Tuberville speaks, 11/2
- "The little things are killing on both sides of the ball."
- "Offensively, we didn't have the running numbers we'd like. Kodi made some good decisions and some ... not so good. I thought he responded well at times. It all goes back to one thing -- you've gotta be able to run the ball."
- "Defensively, giving up 240 yards rushing is a huge disappointment. They did a good job of confusing us a couple of times. The one little fast guy they have (Dexter McCluster) hurt us on the outside. That's two weeks in a row that we haven't stopped the run."
- On motivation: "The one thing you can't do is worry about other teams. You know, a lot of funny things happen in November. It's going to be an interesting month of college football. Watching Floirda play is amazing. We watched the Ole Miss tape -- it's amazing how much better they've gotten."
- "This is a game to them. They want to win games. We're not good enough to play in a bowl. We're not consistent enough. We have a chance to get better. It's a pride factor. It's an attitude factor."
- What would a win do this weekend: "Any win is big when you're struggling like us. The last few games, we've been struggling to get to the stadium and feel like we have a chance ... considering what these players have been through."
- Does the pressure affect CTT's family, specifically his two sons: "It's a good lesson for them. You kinda of persevere. They're old enough now that they understand what's going on."
- On Burns: "You've got to give them enough offense where they can move the team. Against West Virginia, we were a running team. Yesterday, we were more shotgun and let him throw the ball down the field. The gameplan was to run the ball more in the corners. We knew they were going to stack the box. At halftime, we decided that we had to throw the ball down the field and get (Ole Miss) off of us. We were our own worst enemy."
- Who would have kicked a field goal?: "I'll go to my grave with that one."
- "In the past, we'd have been able to run the ball with eight or nine in the box. We can't; we're not physical enough."
- Why go east-west with the runs?: "If you're going too much lateral, there's no chance for a cut back. There's a fine line with the running backs being on the right track (on the sprints) and they're not on the right track."
- What did Burns do well?: "At times, he threw (intermediate) routes pretty well. When you're in shotgun, those guys on the other line of scrimmage are not playing the run. It makes pass protection tougher. He has to stay in the pocket. Things on the outside are much better right now. Things (with crossing routes) are not very good."
- On Sgt. Slaughter: "He's been very inconsistent. (Burns) has to get more confident in the guys on the field. Rod has been one of those guys; Chris hasn't. It doesn't look like Rod will get back this week because of his injury."
- More on Slaughter: "Chris is not a burner. We threw a studder-and-go to him. If that had been Rod -- he's faster than Chris -- we'd have scored on that play. Chris is more of a role guy."
- On The Happy Haitian, Mike Blanc: "He probably was our best defensive lineman yesterday. They think he might have a broken hand."
- Who plays if Blanc is out? Is Derrick Lykes a possibility?: "Yep. Him and (Cam) Henderson. We'd hate to do that. Ricks and Clayton are the only two healthy guys we've got."
- Tuberville said he moved Lykes up to the second- or third-team in practice "a month ago."
- Tuberville said Sen'Derrick Marks played two second-half snaps. He has an ankle problem.
- On Dee Hood: "They went after him and he did a good job. He really did well. He was a bright spot. I thought we had lost McFadden. That was ugly. He's sore. He probably won't practice until Wednesday. We'll practice Hood and Harry Adams this week. Jerraud and Neiko probably won't play this week."
- On why Auburn's run defense is terrible: "It's just little things -- being mis-aligned and missing tackles."
- Tuberville also mentioned all the injured guys in relation to the run-defense problem. Described Tray Blackmon as "our bell cow." Someone get him a costume!
- Tuberville said Joshua Bynes played 77 snaps. "You cannot do that."
- Tuberville said Antonio Coleman "hasn't practiced in a month."
END OF INTERVIEW
Photo credit: Todd Van Emst/Auburn University
Questions? Comments? Post directly to the blog below or email me at jgtate@gannett.com.
posted by Jay G. Tate at
2:51 PM
82 Comments:
"It all goes back to one thing -- you've gotta be able to run the ball."
Sounds like a coach committed to the spread. Yeah right!
Is this a replay of the post game quotes?
Coach, make that three weeks in a row. There was a dude from Arkansas that did quite well.
"It's an attitude factor."
That is what I want to hear.
I was thinking the same thing Mr. S.
The spread and passing are two different things. Reference the West Virginia game. You can run from the spread.
Bring back AttitUde from 1993. I believe its too late to save us now.
Do yourself a favor and don't read this right now.
Now, you guys now I don't know that much about formations, etc so feel free to correct me. But I thought the spread could be either run-centric or pass-centric?
"The last few games, we've been struggling to get to the stadium and feel like we have a chance" - This is a major issue
I say throw our whole offense in the garbage and lineup in the wildcate the rest of the season. It can't hurt with the way we are playing. I guess November will be interesting for watching other teams play. I don't see any of our games being interesting, other than UT Martin.
From the last post:
Eddie, what exactly do you mean when you say "someone like him"? Not trying to be difficult I just dont get what that means.
Steve, an SEC team winning 70% of their games is indeed average. There arent really that many opportunities for losses each year. You play 8 conference games and an average team will win at least 4-5 of those. Add in 4 other out of conference games and that gets you to 8-4 every season. that's pretty much Auburn.
Kristina, you are partially correct. The spread can be run or pass centric, or it can be neither. I do believe we proved that at times this season.
Franklin's spread was pass happy at Troy...just like Hal taught him at KY
I concur with Steve from Columbia. You can run the spread and run the ball. Spread does not equal throwing the ball around.
I think CTT wants to run the W.VA spread. I think that is the spread attack he thought CTF was going to implement considering what we had at Auburn. I really do. I really believe CTT must have thought CTF would adapt his offense somehow.
These are the first non-Orwellian comments from CTT. I applaud them.
hip-hopanonymous, only the top 3 or 4 coaches in the SEC win 70%. Bear Bryant didn't win too many more than that.
Until this season I believe Auburn was the second winningest program in the SEC during this decade. I am sure it has dropped a bit, but you cannot ignore the success that Tuberville has had.
If he thought Franklin would go from a Pass O to a Spread Option he must have really had that stroke. Esp. if he thought that Kodi could be the one to run an option O.
Tubby wanted an O like OK runs, a spread with big linemen and a heavy ground game using the TE/FB hybrid
"Any win is big when you're struggling like us. The last few games, we've been struggling to get to the stadium and feel like we have a chance ... considering what these players have been through."-That quote suggests to me that the players don't believe in what they are doing or if they even believe in the coach. I cannot believe Tubs made that statement.
The spread is a formation not an offense. You can do what ever you want out of the spread formation. People have overused the words "Spread offense" and now everyone thinks it an offense.
I say our version of the spread is more ec-centric than either.
While I still care deeply about whether we win or lose despie this season, I'm beginning to care less about what he has to say. Just save it. Show me on Saturdays.
Any ideas on what time the UGA game will start? Any rumors as to who might be picking it up?
In honor of Tubs latest round of comments, I offer this.
Our Own Worst Enemy (to the tune of Lit’s My Own Worst Enemy)
Can you forget about the things I said at the start of the year
I didn’t mean any of it
I can’t remember the reasons I wanted to switch to the spread
Please don’t hate me
I can’t tell you why
This season’s in the junkyard
And I’m not sure how to fix it
I’ll probably just go duck hunting
And hope you forget
It’s a surprise to me we are are own worst enemy
Cause every Saturday some team kicks the living &%^$ out of us
The alarms were clear but yet I didn’t recruit
Some talent with speed
And I guess that’s why
Please tell me why
This season’s in the junkyard
And I’m not sure how to fix it
I’ll probably just go duck hunting
And hope you forget
Hip-Hop- I was trying to refer to teh state of things on the team. I was apart of that 1998 team and I believe the program as a whole in a state of disrepair. He came in, cleaned out all the "thug" like players and only had people that wanted to be their and be an "Auburn Tiger." I was just trying to say that he was a perfect fit for what he inherited. If that makes any sense.
So far he has said a whole lot to prove one point, we got beat up, we know it, and there is nothing we can do about it.
If I was a player I would not feel like I could win a game, our coach is up there crying about how all is lost
"Chris is not a burner. We threw a studder-and-go to him. If that had been Rod -- he's faster than Chris -- we'd have scored on that play. Chris is more of a role guy."
Great way to inspire confidence. Throw the kid under the bus.
- Anonymous NOT TIM
Nice Cobra
Who would have kicked a field goal?: "I'll go to my grave with that one."
hee hee
Who is left to play D...We are running out of players
Tuberville said Joshua Bynes played 77 snaps. "You cannot do that."
Sheeesh. How many plays did they run on us? How many are teams averaging against us this year?
Who would have kicked a field goal?: "I'll go to my grave with that one."
He likes those dramatic death references.
Kristina - Everyone thinks they know what the "spread" is. You'll get as many answers and versions as the people you ask. I found this blog very interesting. You might take a look for some light reading. :-)
SMART FOOTBALL
The more I read and re-read the interview, the more I sense the CTT had no idea this season was rolling down the road. Not even a remote possibility. It is worse than he can imagine and right now he can't even get his arms around it.
I hate to say it, but C Bobby P is making big strides at Ark right now. Just sayin...
Arkansas is going to have a good offense. Their defense will go down hill the longer petrino stays.
On Burns: "You've got to give them enough offense where they can move the team." -
How can they give them enough if the staff admits they are only able to run a limited amout of plays. Less than 25 plays is not enough against SEC D's
Steve, there are CURRENTLY around five or six SEC coaches who have won 70% or more of their games. And that number is only going to increase with the addition of the extra game.
Bobby P will do the same at Ark as he did at Louisville. Recruit great O talent, mid level D, and hope he can move the left over O talent to fill in the holes in the D
I'm really not trying to be difficult, I just get tired of hearing "who are you going to get that's any better". I think there are plenty of coaches who can get us to ATL every five years. It's not that impressive.
Denny -- It's clear to me that Tuberville didn't see this coming. Still, could anyone have seen this?
He makes too much money to not see this coming. Sorry for being Mr. Negative, but if he was in any other walk of life he would probably be fired by now. (without a 6 mil check)
Noone saw things getting this bad - Except Nick Satan because he can see the future, walk on water, and turn water & Bread into RC & Moon Pies...just ask an Alabama Fan
Jay-you wrote yesterday that you were upping your % to 80. Care to explain why, as we all felt this loss was coming.
What makes me mad is that if we would have stuck with the offense of a year ago and tweaked a couple of things year over year we would have crushed that Ole Miss team.
I saw this coming to some degree when CTF was fired. I knew we were in trouble, but I could have never guessed how bad it would get. I learned quickly enough because Arkansas may have been the worst team we have played all year.
I just watched the game, saw it live but always watch it the next day, did anyone happen to notice the stars they showed comparing 07 & 08, was Borges REALLY that bad?
sorry should be stats, darn iPhone
just in win au, we have officially redefined what bad is this season. Borges has risen to greatness as this season has progressed.
I still think Tubbs should be able to stay. After this year, I believe we could see a new and improved Tubbs. Replace some assistants that want to recruit and hit the road HARD. Realize this year is done, put forth a good effort, as opposed to the going through the motions effort they look like they have now, and show the home fans there is still some fire in them.
Maybe I am just wishfull thinking.
wishful thinking
Upping the %: Not seeing much progress or reason for optimism. I haven't talked with anyone yet; just giving you my Tony Franklin Gut Feeing™.
Scott, are you sayng we should have kept Borges?
I guess you don't know what you got til its gone. We have definitely given bad a new meaning.
Jay-I heard Franklin went to the Naval Academy this weekend. Do you know if he was there looking for a job? Just wondering if you heard anything.
I want to see some of that New Tubbs this year, If he waits until next year it may be too late.
Plus, if he is going to throw players under the bus...just say it...no more of this passive/aggressive junk
Kristina I wish Borges were still around. I think if he were still at Auburn we would be 8-1, 7-2. He did a great job developing Jason Campbell and I think Kodi would be much better had Borges been around, just my opinion.
To borrow some words from the late great Tony Franklin; we don't understand bad, we think we do, but we don't.
last night there was a lot of discussion about TTech and theor offense and 'spread' offenses. do you think TTech's offense would work in the SEC. many here do not because the SEC is end all in college football. I don't think a team can put up 55 points per game in the SEC but I believe tech's offense, Tulsa's offense, or even WVU offense could do well in the SEC.
What do you think Jay?
Very warm comments from Tubs about Slaughter. That's only the beginning for Slaughter. They didn't go out and recruit Chris because he was slow or "inconsistent". And they didn't go out and reruit him because some 6' walkon was a better athlete than him either.
Slaughter needed confidence. Mission accomplished. Same for Kodi.
Guys, a very deserving head coach will take over a team pretty full of talented athletes that will be very hungry for Ws. Tubs has 3 more games left in his Auburn tenure.
I haven't been keeping up with Franklin lately.
Oh yea. Tubs? That's 3 games in a row where you did not stop the run. Not 2. Arkansas' Michael Smith dogged Auburn with runs and receptions.
Little guys, under 5'10, running sub 4.4s kill Auburn.
"If that had been Rod he'd have scored on that play." "Chris is more of a role guy." Saturday he said nobody was stepping up to be a playmaker. Slaughter-8 catches for 130 yards. Tubs and co offered Swinton(3 career catches I believe) and C(role guy) Slaughter scholarships and only got R Smith as a walk on due to Swinton. This needs to go into the Tubs Speak Hall of Fame with the Black Saturday remarks and the famous "pre-season is over real games start today" speech. And then he talks about players not having confidence. Unbelievable.
Just win,
I agree with you about Borges regarding his development of Campbell.
This isn't directed at you or anyone in particular. But I think it's interesting how several people think Borges deserved another year but Tubs does not.
Tang - I can't imagine Franklin going to the USNA. They don't have the talent to pass. They will always run the option and be a running team. That would be a shocker.
I think Tuberville will be around next season. I also believe his choice for OC will be crucial.
What does Tuberville have against Slaughter? I thought he did pretty good in what Iittle I say yesterday.
Tubs will not be HC. And I know people hate seeing those words as they think it will tank recruiting. It will change some minds. But the right decision will save the vast majority of pledges.
if I'm not mistaken didn't Slaughter have to slow down a little to catch the pass? It was a beautiful pass but if he didn't have to slow down and wait on it maybe Slaughter scores.
Slaughter was very good. He had yards of separation yesterday and Kodi missed him a few times and threw it too short sometimes. Slaughter's the equivalent of a light footed swingman that can dunk anywhere inside of 15'. He just doesn't run a 4.3. But he doesn't have to. Neither did Fred Gipson.
Kristina, the only problem I had with Borges was that we were predictable at times. I think he could have been pushed to come up with some new stuff.
So Slaughter (4 star) is not fast or quick. He was the 13th best player at his position when he was recruited. Why did we offer him. Swinton was a 2 star and has gotten a college education, hopefully, and done NOTHING but show up for practice, some of the time when not injured. Does that fall on Tubbs or Knox? BTW-Dunn was a 0 star in 2005.
Slaughter had one of the best games an AU WR has had in quite a while, dont know why Tubby felt the need to kiss Rods rump and downplay Slaughter
I'm surprised by Tuberville's comments about Slaughter as well.
I either have to stop reading CTT's comments or alter my expectations. Maybe I should do what I did with Finebaum and see them as entertainment only.
Dunn was a small time high school criminal. In reality, he's a 4 star guy.
Thanks to Kristina for setting up the Facebook group. She did a great job.
Jay, not sure it would make the cut at the paper, but what about a run down of the past 4 years recruits and how they have played, or where they are now. I looked at severla names on one of the sites, not a subscriber thiugh, and noticed several that I have never heard of or seen at AU since they signed. Is that a possibilty?
For the record, I think Dunn is a good guy. He just got into some bad places in high school a couple times. He's a solid dude these days.
I don't understand CTT comments regarding Chris Slaughter. I thought he played well yesterday and was glad to see that he had the chance--
Kristina - I requested to be on the facebook page. Jason F.
back home. the Georgia contingent send their well-wishes and hopes that Auburn football get's well soon.
RoF...WOW! Guess I have to drop the Zombie Squad.
campfire tonight??
Haven't been able to keep up with the comments this weekend. Agreed about Slaughter. WTH Tubby?
We have a Facebook group? Where do I sign?
Here is one for you guys: CTT is 45-0 when scoring 30 or more points. That's 4.5 per year (even though this year is not over and CTT is in his 10th season). Ok now, subtract those homecoming games and you are down to 35, subtract those subpare teams in the beginning of the year and you are left with a staggering 25 games that we have scored 30 or more points (that's 3 times per year OR 1/4)WOW!! HARD TO WIN UH??? WHAT NUMBERS UH!!
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