Putting the "D" Back in Defense

The 2007 Defense should be able to dominate opponents this upcoming season. It all starts with the defensive line. The spring saw some shake-ups to put the best players on the field. I am very excited to see when Quentin Groves breaks the sack record. I say when because I am certain he will do it. Sen'Derrick Marks is another player I am very interested in watching. He is very talented and was moved from DT to DE in the spring to get him more playing time. Tray Blackmon is back as we all know and he should have a breakout sophomore season if he can just stay out of trouble. The loss of Patrick Trahan is one of the disappointments of the spring but all in all the LB corps seems to be in good shape. The front seven should be very good. The secondary, to some experts, seems to be the weakness of the defense yet again. I disagree. Auburn was 16th nationally last year in pass defense and should be up there again in 2007. I do think though that in order to beat Auburn teams are going to have to pass the ball. I think the front seven will be tough to run against so any huge success for opponents will have to come through the air. If the secondary is as good as I think they are going to be it could be a great season for Auburn. Last year our defense was put into bad situations in large part because of the injuries and inconsistent play of the offense. With a healthy offense those problems should go away. However, the special teams could put Auburn's defense on a short field if they are not able to punt the ball well. Look for the defense to adjust better to Will Muschamp's schemes this year. All in all, the Defense should once again be a dominant force on the field. Speed is the key to Auburn's defensive units and this year will have plenty of speed. If Auburn can tackle well and play fundamental football this season will be a success.

What? O What? Ohhhhh

The 2007 Auburn Offense should be able to produce more points than it did in 2006. Brandon Cox is healthy, the receivers have more experience, the tight end group is tops in the SEC if not the nation, a stellar slash and burn running game, and an offensive line that is talented but inexperienced. Look for Borges to be a lot more interesting in his play calling this year. Last year, due to the injuries of Brandon Cox, Borges was more conservative in his approach to play calling. With a healthy QB and great skill players, Borges can once again let his "Gulf Coast" offense out of the box.
If you look back to 2004 (which I will stop doing once the season begins) Auburn was effective on offense because no defense could match up with the arsenal of skill players we had on offense. Look for this year to be similar. I think we will use our tight ends a lot more than in years past. I also think that if our receivers prove to be physical types we will run a lot more pick plays and crossing routs over the middle. Play action will be another key to the passing game this year. Cox's health will enable Auburn to use play action to keep defenses guessing. Our fantastic group of RB's will allow play action to be effective. With Carl Stewart at the X back position he will be a threat to catch the ball every passing play, and the speed of Brad Lester and elusiveness of Ben Tate will work in Auburn's favor. Did I mention that Mario Fannin and Tristan Davis will also be getting carries?
Our WR corps should be much more effective as well. Rod Smith comes to mind. He will be our go-to-guy. I am interested to see how Tim Hawthorne plays this year. He has the potential to be a star. We have Montez Billings who has stepped up his play, and hopefully Prechae Rodriguez will be able to make some big grabs as well. Robert Dunn should be more productive this year, although I am still not sold on him as a rout runner and his hands seem to be iffy. The Offense should be able to put up more points, sustain longer drives, and use more trickery (or trickeration as ESPN now seems to think is a word) than we used in 2006.

There's a train comin'...

It seems that Auburn football has become a topic that is accompanied with eternal optimism around my househould; but why shouldn't it be? Tommy Tuberville has taken Auburn to the top of the college football ranks, and has given birth to an era where we are now disappointed with an 11-2 season. This phenomenon of consistently great ball teams has spoiled Auburn fans, and I believe it is time to get back to the basics of enjoying every game for what it is. Let's forget about National Championship hopes and set our sights on giving it all every game, and letting the chips fall as they may. Ole Ball Coach and myself have reminisced of the infamous 2004 season more in the past month than ever before. What was it about that season, other than 4 NFL first round draft picks, that put us at the top of the rankings? It was the fact that we didn't pay attention to them. We played football every week FOR that week. Consequently, a perfect season. Perfect.

2007 seems to be setting up in a similar fashion. Great quarterback who is finally healthy. A HOST of talented running backs. A tough defense, and a confident offensive coordinator...Yes there are questions on our O-line, and of course, special teams...HOWEVER, we had a great offensive line last year, and didn't have near the year we had expected. As for the kicking game, well, we really just need to put the ball in the endzone and we'll solve that problem.

Low expectations with a high level of talent are the perfect ingredients in the recipe of success. Something just feels right about this season. I can't explain it, but regardless of the record, it's gonna be a great year - a FUN year. There's a train coming, so get out of the way or you gonna get run over.

Good News, Bad News

The good news is Tray Blackmon is back on campus, enrolled in classes, and in good standing both with the University and with the coaching staff. I remain optimistic that Blackmon's days of trouble are behind him after taking a semester off to "take care of personal business." Lets face it, Blackmon has the potential to be one of the greatest defensive players in Auburn history. He had 16 tackles most of them solo and three fumble recoveries including the one in the Florida game. What Blackmon needs is a role model on the team, someone who can channel his energy into production. He was lost on the field last year and still managed to have impressive numbers because he has a radar for the ball. It is time to cut him lose and just let him play ball. He isn't called "little ball of hate" for nothing.

The bad news. Patrick Trahan is academically ineligible for the upcoming season. I have to say this hurts because he was the most improved player of the spring. He seemed to be everywhere the ball was in scrimmages. While he isn't going to make or break our defense this year, he certainly would have made a positive impact on a defense that last year was sometimes non existent. Gregg Smith too is ineligible for this season for the same reason. While he, in my opinion, is overrated and out of shape, it still is one less reserve available in a grueling away schedule.

With that said, I am so pumped about this season. I think if the ball bounces in our favor more times than not this season, it could be one of the more exciting season in recent Auburn history. We have a healthy QB, depth at RB, a host of WR's who in my opinion could be as productive as Obomanu, Aromashadu, Mix, and Taylor, and a stingy defense. The only question marks are at O Line and special teams. Summer practice will be the deciding factor in what type of team Auburn will put on the field on Sept. 1 against Kansas State. The focus on offense should be O Line development and chemistry, finding a back up QB, and developing the WR corps. Defensive focus should be on maintaining intensity and finding the right combination at LB. Finally the special teams needs to find replacements for three of the most successful kickers and returners in the SEC.

WAR EAGLE!