AUBURN | So much to dissect from Saturday’s 24-6 win over Tulane. I’ll start with the good and that’s Auburn’s defense.
I should probably say great because I believe that’s the level this defense will play at for most of this season. What really impressed me Saturday night was the lack of boasting by that side of the ball. Several of the defensive players, especially Derrick Brown, focused on the need for improvement and even brushed aside holding the Green Wave to 2-of-15 on third down, which was outstanding.
The defense is playing really well on all three levels and I see depth being created with inexperienced players such as Tyrone Truesdell, DaQuan Newkirk, Zakoby McClain, Owen Pappoe, Christian Tutt, Roger McCreary and several others improving and gaining valuable experience.
My only concern, and it’s a slight one, is the lack of a pure edge pass rusher. Auburn can certainly generate a pass rush up the middle, which can absolutely blow up plays, and with its linebackers and safeties. They’ve got guys like Nick Coe that can get there from the edge but there doesn’t appear to be a Dee Ford or Carl Lawson or Jeff Holland on this team right now — at least one that’s currently ready for primetime.
I should also point out Tutt’s impressive performance returning punts. He averaged 16.7 yards on three returns and looks to be a difference-maker at that position along with being a great fit at the nickel position.
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On the other hand, man, that Auburn offense still has a long, long way to go. From a general perspective, it’s not establishing a physical running game, it’s not producing enough explosive plays and it’s not doing a good job go holding onto the football.
It absolutely starts upfront where the offensive line has failed to create enough space for AU’s running backs with the exception of some drives in the second half of the Oregon game. And they’re not getting much help from the skill players — the wideouts, tight ends and H-backs can all do a better job of engaging and finishing blocks.
Speaking of those skill players — they’re not exactly painting themselves in glory right now. JaTarvious Whitlow put the ball on the ground three times against Tulane and is struggling to get downhill. Auburn has once again failed to produce a meaningful rotation at the position. The receivers have to do a better job winning 1-on-1 battles and working back to the ball.
Unlike the defense, I just haven’t seen a lot of young or inexperienced players stepping up and showing their potential on the offensive side of the ball other than Bo Nix. In many cases, it’s the same players making the same mistakes over and over again.
And I haven’t even mentioned Auburn’s atrocious coverage units. Auburn is giving up an average of 35.8 yards per punt return, which ranks dead last, 120 out of 120, in college football.
The Tigers are a week away from setting upon a stretch of four SEC road games in six weeks. The season could be over — at least as it pertains to Auburn competing for championships — before this team even makes it to the two big November matchups.
Gus Malzahn has said numerous times that for a freshman quarterback to be successful, he’s got to have good players around him. Well, time is getting short, very short, for this offense to start putting it together.
I would caution not to give up, however. Sometimes an offense can just start clicking, it just comes together, and everyone starts performing at a higher level. Auburn can do that. This staff has proven coaches that have done it before. Yes, there’s a long way to go, but I still believe they can get there.
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Today’s musical journey takes us back 28 years to Sept. 10, 1991 when Nirvana released Smells Like Teen Spirit, the first single from their eponymous second album Nevermind. The song and album propelled alternative rock into the mainstream and launched the era of grunge rock and the dominance of Seattle music during the early to mid 90’s.
Nirvana frontman Kurt Cobain wrote Smells Like Teen Spirit as a tribute to one of his favorite bands, the Pixies. A friend wrote on his wall that Kurt smelled like Teen Spirit, referring to the deodorant that his current girlfriend wore, which inspired Cobain to write the lyrics as an anti-establishment rallying cry, not knowing it referred to a deodorant. Bassist Krist Novoselic helped with the guitar riff and drummer Dave Grohl added the beat with all three credited as writers.
The video was a huge hit on MTV. It was filmed at Culver City Studios in California with fans that had attended a concert two days previously. The cheerleaders were hired from a local strip club. The final destruction scene came about because the fans were angry with it taking 12 hours to film the video and the band allowed them to destroy the set.
Nevermind has sold more than $30 million copies worldwide. In 2004, Rolling Stone ranked Smells Like Teen Spirit ninth on its list of the 500 Greatest Songs of All Time. Cobain died in 1994 of a self-inflicted shotgun wound. Grohl went on to found Foo Fighters while Novoselic has played in several bands and become a political activist.
