OPINION: Auburn must turn it around now to avoid disastrous season
Auburn has no shortage of problems, and the Tigers need to find solutions immediately if they hope to avoid a disappointing season.
Auburn has no shortage of problems, and the Tigers need to find solutions immediately if they hope to avoid a disappointing season.
Part 1 of 3 where Jay Jacobs sat down with The Plainsman Sports Editor Sam Butler to discuss various aspects of the Auburn Athletic Department.
When Auburn lined up for its first snap of the game last weekend, half of the secondary wasn’t even on the team a year ago—and they weren’t freshmen.
A handful of freshmen are stepping up in a big way for Auburn early in 2015.
Johnson was touted as the next Cam Newton by some analysts, but so far, he's been anything but. After too many mistakes, his time ran out. Now, Sean White's time has arrived.
Despite early-season struggles, Will Muschamp appears to be the man to repair Auburn's defense.
Three days, 14 hours of travel and four hours of game time. A win would have been nice. Actually, not losing and seeing the better team not play as poorly as they did would have been nice.
After throwing six interceptions in three games, Jeremy Johnson has been benched for Sean White ahead of Saturday's game against Mississippi State.
Auburn will be without its best defender for quite a while, if not for the remainder of the 2015 season, according to coach Gus Malzahn.
After getting routed by LSU, Auburn slid to No. 25 in one poll, while falling out the rankings entirely in the other.
Auburn "got (their) butt whipped", according to coach Gus Malzahn.
The status of Auburn’s best defender has been murky for the past couple of weeks, but coach Gus Malzahn’s words after Auburn’s 45-21 road loss to LSU did not show confidence in defensive end Carl Lawson’s status going forward.
Auburn's early-season struggles don't hurt yet, but they can't afford any mistakes from now on
Auburn and LSU have played plenty of physical games over the course of their rivalry, but several Auburn players are injured even before going to Death Valley for its first SEC game of the season. In his weekly meeting with the media on Sunday, defensive coordinator Will Muschamp addressed the status of several injured Auburn defenders. Buck Carl Lawson (hip) and safety Tray Matthews (shoulder), both of whom were injured in Auburn’s 31-24 win against Louisville to open the season, should be ready to play in Saturday’s game against LSU, according to Muschamp. Strongside linebacker Justin Garrett, who strained his quad in last week’s win over Jacksonville State, is also expected to play. “Game time decisions on all those guys,” Muschamp said.
Since Gus Malzahn took over as Auburn's head coach in 2013, the offense has been the team's strength, averaging 494 yards of offense per game over the last two seasons. The defense was thought to be the liability, especially late in 2014.
Despite the struggles of the offense in the first two games, offensive coordinator Rhett Lashlee reaffirmed his belief that Auburn will return to form.
Auburn Athletic Director Jay Jacobs announced several new additions to Jordan-Hare Stadium's gameday experience, including the nation's largest collegiate scoreboard.
Senior Josh Holsey suffered a torn ACL during Auburn's win over Jacksonville State, and will miss the rest of the 2015 season.
With the departures of Sammie Coates and Quan Bray to the NFL, a trio of Auburn receivers will look to step up in their places.
Auburn narrowly avoided one of the biggest upsets in college football history, beating Jacksonville State 27-20 in overtime.