time to throw and room to run all night, also Dyer and Fannin both averaged over six yards per carry. 311 yards on the ground and the line is doing something right and according to Cam, it was Lee Ziemba who gave the motivating speech prior to the game winning drive.

Wes Byrum - He nailed all three of his field goals and we needed every one of them. The 24 yard game winner was as easy as they come, but just ask Garrett Hartley how easy it is to shank one when the game is on your shoulders.

Negatives
Secondary - It is scheming that gives opponent wide receivers the big cushion at the line of scrimmage and whether or not that is the right approach is debatable, but being able to come up and make the tackle after the reception falls on our players. Far too often our corners can't get off blocks and our safeties are a step slow getting there or have their arm tackle shrugged off. Six games in it is hard to see much improvement but tackling needs to be an emphasis in practice the rest of the season.

The officials - Two horrendous personal foul calls on Zac Ethridge gave Kentucky one of their scores and a bad pass interference call on T'Sharvan Bell led to another. Penalties have been an issue for this team all year but a few of the flags Saturday night were simply incomprehensible.

Looking Ahead: Arkansas
This is a match up I have been dreading all season. When asked at the beginning of the season what two games scare me the most they would have been, and still are, Arkansas and Alabama. Our secondary has been torched all season and Ryan Mallet & Co are by far the best passing attack we will see all season. The Hawg's defense has improved enough to where we won't be able to drive the field with ease as we did against Kentucky. The defense will need to come up with stops. If Mallet has a weakness it is that, when rattled, he makes poor decisions which turn into interceptions. We need pressure from our front four and we need our secondary on its toes waiting for the first errant pass. Turnovers, as always, will be key in this game, particularly from the quarterback position on both teams. Home field advantage will be huge and hopefully be enough to push us to the win.

No Cat Nap For These Tigers

Heading into the game this weekend there are a lot of reasons for optimism from Auburn fans. And after Kentucky's meltdown last weekend against an Ole Miss team who lost by two touchdowns to Vanderbilt at home, it could be understood if folks in Lexington are more focused on opening weekend of Keenland's fall meet and UK's Midnight Madness which is just around the corner.

Yes, Auburn fans, basketball season is almost here. Who knew?

My last weekend in Louisville a buddy of mine who is a UK alum was talking about the hundreds of fans who were camping out for nearly a full week outside of UK's ticket office to get a ticket to the Madness. Madness indeed. All 16,000 tickets sold out in less than an hour. Boom M-F'er.

With 90 points surrendered in the past two weeks I'm certain the basketball team will have multiple two game stetches with fewer points allowed.

Despite all of that, Auburn is a mere six point favorite this weekend. If you ask the "wise guys" that line is way too low as betting trends on SportsBook.com indicate that 87% of the betting public is taking Auburn and giving the points while an astounding 100% of the betting public is taking Auburn to win the game.

And that is what worries me. I am not going to predict an upset but I believe this game is going to be far closer than any Auburn fan would like.

For one, despite playing for revenge after last year's aboration it is hard to believe that this team actually fears this Kentucky team. Watching them lose by a combined 41 points in their first two SEC games has that affect. A team that thinks they should win is always at great risk especially when their opponent's biggest strengths exploits their biggest weaknesses.

Watching this Kentucky team they have three players that they run their offense through: quarterback Mike Hartline, running back Derrick Locke, and wide receiver / wildcat quarterback Randle Cobb.

Hartline is a steady, if unspectacular field general. He's completing nearly 64% of his passes and has thrown eight touchdown passes compared to just three interceptions. A senior, now in his third year as a starter, Hartline has seen it all and cannot be counted on to make rookie mistakes.

Also a senior, running back Derrick Locke is the second leading rusher in the SEC averaging 108.6 yards per game. At 5'9" 190 pounds Locke isn't going to look to run anyone over, and perhaps that will work in his favor against an Auburn defense that has struggled against speed backs.

Prior to the South Carolina game our friends over at War Blog Eagle did a break down of our defense's results against speed backs compared to power backs. Here are the results:

SPEED BACKS:

Noel Devine (West Va. ’09): 15 carries, 128 yards, 8.5 YPC, 3 TDs
Derrick Locke (UK, ’09): 19 carries, 126 yards, 6.6 YPC, 0 TDs
Michael Smith (Ark. ’09): 18 carries, 145 yards, 8.1 YPC, 1 TD
Dexter McCluster (Miss. ’09): 22 carries, 186 yards, 8.5 YPC, 1 TD
Andre Ellington (Clemson ’10): 22 carries, 140 yards, 6.4 YPC, 1 TD

Totals: 96 carries, 725 yards, 7.6 YPC, 6 TDs

POWER BACKS:

Anthony Dixon (Miss. St. ’09): 20 carries, 92 yards, 4.6 YPC, 1 TD
Montario Hardesty (Tenn. ’09): 21 carries, 90 yards, 4.3 YPC, 1 TD
Charles Scott (LSU, ’09): 10 carries, 20 yards, 2.0 YPC, 0 TDs
Washaun Ealey (UGA, ’09): 18 carries, 98 yards, 5.4, 1 TD
Mark Ingram (‘Bama ’09): 16 carries, 30 yards, 1.9 YPC, 0 TDs
Trent Richardson (‘Bama ’09): 15 carries, 51 yards, 3.4 YPC, 1 TD*
Jamie Harper (Clemson ’10): 19 carries, 44 yards, 2.3 YPC, 0 TDs

Totals: 119 carries, 425 yards, 3.6 YPC, 4 TDs

We can now add Lattimore's 33 yards on 14 carries to the power backs results, further solidifying the evidence that we have great success when facing that type of runner.

So, is Auburn's 12th nationally ranked rush defense a product of only facing one speed back this year (Andre Ellington - see above)? Or was Ellington's success an aboration against a much improved defense? To this point we have no evidence that says we can shut down a speed back so this weekend will provide a great opportunity to change that.

Randall Cobb is their do-it-all offensive weapon. The junior receiver has scored touch downs five different ways this year (receiving, rushing, passing, kick return, fake field goal) and is one of the SEC's best all around players. He serves as a starting wide receiver, the wildcat quarterback, kick and punt returner, and the holder on field goals.

Kentucky will attack Auburn's defense on the edges. Expect to see a lot of bubble screens and jail break screens to Cobb to get him the ball in space against our corners who have been giving up a lot of underneath passes. Locke will use his speed to get to the edge and as soon as we begin to over pursue he will use his agaility to find the cutback lanes and hit us for big yardage if we become undisciplined. Another weapon they will turn to around the goal line is 6'5" 220 pound senior receiver Chris Matthews who leads the Wildcats with five touch down receptions.

This is an offense that should scare Auburn fans. I know they only managed 14 points against Florida but the Gator's have a very solid defense (UK managed 352 total yards vs. 271 for Alabama). With our struggles against speed backs, the quick underneath passing game and the screen game, I expect Kentucky to have a lot of success on offense.

Frustrating success. The kind of success that will keep our offense off the field and put up enough points to keep this game close well into the fourth quarter.

Notice I didn't mention their defense much, and for good reason. I don't believe they will have many answers for the top ranked offense in the SEC.

The crowd will be liquoured up (the plan for most will be to tailgate Keenland's opening day, party at the track until 5 pm, tailgate for another hour or two, before trickling into the stadium by the middle of the first quarter in standard Kentucky fashion) and their team now has nothing left to lose. If Auburn comes in over confident and gives the underdog too much of a reason to believe they can hang around than the 'Cats are more than capable of pulling the upset.

Don't sleep on this one.

Poll Position

Yeah, no reaction to the Louisiana-Monroe beat down. Not only was it a glorified scrimmage but Max also believes I was too emotional so I'll just keep my thoughts about that one to myself.

The more interesting observation after a week like that is Auburn's move to #8 in both major polls. Thanks to Florida's no-show in Tuscaloosa and Oregon's Auburn-esque come from behind win over Stanford Auburn moved two spots closer to... oh wait, nothing.

Nothing? Yeah, nothing. For Auburn, perhaps more than any other team in the country right now, the rankings mean nothing. And that's not just standard "its the beginning of October, we're focused on Kentucky" coach speak. Currently there are seven undefeated teams ahead of Auburn; let's take a look at their remaining schedules.

#7 Nebraska - The Cornhuskers sit at 4-0 and their biggest win so far was their thrashing of unranked Washington in Seattle. I'm really not sure what they have done to be ranked ahead of Auburn in the polls but the voters seem to like them. In week four Taylor Martinez turned the ball over three times but survived 17-3 against FCS foe South Dakota State. The only ranked teams remaining on their schedule are #22 Oklahoma State and #24 Missouri. The Big XII North is pitiful and Nebraska dodges both Texas and Oklahoma on the rotating schedule. Odds are Nebraska will meet up with Oklahoma in the Big XII Championship game.

#6 Oklahoma - Speaking of Oklahoma, after surviving the Red River Shootout against Texas' worst team in a decade the Sooners' only remaining ranked opponents are the same as Nebraska's. While the Cornhuskers have to play both on the road, the Sooners get their in state rival in Norman. Once again, all signs are pointing to the Sooners and Cornhuskers meeting for the Big XII Championship which should be both team's biggest hurdle to achieve an undefeated season.

#5 TCU - The Horned Frogs opened their season with a nine point win over then #24 Oregon State and hasn't been tested much since but they aren't in the clear yet. On October 23 TCU will get a visit from #25 Air Force who took Oklahoma to the wire in a three point loss in Norman. The Falcons aren't a great team but their offense is hard to prepare for and are more than capable of pulling off the upset. Two weeks later Gary Patterson's bunch will have to travel north to #10 Utah for what is shaping up to be the Mountain West Championship game.

#4 Boise State - The Broncos were leaning on two early out of conference opponents to boost their strength of schedule but neither Virginia Tech or Oregon State are currently ranked and the only ranked team remaining on their schedule is Nevada. The November 26 matchup should be a great game but Nevada is new to this type of attention while Boise has been in games much bigger than this many times over the past few years.

#3 Oregon - Perhaps the most dominating team thus far this season has been the Oregon Ducks. Their schedule has been questionable but Stanford appeared to be a legitimate opponent and despite trailing 21-3 in the first quarter, the Ducks outscored the Cardinal 49-10 in the remaining three quarters. The nation's best offense only has one ranked opponent left on their schedule when #9 Arizona visits Eugene on November 26.

#2 Ohio State - The Buckeye's home win over Miami in week two looks solid but squeaking past Illinois over the weeked cost them some points in the polls. October 16 OSU travels to to play #20 Wisconsin and a month later has to travel to #15 Iowa before hosting #19 Michigan the following week. The Buckeyes will have to play better not just to remain unbeaten but also to fend off Oregon who has already jumped three undefeated teams.

#1 Alabama - The defending champs now have dominating wins at home over Penn State and Florida and survived a road bout against #14 Arkansas. With road games against #19 South Carolina on October 9 and #12 LSU on November 6 before hosting #8 Auburn for the Iron Bowl on November 26 'bama is not in the clear yet. They deserve their ranking for now but they don't look unbeatable. If they survive the nation's hardest schedule there will be no doubt who the best team in the country is.

Looking at those schedules it is obvious that any hope for Auburn playing for the national championship is to defeat an undefeated 'bama team in Tuscaloosa. That is why our ranking means nothing right now. No other team ahead of Auburn plays a team ranked ahead of them which means all of those teams need their ranking and they need the style points. For Auburn it is entirely possible that we could show up in Tuscaloosa at 11-0 and still be ranked #8 but a win over 'bama (followed by a win in the SEC Championship game) and we're in.

Expectations, They're A Sonuvabitch

Expectations are a tricky thing when it comes to college football fans. Coming into the season if you told anyone that we would be 4-0 (soon to be 5-0) to start the season they would be extatic. I can't decide if they would be more excited to know that we made multiple, usually game-costing, gaffs and still were able to prevail in tight games on three of those occasions.

But, what happened instead? We went into Starkville, Mississippi and beat a team who many of the "experts" picked to beat us despite being shut out in the second half. So, naturally, fans boosted their expectations.

"If it wasn't for the penalties we would have scored 34 points against one of the better defenses in the SEC. And now we have a great defense to match our great offense."

The following week against Clemson we see the offense continue to sputter in the first half before exploding in the third quarter. Again the expectations were raised.

"If we can put together four quarters just like the third quarter than we can beat anyone in the country! Clemson will probably win the ACC this year."

Now, after a win against #12 South Carolina we play the closest thing we've seen thus far to a complete game and instead of breathing easy that we are 4-0 the expectations have again been raised. The fans who had previously predicted an 8-4 season now are calling for a 10-2 season at worst. And those whose expectations were already calling for a 10-2 season now believe we are capable of going undefeated and playing for the National Championship.

There is nothing wrong with fans expecting nothing but the best from their team but the problem with expectations is that as soon as the team meets or excedes what the fans expected coming in, the fans adjust their expectations and raise the bar. It sets up a situation in which the fans can only be satisfied with an undefeated championship season.

So, since we've established that, despite what anyone might tell you, the expectations for this team are an undefeated national championship season, will they deliver?

If this team has shown us anything it is that we've seen nothing yet. Cam Newton, who, according to ESPN SEC Blogger Chris Low, is the runaway front runner for SEC Player of the Year so far, has been on campus for less then nine months. He has shown significant improvement in his knowledge of the offense, his decision making when throwing the ball, and his execution of the zone-read run. If what we saw against South Carolina is the best he gives us all year than we will be more than fine, but as anyone who has watched him knows, he is capable of much more, and that is a scary thought.

The inexperience doesn't end with Cam. Starting running back Mike Dyer is a true freshman and just emerged as the starter in week three against Clemson. He has seen his carries increase from 9 to 16 to 23 these past three weeks. Against South Carolina he eclipsed the century mark against a defense that allowed less than 60 yards rushing per game. It has to be believed that Dyer's best football is ahead of him as the game slows down for him and he becomes more comfortable in the offense.

On defense redshirt freshman Nosa Eguae was promoted ahead of senior Michael Goggans against South Carolina, a decision that immediately paid dividends. In addition to Eguae Auburn is playing five freshmen in the 2-deep on defense. As the season progresses the expectation (there's that word again) will be that those players will be playing less like freshmen and should show significant improvement.

In 2004 we were fortunate to see a team who found their stride by week three. That team was led by a senior quarterback in his third year as a starter, sharing a backfield with two running backs picked in the top 5 of the NFL draft. That team spoilled us. As a reminder, with the exception of the LSU game in week 3, no team had the ball in the 4th quarter with even a chance to take the lead. Most teams, even undefeated championship teams, don't have seasons like that.

In 2008 Florida won the national championship despite a week four loss to a mediocre Ole Miss team. The Alabama team from that same year completed an undefeated regular season that included home wins over Tulane, Kentucky and Ole Miss with a combined margin of victory of 20 points. Last year's Alabama team which completed a 14-0 national championship season snuck past a 7-6 Tennessee team by the grace of three missed Volunteer field goals, and let's not forget the come from behind 5 point victory in the Iron Bowl in Chizik's first season with a depleated team.

So when this 2010 Auburn team had to lean on its defense to win on the road against Mississippi State, had to explode for 21 points in the third quarter to steal a victory from Clemson, and had to overcome two first half fumbles and have an MVP performance from Newton to defeat South Carolina, just be thankful that we emerged victorious despite not playing our best game. Those are the types of wins that change seasons from a 9-3 Cotton Bowl trip into an 11-1 Sugar Bowl trip.

Over these next two weeks Auburn should have three goals:
1. Win. Against Louisiana-Monroe this shouldn't be an issue, but the trip to Lexington could be a devestating loss if we walk in there expecting them to lay down.
2. Get a lot of rest for our starters and reps for our second string. Heading into our home stretch of the season we need our starters as fresh as possible and our second team to be as seasoned as possible so they can be counted on when called upon.
3. Refine our fundamentals and execution. The issues that have tripped us up the first third of this season have been primarily self inflicted. We must clean up the penalties, become more comfortable within our offensive and defensive schemes and cut down on turnovers or we may not be lucky enough to escape with a victory in future weeks.

This team has what it takes to go undefeated, so go ahead and raise those expectations. Let's just be honest up front... We expect to win them all.

Game Review: South Carolina

Knee-Jerk Reaction
What can I say? The cardiac cats, tenacious tigers, whatever you want to call them, they got the job done again. We still have a tendancy to shoot ourselves in the foot too often but we have shown a remarkable ability to overcome those mistakes and still emerge victorious. It is a bit cliche but to win in this league you need to be able to run the football and stop the run. Coming into the game something had to give when Auburn's league leading rushing attack (259.3 ypg) matched up against USC's league leading rush defense (59.7 ypg). An emphatic 334 yards later it was clear, South Carolina's defense gave and Cam Newton & Co. tooketh away. The offensive line took a lot of heat last week after being tossed around by Clemson's defensive front and answered the challenge to be more physical at the point of attack. On the other side of the ball the defensive line continued their impressive play. The coaches must have read my film study article because they made the tough decision and moved senior Michael Goggans to second string and promoted redshirt Freshman Nosa Eguae. The decision paid off, more on this later. There was also the Lattimore vs. Dyer storyline. In the first head to head match up of the top running backs in the 2010 recruiting class Mike Dyer emerged victorious, eclipsing the 100 yard mark for the first time in his young career on 23 carries. Lattimore, who by all accounts was prepared to sign with Auburn before an 11th hour change of heart to stay close to Mama and play for his home town Gamecocks, had the most difficult night of his career. Averaging 111 yards per game coming into the game, Lattimore was held to a season low 33 yards on 14 carries. We still haven't seen a complete game from this team (scary thought), but last night was the closest we've seen.

Poitives
Cam Newton - 176 yards rushing, 158 yards passing, five total touchdowns and NO turnovers. Also, what can't be seen in a stat line is his leadership ability that has continued to give this offense the ability and resiliency to come from behind two weeks in a row. As long as he is taking the snaps this team believes anything is possible. His superman leap from the 7 yard line on his first touchdown run was just showing off.

Demetruce McNeal - It is always great when a true freshman truely embraces his role on special teams in stead of taking that role for granted because he isn't getting the snaps he wants on defense. Craig Sanders has been getting the headlines thus far on special teams but what McNeal did on Saturday was remarkable. On six kickoffs McNeal was the first man down there and made the solo tackle four times. Four tackles on six plays... not bad.

Nosa Eguae - In his first collegiate start Eguae showed the athleticism and play-making ability that has been missing from our strong side defensive end position. Through the first three weeks Goggans had only made .5 tackles for a loss; against South Carolina Eguae amassed 1.5 tackles for a loss as a part of his five tackles on the night. An already strong defensive line just got stronger with this addition.

Philip Lutzenkirchen - The "Swede Killa" finally made an appearence and he came through with one of the biggest catches of the game. His leaping, spinning, touchdown catch in the fourth quarter gave Auburn the lead and showed off his amazing hands and ball skills which may be the best on the team. It is nice when a player who has put in the dirty work blocking for three straight weeks without a pass even being thrown his way does what he is asked without complaining and makes the plays when his number is called.

Negatives
Wes Byrum - After last week's performance I hate to put him here. His first field goal miss from 52 yards wasn't really his fault; that was a tough kick to make and in my opinion we should have gone for it on fourth down. But, his miss from 18 yards could have cost us the game. I am sure he will bounce back well but this was disapointing to see from one of Auburn's best.

Looking Ahead: Louisiana-Monroe
This break comes at just the right time. If Louisiana-Monroe wasn't so bad I would worry about a let-down game but I don't see that being an issue against one of the worst teams in the FBS. After those last three weeks being so grueling mentally and phisically we need to focus on our execution early and get our starters some much needed rest in the second half.

Film Study: Clemson (Second Half)

3rd Quarter Clemson 17 Auburn 3

It is hard to happy with much of what has been done on offense thus far and the defense has been far from perfect but considering all of that, to be down by 14 points and getting the ball out of half time it is easy to tell this game is far from over with. Obviously dramatic improvements will need to be made along the offensive line and Newton will need to make some better decisions and passes but it is within reach.

15:00 - Washington fields the kickoff at the 8 yard line and returns it 21 yards to the 29. There was also a 15 yard facemask penalty tacked onto the end of the run.

14:50 - Newton carries up the middle for a gain of 3. Still not very good blocking as we use Isom and Greene to double team the play side tackle who ultimately still makes the tackle. Also Eric Smith whiffed on his block on Bowers which meant Berry who pulled into the gap had to pick him up. After Smith's whiff he failed to find anyone else to block which could have helped.

14:29 - Dyer carries up the middle for a gain of 4. Isom got beat to the inside by his man and is called for holding. Everyone else seemed to make pretty good blocks including Smith who made a great block on Bowers but it looked like Dyer picked the wrong hole. He had the right side of the line sealed off with Berry free to lead him off tackle with a good block on the outside by Burns. Isom's hold would have negated it either way but the play looked better on the outside.

14:07 - Pass complete to Adams for a gain of 35. You can't leave this guy in one on one coverage. Great protection by the O Line giving Newton plenty of time to pump fake and hit Adams down the side line. The pass was slightly under thrown which allowed the defender to catch up to Adams, if not that could be a touch down.

13:46 - Newton's pass intercepted by Brewer. We motioned McCalebb into the backfield and faked the hand off then took a shot at Kitchens down the sideline who was running a wheel route. If Newton throws the ball a couple seconds earlier he could have gotten him before the corner got over into coverage but once again he held the ball too long and stared down his receiver. Fortunately the ball was spotted at the 1 yard line.

13:39 - Harper carries up the middle for no gain. Great push by Fairley up the middle and Bynes was free to come up and make the tackle. If he attacked the hole a little harder he could have gotten the safety. Clayton also did a great job holding his ground and fighting off the block to get in on the tackle.

13:02 - Parker scrambles right for a gain of 2. Clemson called a play action bootleg pass to try and hit something down field but everything was covered. Good pursuit by Goggans and Clayton to force the play out of bounds after a short gain. However, while Goggans pulled up seeing Parker running out of bounds, Clayton seemed to forget that this was a quarterback and drove him out of bounds and slammed him down. A killer 15 yard penalty getting Clemson out of the shadow of their end zone.

12:40 - Harper takes the toss right and is dropped for a loss of 1. Great play by Carter who avoided Allen's block and blew up the pulling guard 3 yards behind the LOS. This left Harper with little room to run. Washington, Bynes and Clayton were all there to finish the play. Great defensive effort.

12:04 - Ellington carried off right tackle for a gain of 2. Goggans finally got some push against Allen and was able to force the play a little further outside which didn't allow Ellington to build up as much speed around the corner. Also it looks as if Roof now has our corners looking back at the play because they have been much faster to react to running plays so far this half. Bynes fought off the block of the center and combined with Washington to lay a big hit on Ellington.

11:22 - Parker pass falls incomplete. Antoine Carter burns the left tackle around the edge and has pressure on Parker within a second of him taking the snap. This forces Parker to roll out to the right and attempt a dump off to the fullback in the flats who isn't able to make the catch. If he does make the catch Bates and Washington are there to make the tackle.

11:16 - Clemson's punt travels 51 yards and is fielded by Carr. When Carr makes the catch his knee is on the ground and the play is whistled dead.

11:09 - Reed back in at wildcat carries up the middle for a gain of 2. Not much blocking again except Smith who laid a good block on the end. Berry looked slow on pulling around and sealing off that side.

10:37 - Newton carries for a gain of 7. This time Greene and Isom hold their blocks well one on one and Ziemba pulls into the hole. Newton makes a good cut to bounce it outside though probably shouldn't have made the second cut outside around Adams. Either way it was a nice gain, albeit against their second string D Line.

10:02 - Pass to Adams complete for 34 yards. Great protection from the offensive line giving Newton plenty of time to look down field. This pass looked slightly under thrown as well but in this case I believe it was on purpose. The defender was a step in front of Adams which allowed Adams to cut behind him and jump up to make the catch. Great play by a great receiver. Gutsy play call by Malzahn on 3rd and 1.

9:44 - Newton carries up the middle for a gain of 2. Again we line up with the unbalanced line with Ziemba outside of Greene. Newton keeps it on a zone read but once again no hole developed. The outside run seemed there once again but instead we opt for the rugby scrum.

9:13 - Newton scrambles for a gain of 4. He initially pump faked on a quick screen to Zachary which appeared to be setting up a pass down field but pressure on that side forced him to roll to his right. He didn't see anything and the camera angle doesn't allow me to see either but he does what he can to pick up decent yardage and set up a managable 3rd down.

8:32 - McCalebb carries for 12 yards and a touchdown. Newton faked the hand off to Dyer right and gave it to McCalebb on the end around. Ziemba and Berry simply collapse the left side of the line giving McCalebb one man to beat to turn the corner and Smith out there blocking for him. Smith fortunately gets away with a hold with gives McCalebb that corner but it is interesting that the Clemson player, Branch, decided to throw his hands up looking for the flag instead of diving for McCalebb who he easily could have shoved out of bounds. Once McCalebb got the edge he made one cut inside juking the corner and was into the end zone.

8:24 - Extra point good.

8:24 - Short kickoff fielded at the 20, returned 12 yards to the 32.

8:17 - Ellington carries to the right for a gain of 3. Goggans and Fairley get a good push on the left side and Blanc does a great job of getting off his block as Ellington is coming through. Carter also shows good speed in backside pursuit. Bates also stuffed the center who was trying to create the hold on the second level.

7:50 - Ellington carries up the middle for a loss of 2. The defensive line does a nice job occupying blockers but this play is all on Bynes who slips past the left guard who is supposed to pick him up and blows Ellington up behind the line. Great read by Bynes and a perfect tackle.

7:11 - Parker fumbles the snap, scrambles for a gain of 6. It is hard to say what would have happened on this play as Parker couldn't handle the shot gun snap. Goggans and Fairley were getting a good push on the left side while Carter, Bates and McNeil all converged quickly on Parker before he reached the first down. McNeil planted his helmet in the small of Parker's back on this play which left Parker writhing in pain.

6:32 - Clemson's punt carries 33 yards and is fair caught on the 27 yard line.

6:26 - McCalebb carries around right end for a gain of 15. This time Burns lines up in the wild cat and hands it off to McCalebb running towards the unbalanced line. Again Smith lays a good block to allow McCalebb to turn the corner but his speed does the rest. Newton and Blake are on that side laying good blocks out to the first down marker.

6:00 - Dyer carries around right end for a loss of 1. A.J. Greene is unable to hold his block on Bowers and Dyer gets stopped short of the LOS. If Dyer were able to turn the corner he would have had a chance to out run the safety down the sideline as he had a good block by Blake down field.

5:27 - Pass complete to Adams for a gain of 19. The play action fake to McCalebb didn't fool anyone but the line does a good job holding the four man rush. Newton gunned it on a rope right on target and Adams took a big hit from McDaniel but held on. Great completion for a big first down.

5:16 - Dyer carries off right tackle for a gain of 9. Finally he bounces it outside and picks up a decent gain. Lutzenkirchen helps Greene seal off the right side but Zachary missed his block on McDaniel who eventually made the tackle down field. Dyer made a great move to avoid the corner at the line of scrimmage and some how was able to cut it up field.

5:07 - Dyer carries up the middle for a gain of 23. Clemson's defensive play call worked played right into this inside run. The tackle lined up over center cut outside while the end was supposed to stunt inside. Ziemba neutralized the tackle while Pugh sealed off the end. Isom pancaked the other tackle with a little help from Greene who also got a hand on a linebacker (though I'm not sure it made a difference). Clemson's linebacker's and McDaniel were all reading Berry who pulled right and Dyer was past them by the time they realized he had the ball.

4:57 - Dyer carries up the middle for a gain of 5. It's official, Malzahn has reached ludicrous speed. Three straight plays snapped with 25 seconds remaining on the play clock. It appears as if this was the exact same play just with slightly less success due to Clemson's MLB recognising it sooner. Good blocks by Ziemba and Pugh and it looked as if Isom tried to reach the second level and block the MLB but couldn't get there fast enough.

4:29 - Dyer carries around right end for no gain. Smith is unable to hold the edge blocking Bowers one on one which doesn't allow Dyer to follow his blockers up field right away. This allows the corner time to get off Isom's block and the back side pursuit to catch up.

3:46 - Newton pass completed to Adams for a 8 yard gain and a touchdown. Absolutely beautiful catch by Adams in the end zone. Great focus to drag his right toe in bounds while making the catch. Great pass by Newton after he got more great protection from the O Line and for all the negatives I've had for Greene this game I need to mention that he has done a terrific job against Bowers in pass protection.

3:41 - Extra point good.

3:41 - Kickoff fielded three yards deep in the end zone and downed for a touch back.

3:41 - Parker pass falls incomplete. They tried to fake a toss left and then roll right to the slot receiver releasing after chipping on Carter. Problem is Carter was too fast. By the time Parker turned around Carter was in his face and he was forced to throw it in the dirt.

3:36 - Draw to Ellington for a gain of 21. Carter and Clayton do a good job of beating their man but Ellington slips past them. Goggans identifies the draw early enough it seems but was slow to fill the gap and made a weak effort to make the tackle when he got there. Bynes get blocked by the center who released up field and Bates gets screened by the umpire allowing Ellington to get into the secondary. Ethridge eventually makes the tackle.

3:15 - Harper carries for a gain of 1. The play was designed to go up the middle but the line does a great job of filling all of those holes, especially Goggans who beats the outside lineman (unbalanced to the left) and Bynes who blows up both lead blockers in the designed gap. Goggans misses the tackle on the cutback but Bell and Savage are there to finish the play.

2:32 - Harper carries up the middle for no gain. Clayton does a great job of beating his man to the inside and Fairley pushes his man 2 yards into the backfield which doesn't allow Harper to bounce it out to the left. When he tried to cut back right Carter is there on the backside pursuit to wrap him up.

1:57 - Parker pass falls incomplete. Ted Roof dialed up another blitz, this time bringing all 6 defenders who lined up in the box. With more blitzers than blockers Stevens was left with a free shot at Parker. Fairley also didn't take long to beat his man and create pressure up the middle. With the quick pressure Parker tried to roll right and hit a receiver cutting back but the pass sailed high.

1:51 - Clemson's punt travels 41 yards and is fielded by Carr who returns it 1 yard to the 17.

1:42 - McCalebb carries around right end for a gain of 5. It looked like Clemson's corner would stop this play for a loss but McCalebb makes an amazing cut up field and gets a great block by Smith on the line backer. McCalebb stiff arms McDaniel and picks up another 2 yards before being gang tackled at the 22.

1:16 - Newton Pass completed to Zachary for 78 yards and a touchdown. Great protection by the O Line, great pump fake by Newton, great route by Zachary and also Zachary showed amazing balance as his tight roped the side line after the catch. Right as Newton released the pass he was hit by a defender and the ball still traveled nearly 60 yards in the air and hit Zachary right in stride. Since the interception Newton is now 4 for 4 for 139 yards and 2 touchdowns.

1:03 - Extra point good.

1:03 - Kickoff fielded at the 2, returned 21 yards to the 23.

0:55 - Parker pass falls incomplete. Pass interference called on Washington. Upon replay it shows this is a horrible call. Washington never makes contact until the receiver makes the catch and the he swats the ball out of his hands. Not much pressure from the four man rush on that play.

0:46 - Harper carries up the middle for a gain of 5. Clayton demolished on this play opening up a big hole on the right side while Lemonier who is in for an injured Carter gets double teamed by the tackle and a tight end before the tackle releases to block Stevens. The center released up field and occupied Bynes. Blanc is able to shake loose of his blocker but can only get an arm on Harper and is carried for the remainder of the five yard gain before Thorpe and Clayton come in to help.

0:19 - Harper carries around right end for a gain of 6 and a first down. Unfortunately, after rebounding well so far in the second half, Goggans returned to getting demolished by Clemson's tight end Allen. Blanc gets taken out by a chop block which wasn't called (and fortunately didn't hurt Blanc) while Bates ate up the block of the fullback and Bynes took on the pulling guard, both of whom held their ground forcing the play to the outside. Washington perhaps left his feet a little early and wasn't able to hang on to Harper's ankles to make the tackle. Savage was late getting to the edge and Harper hurdled him to convert the first down.

4th Quarter Clemson 17 Auburn 24

24 unanswered points will do just fine, thank you very much. You can't ask for better half time adjustments. The defense gave up practically nothing all quarter while the offense gained 259 yards and scored 21 points and could easily have been more with Cam's interception on the goal line. Auburn clearly has the momentum but Clemson has the ball at midfield.

15:00 - Ellington carries up the middle for a gain of 22 yards. The D Line gets caught slanting right and Ellington cuts it back against them. Stevens is in perfect position to make the tackle but attempts a weak arm tackle after being juked. Blanc recognises the cutback well and gets in position to make the play but also only gets an arm on Ellington followed by Bynes doing the same. Bates gets off the block of a lineman who reached the second level only in time to see Ellingto accelerate past him. Washington had outside contain (which is even more reason that Stevens should have not fallen for the juke and made the tackle) and was caught up in traffic trying to chase the play down. Ethridge and Savage eventually make the tackle down field.

14:33 - Parker pass falls incomplete. The four man rush doesn't get much pressure and again Goggans is neutralized by Allen, freeing up the left tackle and guard to double team Fairley. The pass was intended for Harper who ran a wheel route but this time Stevens was running stride for stride with him.

14:26 - Pass complete to Jones for a gain of 3. Another slip screen this time Fairley, Eguae and Blanc all recognise it quickly and are able to stop it for a minimal gain.

13:48 - Pass complete to Dye for a gain of 9. Another six man blitz from Roof and Eguae and Stevens get through to provide pressure but Parker releases it in time. Dye catches the pass just as he turns around on a 10 yard hitch route. Thorpe has tight coverage, perhaps a little too tight as he is flagged for interference.

13:32 - Harper takes a toss right for a gain of 6. Allen gets away with a hold on this play otherwise Carter blows it up in the backfield for a loss of 5. Once Harper gets the corner Clemson uses a fullback to take out Bynes and Ethridge takes an agressive angle and allows Harper to turn the corner. Bates comes all the way from the opposite side to force him out of bounds.

13:10 - Screen pass to Ellington complete for a gain of 11 yards. Stevens is coming on a blitz around left tackle and Ellington chips on him before releasing for the pass which leaves the left side wide open. The defense is in man coverage which has the cornerbacks running with their backs to the ball already five yards past the first down marker. Bynes does a good job avoiding the lead blocker but severely underestimates Ellington's speed and watches him run right past him. Thorpe and McNeil combine to make the tackle at the 2.

12:40 - Ellington carries up the middle for a gain of 2 and a touchdown. Not a bad job by the D Line but against a goal line package from Clemson we kept our 4-3 personell on the field which was simply over powered. Clemson had two tight ends outside the tackles and motioned a third to the left side then led through that hole with a full back as well. To defend that left side we had one end, two LB's (one lined up on the LOS), 2 corners and a safety. Not enough beef. I'm not sure why we didn't but I would have liked to see us sub out one of the safeties for a third tackle which would have given us much more beef on the front line.

12:36 - Extra point is good.

12:36 - Kickoff fielded at the 4 by Washington, returned 32 yards to the 36 yard line. On the play Sanders is called for a 15 yard late hit and though the hit was made after Washington went down the wistle had yet to be blown. Bang-bang play, and tough call. It should be noted that Sanders pancacked 3 guys on that one return.

12:25 - McCalebb carries around right end for a gain of 11. Newton holds the read long enough to keep Bowers (unblocked again) at bay which gives McCalebb just enough space to use his speed to get around the corner. Clemson was in man coverage so both receivers on that side ran their corners out of the play.

12:09 - Newton carries up the middle for a gain of 3 yards. Ziemba and Berry were responsible for double teaming Jenkins on this play and he fought through both and dove at Newton's legs at the LOS forcing him to leave his feet and fall forward for a moderate gain. Other than that everyone else made decent blocks.

11:38 - Zachary takes the reverse for a loss of 7 yards. After having amazing success with this play last year, thus far this year on 3 attempts it has lost 11 yards total. This time McDaniel followed Zachary from the other side of the field, used his speed and cut right through the line to take him down for a loss. If someone is able to pick him up (Pugh's man was already down and he possibly could have cut him off) than Zachary had room to run around the corner.

10:50 - Newton sacked for a loss of 6. This is one of the first times that Clemson has brought a blitz and the do so with a six man pressure. I'm not sure who the protection call falss on to but Ziemba picked up all the wrong people. Auburn had seven blockers against a six man rush yet Clemson's linebacker ran in untouched and two more guys weren't far behind him. Branch finally got the best of Greene (and to add injury to insult Greene's leg was rolled up on during the play, breaking his ankle and likely ending his season) and Smith was left to block the other end, Branch one on one. After Jenkins stunted Ziemba went inside to double team the other tackle instead of picking up the blitzing linebacker.

10:27 - Shoemaker shanks this punt out of bounds after just 29 yards to the Clemson 48.

10:18 - Harper carries up the middle for a gain of 2. Fairley sucked up a double team by the left tackle and guard while Goggans occupied the outside lineman of an unbalanced line. Allen motioned to that side who picked up Ethridge who you could tell read run early. Bates blew up the full back at the line of scrimmage and Bynes dodged the pulling guard and stepped up to make the tackle.

9:42 - Draw to Harper for a gain of 1. This time Clayton draws the double team and he is neutralized while Carter runs up field leaving a huge hole for Harper to run through. However, our linebackers stayed at home and Bynes is there to force Harper to try to bounce it outside. Carter makes a terrifically athletic play to work his way back towards the LOS and make the tackle.

8:58 - Parker sacked for a loss of 8 yards. Clemson pays the price for leaving Fairley one on one as he burns past the right guard with ease and lays a lick on an already hurting Parker. Clayton was double teamed on this play by the center and left guard.

8:20 - Clemson's punt carries 41 yards and is fair caught at the 16.

8:12 - Newton carries it up the middle for a gain of 8. Good keeper on the read option. I think this play would have gone for a huge gain in Dyer's hands as the entire right side was collapsed but Berry got beat to the inside which would have blown the play up in the backfield. Newton fought through arm tackles for a solid gain.

7:51 - Dyer carries around left end for a gain of 15. Great run by Dyer. Lutzenkirchen laid a great block on Branch but after that it was all Dyer. He cut the run outside Lutz's block but when Clemson's LB was there to stop him he juked inside and was up field in a flash getting the LB completely turned around. He got in behind a great block by Burns before finally getting run out of bounds.

7:32 - Newton carries up the middle for a gain of 2. On this play there was a big hole but Greene's replacement, Sullen, got beat too quickly and his man was able to come around behind Newton and trip him up. If Sullen slows him down one step there was a lot of room for Newton to run.

6:56 - Pass complete to Smith for a gain of 8. Newton finally delivers one accurately to Smith and he shows what he can do with it. He dodged one tackler than was initially hit four yards before the first down marker by McDaniel but he just kept driving his legs and fighting for yardage and picked up just enough.

6:41 - Dyer carries for a loss of 1. Isom and Sullen double teamed one tackle while Lutzenkirchen demolished his end but Pugh was left one on one with Jenkins who was able to force his way into the backfield and grab hold of Dyer's shoulder pad and pull him down. If Dyer gets past him, a quick cut right and he would have been off to the races.

6:00 - Newton scrambles right for a gain of 8. Newton had good protection with no pressure getting through but he must not have seen anything open. We finally got a good shot of the receivers running down field and there was good coverage. It looked like he could have hit Zachary with a shart pass on a 10 yard post but it would have been a tough throw. He rolled right and also could have tried to hit Zachary deep who by now had cut upfield and had a step on his corner but Newton kept it and got a good block from Dyer which alloed him to get up field for a solid gain.

5:10 - Newton carries for a loss of 1. This appeared to be an option play with McCalebb running behind him. The line got terrific blocks with Ziemba demolishing the left side tackle, Smith picking up the end and Isom pulling to pick up the stunting tackle. Newton just didn't hit the right hole (TWSS) and missed an opportunity to pitch it to McCalebb. The linebackers were all looking in at Newton and if he pitched the ball to McCalebb he would have easily found the edge and had Burns and Blake out there blocking for him.

4:25 - Shoemaker punt carries 35 yards and is fair caught at the 9.

4:18 - Ellington carries up the middle for a gain of 12. Clemson lined up in a two tight end set and simply over powered our line. Carter beat the tight end (it was actually the full back lined up as a tight end) on his side but Ellington fought through his arm tackle. The right tackle went directly to the second level and actually blocked Stevens into Bynes, taking both out of the play. Savage was screened by the umpire and couldn't come up to make the tackle. He was eventually chased down by Thorpe and Blanc (I had to watch it twice, but yes Blanc was twelve yards down field and caught Ellington. Great effort!).

4:08 - Ellington carries up the middle for a gain of 7. Clemson gave Auburn a taste of ludicrous speed which didn't allow ESPN enough time to come back from replay to see the beginning of the play. Stevens did make the tackle.

3:41 - Harper carries up the middle for a gain of 2. Clemson used the left guard to crash down on Blanc and released the left tackle to the second level to occupy Stevens but Goggans was able to beat the full back (again lined up at tight end) and combine with Bynes to make the tackle. Once again Fairley ate up a double team.

3:04 - Harper carries around right tackle for a gain of 17. Again Clemson comes out in a jumbo set with no receivers, three tight ends, and a full back to block for Harper. Auburn lines up in the same formation as on the goal line but this time Clemson's tight end motions to the right side. The right tackle and guard double team Fairley and take him out of the play. The outside lineman crashes in on Goggans while the motioning tight end picks up Washington who is on outside contain. This leaves Bates to take on the full back and a pulling guard assigned to Bynes. The right side colapses and for some reason Ethridge is still 10 yards behind the LOS. Fortunately this wasn't Ellington or that is a touchdown. Savage ultimately makes the tackle.

2:43 - Ellington carries up the middle for 3 yards. The D Line slants right and Ellington again tries to cut back. This time Washington and Stevens have good contain. By the time Ellington cuts it back up the middle Carter has his man beat and Fairley has worked back towards the gap and they converge to make the tackle.

2:09 - My DVR cut off on this play but before it did you could tell Clemson was running a reverse and we were going to blow it up for a loss. The next recording picks up before their next play with it 3rd and 9 so it was dropped for a loss of 2.

1:40 - Pass falls incomplete. Clemson ran Allen on an out and up and Parker had him wide open but the ball was just out of his out stretched reach. Savage was converging quickly and got a good lick on him mid air. Again Roof called a six man blitz but this time Clemson had enough blockers, unfortunately for them, the right guard couldn't hold off Carter who provided pressure on the play and likely forced the errant pass.

1:34 - Clemson punt carries 45 yards and is returned by Carr for 5 yards to the 12.

1:23 - Dyer carries up the middle for no gain. Auburn lined up with only Berry and Lutzenkirchen left of center while Isom, Sullen, Ziemba and Smith were all on the right side. On top of that Berry pulled right leaving only Lutz on that side and it appeared as if thought the run was going to the right. Isom did get beat to the inside but instead of Dyer bouncing it left he should have and could have bounced it right and it likely would have gone for a solid gain.

0:49 - Dyer carries up the middle for 5 yards. Decent blocking by the line to create a hole but Pugh needed to hold his block a little bit longer. Also Ziemba crashed down and collapsed his side but needed to do a better job of knowing when to release onto the second level.

0:04 - Dyer carries up the middle for no gain. Clearly we were just playing for overtime. Dyer chose to bounce it outside hoping for a big gain but there was good blocking up the middle. It was obvious both sides were ready just to finish regulation.

Overtime Clemson 24 Auburn 24

Not overly happy with the decision not to try to score before the end of regulation with 83 seconds left and two time outs but being backed up inside your own 15 there is probably a greater chance of something bad happening than good. We tried to gash them with a quick run which if it got more yardage maybe we would have tried something but it was stopped short and here we are. A lot of credit goes to Clemson for surviving the onslaught of the 3rd quarter and rebounding with good defense in the 4th and coming up with a one more big scoring drive. Auburn's defense played great only allowing 7 second half points.

Clemson won the coin toss and chose to play defense first, Auburn chose to play on the side of the student section.

1st and 10: Newton carries up the middle for 2 yards. Newton made a wise decision to keep it on this zone read as McCalebb would have been blown up for a loss which could prove deadly in an overtime situation. Pugh got a good initial block but his man was able to spin back into the gap and take down Newton for a short gain. Otherwise Isom and Berry were already on the second level with at least room for a first down.

2nd and 8: McCalebb takes the jet sweep around right end for a gain of 2. Sullen got beat bad to the inside by Jenkins otherwise the play should have been for Burns to keep it in the wildcat. Clemson defenders far out numbered our blockers and only McCalebb's speed allowed us to gain the two yards, however McCalebb paid for it with a brutal hit that likely ended his night.

3rd and 6: Newton pass falls incomplete. It wasn't a bad decision to throw it to Adams but it would have required a perfect pass which he nearly delivered but it was just out of reach. At the snap he faked a hand off to Dyer then faked the end around to Zachary however after Zachary released the only person there to cover him was a linebacker nearly 10 yards away. If Newton went to his next progression Zachary easily would have picked up the first down, possibly scored a touchdown.

4th and 6: Byrum 39 yard field goal is good.

1st and 10: Parker pass completed to Brown for a gain of 4. Parker rolled right and found Brown on a quick out. Decent coverage by Bates and Washington but it was a perfect pass. Goggans once again had the tight end one on one on the side Parker rolled to but he couldn't create pressure.

2nd and 6: Ellington catches the screen for a gain of 8 and a first down. Stevens and Bates were in position to make the tackle on Ellington but they underestimated his acceleration and he blew past them. Bynes came over to make the tackle.

1st and 10: Ellington carries up the middle for a gain of 5. Again Ellington was able to find the cut back lane out of a two tight end set. Carter was forced towards the middle of the field and Stevens crashed into the pile giving Ellington the edge. Bynes fought off a block to combine with Washington to make the tackle.

2nd and 5: Ellington carries left for no gain. Again in the two tight end set with Allen motioning to the left side. The line does a good job clogging up the middle but Ethridge makes a terrific play fighting off the fullback and making a diving stop on Ellington before he can get outside.

3rd and 5: Parker pass falls incomplete. Auburn may have gotten away with an offsides on this play as Stevens jumped up to show blitz and stepped barely over the LOS but it wasn't called. Parker faked the hand off and the end around and rolled to his right finding Brown open in the end zone but throws it just out of his reach.

4th and 5: Clemson 26 yard field goal good. Initially there was a flag calling Auburn offsides on this play, however after discussing it the correct call was made in that the center double clutched the snap which was a 5 yard penalty on offense.

4th and 10: Clemson 31 yard field goal no good.

FINAL: Clemson 24 Auburn 27