Auburn (indirectly) draws the NCAA's ire

Hey everyone. I'm a bit late on this due to a lunch function with some HOTTIES and the WMSP 740 radio show, but let's work our way through this.

The NCAA on Thursday night approved legislation aimed at stopping the large-group recruiting Auburn had been using as recently as Thursday afternoon.

So what is this rule?

The NCAA has cut the number of coaches allowed to visit a school to two. Previously, the only applicable rule was that a maximum of seven assistants could be on the road at one time. Most schools scattered those seven men to cut a wider swath. Auburn unified its front.

Good or bad for Auburn? I say good. It gives the coaches a chance to frame the NCAA as haters; that Auburn was too good and too sly and too enthusiastic and too creative for the NCAA's tastes.

I had a humorous exchange with Trooper Taylor about this on Tuesday.

I said: "Considering how much bigger this has become since 2009, how high can you go for 2011?"

He said: "It probably won't happen. The NCAA will shut this down. We won't be recruiting like this next year, so we'll just enjoy it while we can. Hey, if they're creating rules to stop you from doing things, you must be doing something right."

VIDEO: Cam Newton/Gene Chizik

Please enjoy.

Gene Chizik and Cam Newton speak

Hey everyone. The head coach and your new No. 1 quarterback stopped by to speak with the HABOTN (and several others) this morning.

Here are the highlights:

• Newton on how he found out: ``I didn't know they were going to announce it when they announce it. I was working out and Rick came down and got me and said, 'Go meet with Coach Chizik and coach Malzahn.' My first thought was I ain't did nothing wrong. So I was kind of nervous at first. When they told me, I just wanted to scream. I had to keep my composure."
  
  
• Newton on the emotions he felt at that moment: ``Words can't even imagine how I felt. I felt jittery. I didn't know what to do. I didn't know if he wanted me to say something or just wanted to see my reaction on my face. I wanted to smile, but I didn't want to smile because he'd probably thought I was just joking around. But I was happy inside. I was full of joy."
  
  
• Chizik on how Newton's has responded since arriving in January: ``One of the things that I've really liked since Cameron has been here is he's come in here, he's not talked a lot, he's not told everyone what he's going to do. He's just come in here and basically closed his mouth and went to work. He's worked really hard. He took very hard coaching. We were very demanding and very specific on what we were asking him to do."
  
  
• Chizik on why they just named a starter ... after watching these guys for a month: ``We tried to just go through spring and stay very open-minded about giving everybody their shot. I think as spring unfolds, you can see in scrimmages and some things that are kind of things you can't coach -- the leadership things."
  
  
• Chizik said it's his understanding that Tyrik Rollison will not be back. That's the first time Chizik ever has said anything even semi-official about the Texas Twister.
  

Cam Newton is your No. 1 quarterback

Hey everyone. We now have word that Cam Newton has been named Auburn's No. 1 quarterback exiting spring drills.

“After thoroughly evaluating our quarterbacks during spring practice and over the last week, Cam has emerged as our post-spring No. 1 quarterback,” coach Gene Chizik said. “Obviously, he will have a lot of work to do over the summer and during two-a-days to continue along this path. We fully expect our other quarterbacks to continue to work hard and compete with Cam during the off-season and into fall camp.”

Auburn is making Chizik and Newton available to reporters on Thursday morning. So what can we do before then?

Talk to Cam's father, Cecil, who always has interesting things to say!

CECIL NEWTON

• On the news than Cam is the No. 1 guy: ``I don't think it's really sunk in yet. I know Cam is on Cloud Nine. Me? My son is playing for a program that's really top-shelf, he has the job. It doesn't get much better than that."
  
  
• On how Cam has adjusted to Auburn: ``A-Day didn't go the way a lot of people expected, but I don't think it was a problem. As someone sitting in the stadium and watching him play, I'd have graded him as `moderate' or 'low' relative to what everyone was expecting. Yet (the coaches) graded him above average. He was making the right decisions out there, so it's not like he made mistakes."
  
  
• On Cam's lack of passing opportunities in the A-Day game: ``Not sure what to say about that. Was it intentional or was that just the way it worked out? I'd say it probably was just the script. They watched him for 15 practices. They know what he can do."
  
  
• On overall satisfaction with Auburn (over Mississippi State and Oklahoma): ``We're all really happy. I think Gus (Malzahn) is the right man for the job. Cam is in a program that can use him as he should be used ... and he can get the exposure he deserves. We have a pretty big following in Florida and Georgia. We had people hounding us about watching Cam play on TV. They all wanted to see the spring game. It's working out great. I say the same things to (Curtis) Luper. I talk to Gus sparingly. I don't want to be that father who is in the coach's ear all the time. That's not me."

Auburn's new ride?

Hey everyone. PeterFrankenschmidt has created obtained an exclusive photo illustration of what Auburn football may be planning for its next Tiger Prowl.

This is assuming the NCAA and/or the SEC doesn't outlaw these barnstorming operations.

Some believe this photo could be inauthentic. I'm a little skeptical myself.

Back from The Prowl

Hey everyone. So tonight was Montgomery's turn to play host to Auburn's Tiger Prowl barnstorming tour. It was quite a sight.

Your football array included: Curtis Luper, Trooper Taylor, Tommy Thigpen.

Your non-football array included: Kerry Cremeans (asst. women's basketball coach) and Randall Dickey (asst. men's basketball coach).

You HABOTN attendees included: WEG, me, others who didn't want their handles identified.

I'd say the crowd was in the 100-200 range. Not too shabby. I expected to see more football coaches, but most fans probably come out for Taylor anyway. They hung out, mingled, addressed the crowd briefly, signed autographs, mugged for pictures and headed out around 8 p.m.

Coaches opened their day around 6 a.m. CDT at Carver High in Columbus, Ga., and concluded their high-school tour at Dallas County High. No schools in Montgomery were visited because, as Luper said, they gave priority to schools featuring players with an Auburn offer. So it goes.

Here are some pics:

Here's Luper chatting with my boy Bag.

Taylor addressing the crowd.

Taylor taking time to mingle with the peeps.

Thigpen giving someone the squint.

Dickey talking it up.

Reportage from the ground in Mobile

Hey everyone. As you know, Auburn's Tiger Prowl extravaganza hit Mobile yesterday and our ace representative, AUnMOBILZ, was on hand to witness the spectacle.

Here are some of his pics from the event.

Da Prowler.

Chizik's head is bigger than ever.

They're still using limousines.

Our own MOBILZ and Curtis Luper.

Tiger Prowl is on the move

Hey everyone. Hope you had a swell weekend.

If you live in Alabama, you're (probably) going to have a chance to see the Tigers' recruiting enterprise in action this week. That's because Tiger Prowl -- the coaches' limousine-based recruiting tour started last April -- has become a statewide barnstorming tour that encourages fan support.

The tour starts today in Mobile. Fans can check out the MAGIC BUS today at Lipscomb Field beginning at 6 p.m.

The show arrives in Montgomery on Tuesday. The MAGIC BUS will be stopped on Tallapoosa ... beside the Reniassance Hotel.

They'll be in Birmingham on Wednesday (at a yet-unannounced location) and in the greater Huntsville area on Thursday at Madison Commons. That's technically in Madison, but who's counting?

UPDATE: The Birmingham shindig is going down at the Verizon Wireless Music Center in Pelham.

You'll have a chance to see Gene Chizik, some of his guys and (depending on schedules) Tony Barbee and/or Nell Fortner. It's kinda like the Partridge Family, though we don't anticipate anyone buggin' out like Danny Bonaduce or anything.

Photo credit: Todd Van Emst/Auburn University

Questions? Comments? Post directly to the blog below or email me at jgtate@gannett.com.

Your Sunday morning update

Hey everyone. Birthday Sleepover 2010® is in the books. That was six 8-year-old girls, two cupcakes each, unlimited Disney Channel and enough plush animals to create a well-stocked zoo.

My goal today? Get to Talladega Superspeedway and watch some racin'.

So I'll be around the HABOTN, but I'll be posting from the media center adjacent to Pit Road. If a few of you are planning to watch the race, I'll post occasional behind-the-scenes updates.

If you're not into racin', I understand.

PHOTO GALLERY
Michael Waltrip's No. 55 Toyota was involved in a fender-bender on lap 83.

Johnny Sauter was the first guy to lose it in the Lap 83 incident, but he was bumped by Kyle Busch. The Sauter people are trying to get that car back on the track. Good luck.