It only took interim head coach Carnell "Cadillac" William a week to find out how to make second-half adjustments: something that Bryan Harsin failed to do in his tenure at Auburn when the Tigers scored a median of 10 second-half points in 21 games and scored less than that after halftime nine times.
Ever since Williams was promoted on Monday, anticipation ramped through Auburn to see how the Tigers perform under Williams as opposed to Harsin, who ended his time at Auburn 3-10 in his last 13 games. Although Auburn, then at 3-5, was hoping for a completely new football team, this was not reality against Mississippi State, despite a changeup in the offensive scheme and increased production in a hard-fought overtime loss.
There were visible changes in the team’s attitude and performance; however, there is only so much a coach can change in a few days before a game. He was promoted five days before his first game as acting head coach.
During the first half, MSU dominated the field and took a 24-6 lead, but Williams didn’t let that phase him or his team. After negative plays, Williams would find his players and give them words of encouragement before the next play. He maintained good communication with his players, which is crucial after a major coaching change. No matter the score, Williams was seen hyping up his players on the sideline and celebrating small victories before quickly regrouping his guys.
Unlike the first eight games of this season, the Tigers found their rhythm after the halftime break.
Robby Ashford led the Tigers’ offense back into the game, scoring two touchdowns in the third quarter. Late in the fourth, Tank Bigsby and Jarquez Hunter scored one touchdown each.
Particularly this season, Auburn has had difficulty scoring in the second half and have been shut out two times over the final halves. Over the past eight games, the Tigers averaged 9.75 points in the second half, not including overtime. However, Auburn outscored MSU in the second half 27-9.
Auburn also averaged 29 minutes for time of possession on the season, which ranks them 86th nationwide. But Williams’ team played stingy ball, possessing the ball for 32:19 and not turned the ball over any.
Although Auburn's playbook remained mostly the same as it did with Harsin as head coach, the Tigers made small changes that improved their running game.
In the last five games, Auburn averaged 152 rushing yards a game. Against the Bulldogs, the Tigers ended the night with 256 rushing yards. Auburn had a persistent rushing game with 46 attempts, averaging 5.6 yards a carry compared to their usual 4.7.
The Tigers’ defense also performed well against the Bulldogs, swarming them for 10 tackles for a loss and snagging three turnovers – their first time getting multiple turnovers in a game this season.
Williams’ Tigers set a season-high with five sacks compared to their two averaged sacks a game in 2022. In the past eight games, Auburn averaged 66.5 tackles, but against MSU, Auburn racked up 77 total tackles. The Tigers averaged 1.6 QB hurries in the last five SEC games, while they had three against the Bulldogs.
Even though the Tigers didn’t come out with a win, there was an obvious altercation of the players’ attitude that translated over to their performance. It is not an oddity that Williams’ constant encouragement and confidence in his team contributed to their 18-point second-half comeback.
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Caitlyn Griffin is a sophomore from Huntsville, Alabama, majoring in journalism. She started with The Plainsman in fall 2022.
Twitter: @caitlyngrif99
