Auburn's offense did everything wrong against Arkansas, and the team and fans paid the price as the Tigers lost 24-7.
The offensive line allowed eight sacks, two different Tigers fumbled and the two quarterbacks combined to throw three interceptions.
"Offensively you can't turn the ball over five times," said Gene Chizik, head coach of the Tigers. "We missed big opportunities, had eight sacks...One of the most poor performances I've seen in a long time."
Chizik took quarterback Kiehl Frazier out of the game at halftime and replaced him with Clint Moseley, who hasn't seen playing time since the first quarter of last year's Chick-fil-A Bowl.
"We just felt like we needed a spark," Chizik said about the change. "That doesn't mean that's the way it's going to stay, but at the time we felt like we needed something different."
Frazier was 9-14 for 118 yards and no touchdowns. He threw an interception at the end of the first half and was sacked four times. Several of Frazier's sacks were because of indecisiveness in the pocket.
Offensive coordinator Scott Loeffler said Frazier needs to learn how to throw the ball away, because several times he was sacked near midfield and took the Tigers out of field goal range.
Moseley came in the game after halftime and completed 13 of his 21 pass attempts. He threw two interceptions and struggled with defensive pressure. Moseley was sacked four times as well.
"[The Arkansas defense] gave the line a little trouble," Moseley said, "There were times where we needed to throw the ball away. It's not all line."
Offensive lineman Chad Slade thought the line had a rough go of it against the Razorback defense.
"We didn't play as a group today," Slade said, "I feel like the communication was terrible. As a unit this is the worst game we've played."
Chizik said the offense has taken a step backward because of the sacks and turnovers.
"I think you can start with turnovers and sacks," Chizik said. "You have five turnovers and eight sacks; the offense has regressed."
Wide receiver Emory Blake and running back Mike Blakely each fumbled, and the quarterbacks combined for three interceptions.
"It's definitely disappointing and surprising," Moseley said. "It's something that we worked so hard on. It really comes down to us not executing. I definitely put myself at the top of that list. It was the right calls, just bad throws."
The blame for the loss could fall on the quarterbacks or offensive line, but ultimately it must land on Chizik.
The call to replace Frazier was questionable, because Frazier did not have a terrible first half, and his interception came at the end when the offense was rushed. The play calling was also bafflingly conservative at times.
On one drive, the Tigers were backed up on third and long and the coaches called a draw play. The fans let them hear it with a raucous round of boos.
By the fourth quarter most of the Auburn faithful had seen enough, and the stadium was almost empty by the end of the game.
"I didn't see fans leave," Chizik said. "But I don't blame them."
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