AU-MSU, 9/9

Hey everyone.

First of all, happy birthday to my wife. Hurry home!

OK. Now on to football.
AUBURN 34, MSU 0

• Auburn's offense looked very good to me. MSU packed the line of scrimmage with big boys to stop the run and that plan worked. Yet QB Brandon Cox was deft with the play-action passing game. WR Courtney Taylor caught nine balls. The passing game looked healthy. It didn't against Washington State.
  
• I found it odd that Tuberville said he began thinking of next week's game against LSU during the MSU game. That's an unusual twist.
  
• More excellent play out of DTs Sen'Derrick Marks and Pat Sims. They're difference-makers inside. MSU really tried to run between the tackles and it just wasn't happening. NG Josh Thompson had something to do with that as well.
  
• John Vaughn's 55-yard FG was fun to watch. Even the MSU fans were clapping for that kick. I'm not real pro-kicker on the whole, but good kickers are easy to appreciate.
  
• Scott Field, MSU's home, still isn't much. The crowd was announced at 43,640. I guess it's hard to spend money on renovations when the home fans won't fill the small stadium you have.
  
• What makes Cox so good is that he knows what he can do -- and what he can't do. He'll throw balls out of bounds now when the situation is terminal. He makes one overly ambitious throw per game, it seems, though it's always deep downfield. He was nearly intercepted on his risky pass Saturday. If the throw had gone another seven yards, though, it would have been a first-class touchdown. I don't think his range exceeds 40 yards.
  
• Freshman LB Craig Stevens finished with five tackles. He's going to be a good one. I still think he'll redshirt. Surely Tray Blackmon will be back at some point. Right?
  

Auburn report, 9/5

Hey everyone. Let's get to it.

• Pat Sims keeps playing well. The DT was one of the team's most productive defensive players in the win against WSU, and my guess is that he'll start this weekend at Mississippi State. Everything I've seen this fall has been positive. That's like adding another big-time signee. I think most people at Auburn had him written off as a loss this time last season.
  
• Funny moment today when TB Tre Smith was summoned to the interview room. He's now the No. 4 tailback. Even Tre wonders why people in the media care about his opinion. It would be sad if Tre took himself seriously, you know, but he seems so aware of his role now. He knows he's a peripheral guy. I really like him. One of my favorites.
  
• Looks like Tristan Davis is in a tight race with Eric Brock at strong safety. I still think Brock will start against MSU, but one more major game from Davis will change all that. I'm a big-time Davis supporter. I think he's going to be a great player before it's all said and done. My fellow beat writers make fun of me for having such a strong opinion about Davis, but I'm just telling you how it's going to be. You heard it here first.
  
• Middle linebacker Merrill Johnson played four snaps against Washington State. That's all Auburn needed. The rest of the time, Will Muschamp kept Johnson on the sideline in favor of nickelback Zach Gilbert. I expect that to change this weekend.
  
• Auburn's players have been wearing t-shirts lately with "BBA, 11-18-06" screened on the shoulder. The meaning: Beat Bama's (Tush) ... along with the date of the game.
  
• Off. coordinator Al Borges said he's toying with the idea of bringing walk-on Jonathan Vickers to Starkville this weekend as Auburn's No. 3 quarterback. Borges desperately wants to place scholarship freshmen Steven Ensminger and Neil Caudle on redshirt status.