Big changes ahead

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AUBURN, Ala. | Changes are coming to Auburn's defense following a 45-21 loss at LSU. Giving up 411 rushing yards didn't sit well with defensive coordinator Will Muschamp.

The exact nature of those personnel changes? Muschamp's not ready to go into specifics just yet.

"You'll see Saturday night," Muschamp said. "Whenever you play, coach, whatever as dismal as we did you got to make some changes. That's just bottom line. You can't continue to get the same results and really the first two games winning coats and soothes a lot of things.

"I've been trying to tell these guys every Sunday after the game, we got to communicate better, we got to have better eye control, we have to have better discipline. Multiple things. You say it over and over and over again, but again winning soothes and coats a lot of things. Sometimes to have triumph you have to have great tragedy and we certainly did Saturday."

Leonard Fournette started the game with a 71-yard run on his way to 228 yards and three touchdowns on 19 carries, all in the first three quarters.

"From all three levels you got to play blocks up front, you can't get split on double teams, you can't get cut out of gaps," Muschamp said. "You have to address blocks in the core as a linebacker in a game like that and you have to be able to get off blocks and make a tackle. You have to leverage the ball from the secondary and you got to tackle. A lot of it is want to. You got to want to stick your face in the fan and tackle. That team out-physicaled us on Saturday.

"Frustrating, disappointing, embarrassing, whatever you want to call it. It starts with me; we're going to get better and we're going to continue to improve and move forward. I knew there would be some tough days but we're going - certainly, extremely frustrated with the performance starting with the first play but more than anything, not responding, that was probably the most frustrating thing."

Muschamp was especially frustrated with communication issues at linebacker and in the secondary, problems that go back to spring practice.

"We don't talk enough," Muschamp said. "We've tried to reduce our package week to week to week and it's frustrating, you know, in order to make it a strength call and things like that that you've seen to sometimes as a college coach take for granted. Again, this comes back on me. I haven't done a good enough job of preparing the players, obviously. We'll continue to reduce and find out what we can do. I mean that in sincerity."

If Muschamp makes a change at linebacker it could mean a bigger role for senior Justin Garrett, who didn't play against LSU due to tightness in his quad but is back to full speed at practice this week.

"No question he will play Saturday," Muschamp said.

Auburn is ranked 13th in the SEC in total defense allowing 442.7 yards per game and 13th in scoring defense allowing 29.7 points per game. Only South Carolina, 471.7 yards and 30.3 points, is worse.

"Quite frankly, we are changing the culture a little bit," Muschamp said. "We got to practice better. We got to prepare better. We got to play better. So that's what we plan on doing."

Auburn hosts Mississippi State at Jordan-Hare Stadium 6:30 p.m. CT on ESPN2.

MORE FROM MUSCHAMP

On the senior leadership on defense...

"I think there have been some guys that have done a nice job, from a total standpoint. Saturday is a typical first play, and you don't respond, that's not just the senior class. Any good player that has been productive can be a leader whether you are a freshman, sophomore, junior or senior. We certainly need more of that, and productive play."

On if he's ever been through this as a defensive coordinator...

"We were very young in the secondary last year at Florida and we struggled in some early games and played well as the year went on but not in our whole defense, no. We played well that year in our front seven. As a total group no. I've never been in this situation. But again, I'm very excited about the group we have and I'm in this for the long haul. This is a great place to be and I'm excited about the players we have on campus and the players we're recruiting, Gus and the job he's doing here. We got to do a better job of coaching the guys and putting them in situations where they can be successful. That's you job as a coach. I haven't done that good enough and it will get better."

On if Cassanova McKinzy will play Buck linebacker...

"He played some there Saturday on third down. We'll continue to look, we just got to find our best 11 right now. Guys that will play within the scheme, and system, doing things the right way, look at the right stuff and execute the call."

On Tray Matthews' leaping tackle attempt on Fournette...

"He's trying to tackle a guy. It didn't obviously come out the way he wanted to. Tray is really good football player, very physical player and certainly we would have liked for him to have better judgment on how he tackled, or attempted to tackle on that. Certainly, it's easy to be critical sitting in the stands, and watching Leonard Fournette running it down your throat."

On the play of freshman Byron Cowart...

"Byron has been playing the strong end position for us, he'll continue to play more. He's practiced the last two weeks much better, and he's a guy I think that can continue to come on."

On if it's been demoralizing to lose Carl Lawson...

"I don't know that-it's frustrating. Demoralizing wouldn't be the right word. I think from a standpoint of just the frustration you have for a young man like Carl, who really enjoys practice, he enjoys meetings, he enjoys the game, he enjoys competing, he enjoys playing-to see the frustration he and his family are going through. His dad was in the building the other day. That's what really hurts you as a coach. It's just the individual. Obviously, how does it affect your football team frustrates you, but really you hurt for the young man because football's important to him. When something that's very important to him gets taken away and to see his frustration, you know, we spend a lot of time with these young men. They're kind of your own guys, and to see them go through those is no different from your own child at home. To see him go through frustration is pretty excruciating for you as a coach or parent."

On going against Sean White in practice...

"An accurate thrower that is athletic and can certainly functions very well in our system. I think he understands our system very well. Under the situation, I don't know when Gus named the starter in camp sometime but certainly there was competition going on from my perspective. He was very productive and these players have a lot of confidence in. That's as much as anything when you see the confidence the players have in him."