Game Review: Clemson

Knee-Jerk Reaction
This team is not good for my health. The inconsistencies and weaknesses of this team were abundantly apparent Saturday night but so was the team unity and leadership that give them the potential for great things. The talk of achieving great things, though, needs to be put on hold for the time being. I think its safe to say Cam Newton isn't going to win the Heisman this year. It's also safe to say that until this team shows they can put together four quarters of solid play on both sides of the ball there are plenty of teams in this conference capable of beating them. After that extremely grueling game, both physically and mentally, there isn't much time to celebrate victory with the 'Cocks coming to town in just six more days. The most disturbing observation against Clemson was the lack of a push from the offensive line against a team who got gashed by North Texas in week one. Clemson getting Jarvis Jenkins back surely helped but with the veteran offensive line that we are fielding you'd expect a much better performance. The holding calls were crippling in the first half and are evidence that they are playing lazy, sloppy football up front. Despite the 24 points and over 400 yards yielded, the defense is a strong unit. They seemed to take a little while to get into a grove as they were on their heels through Clemson's entire opening drive but a lot of credit should be given to the ACC Tigers as their running backs are legit, their offensive line is tough and Kyle Parker is a gamer. My final note on this game, appropriately, is to give the utmost respect and credit to one of the best kickers in Auburn history, Wes Byrum. He has ice running through his veins and is as solid as any kicker in the country inside 45 yards. When he finishes this season he will be the all-time leading scorer in Auburn history and deserves to be recognised as one of the great players in our storied program.

Positives
Wes Byrum - He deserves the top spot here this week after his 39-yard game winning field goal in overtime. Though he nailed it through the center of the uprights with apparent ease, that kick from the right hash was anything but easy. He has also been handling the kick off duties this year and though few of his kicks reach the endzone, he is getting fantastic hangtime on those kicks allowing our coverage team to get downfield and make the tackle.

Onterio McCalebb - I have failed to give McCalebb much credit in the first two weeks and that is a disservice to the impact he has had on this offense. His ability to stretch the defense wide really loosens up the middle of defenses for Newton and Dyer to make plays between the tackles. His touchdown run Saturday night was a thing of beauty. His rare speed allowed him to turn the corner on a fast defense, he then turned on the jets burning past the linebackers, and when the safety thought he was closing in to drive him out of bounds McCalebb planted his foot, cut inside and bolted into the endzone. He carried the ball 10 times for 81 yards and that touchdown which made him Auburn's best offensive weapon.

Darvin Adams - If Lee Corso were here I'm pretty sure my last sentence would have drawn a quick "not so fast, my friend." Adams might have something to say about being the best offensive weapon after his five catch, 118 yard performance including a spectacular toe dragging touchdown that tied the game late in the third quarter. Adams is clearly Newton's favorite target as he was the only player who caught a pass until Terrell Zachery's 78-yard touchdown reception with 0:48 left in the third quarter.

Gene Chizik - The biggest positive of the game was the composure the team showed when getting down 17-0 and coming out in the third quarter with the right attitude. Even when the opening drive ended with an interception at the one yard line the team didn't hang their head or give up. When the defense had Clemson backed up and got called for a 15 yard personal foul they didn't get frustrated and let that play lead to more gaffs. The defense bucled down, forced three straight punts while the offense turned those three posessions into 21 points. This team always believes they can win, they believe in each other and they believe in their coaches and all of the credit for that should be given to Coach Chizik. He is always composed and his confidence in the players and his staff is what allows those people to believe in themselves and each other.

Negatives
Cameron Newton - In weeks one and two I called it nitpicking because his mistakes or imperfections were far overshadowed by his playmaking ability. This week his weaknesses were exposed and I believe we have legitimate issues at this position. Newton is a rare athlete that will always give us a chance to win. There are a lot of things he does better than any other quarterback in the country but there are simple things, things needed to be a successful quarterback, that he needs a lot of work on. He stares down his receivers and struggles with his touch and accuracy. He floated the pass to a wide open Kodi Burns that allowed the safety to come over to make a pick while gunning one two feet over the head of Eric Smith on a check down in the flats. He has a huge arm to get the ball down the field but he struggles with making quick decisions and often holds the ball too long which forces him into the decision to chuck it up or duck it and run. Against quality defenses (Clemson's is good but far from the best we will see) he will be forced into mistakes and we won't always be able to overcome them. Coach Malzahn says that one of Newton's best attributes is he never makes the same mistake twice. There are a lot of different ways to throw an interception but let's hope he spends a lot of time this week working on some of his fundamentals and decision making.

Offensive Line - For a veteran unit with two All-SEC players they were absolutely horrible on Saturday night. There were blown assignments, players getting blown backwards, and critical plays that were blown due to mindless pentalties. The offensive line blew. No one player was exempt from criticism after this game except for maybe John Sullen who came in after A.J. Greene went down with a knee injury. Sullen didn't get called for one penalty and we seemed to hear a lot less from DaQuan Bowers after his arrival.

Craig Stevens - I know it was his first game back and he surely had some rust but his performance was absolutely pitiful. He was constantly getting caught up in traffic and losing his man on screens. When he was in position to make a play he looked more like a scared freshman diving at the ball carrier trying to make an arm tackle instead of staying on his feet, planting his facemask into their sternum, wrapping up and driving his legs. Stevens is a veteran player who knows how to tackle but he didn't show it on Saturday night. I'd expect he's going to have an ugly film session and a tough week of practice ahead.

Looking Ahead: South Carolina
The mistakes and inconsistencies will eventually catch up with this team if they aren't corrected. I'm not sure if USC is as good as everyone is claiming right now but they appear more than capable of coming out of Jordan-Hare with the win if we insist on turning the ball over and commiting mindless penalties. As it has been said before, if this team finds a way to put it all together they are capable of beating any team in the country but we have yet to see that and are getting to the point where we shouldn't expect it to happen. Perhaps inconsistency is the identity of this offense. Perhaps undisciplined penalties are an attribute of this team. Until they prove otherwise, that is what I am going to expect to see and just hope that the big play ability and some timely defensive stops will continue to lead us to victory.