LSU Postgame Numbers & Thoughts

It's difficult to be overly critical of a team that lost to the No. 2 in the nation by 2 points. It seemed like every time Auburn made a positive play, it was matched by a negative play. The defense clearly played well enough to win this game but in the end, it was the offense that prevented Auburn from securing a memorable upset. The offense crossed midfield only 1 time during the second half, finishing with only 183-yards in total offense. There simply were too many negative plays on offense and a surprising number of perimeter run plays. In a game, the coaching staff lacked confidence in their quarterback as the game progressed; Tre Mason should've had more carries than Onterio McCalebb. Of his 11 carries, McCalebb was thrown for a loss, 6 times.

Auburn went with a youth movement on defense in the secondary and it should payoff royally down the road. Even though Jonathan Evans misplayed the late throwback pass, the defense got two thumbs up for keeping Auburn in the entire game. Not only did the Auburn defense take on an offense that entered the game, scoring 48-points, they also ended up having to defend against a poor Auburn offense as well as a breakdown on special teams. The defense clearly took a major step in improvement but they cannot be asked to compete against their own offense.

Credit should be given to the coaching staff for having the players ready to play against one of the best teams in the country and laid to rest all of the talk about this team being soft. Fortunately for this team, they have the extra week to get over the emotional letdown of losing a game; they came so close to winning. Though this team is not searching for moral victories, it is important they realize they did take a step forward in becoming a competitive team. The 2012 Auburn Tigers remain a work in progress but this heart breaking loss can still be a major building block in becoming a much better team.

Inside the Numbers…

• Kiehl Frazier was 9 of 10 in his passes within 5-yards of the line of scrimmage but went 4 of 12 in his passes beyond 5-yards of the line of scrimmage. Frazier completed only 2 of his 8 third down passes.
  
• Frazier was 11 of 13 passing on 1^st and 2^nd downs but struggled passing on 3^rd down.
  
• Tre Mason finished with 54-yards on 9 carries and Onterio McCalebb had 24-yards on 11 carries. It was baffling to see the number of perimeter run plays with McCalebb, when it was clear that Mason was a much more effective runner between the tackles.
  
• Jeff Whitaker had his best game of the season with 4 stops and a fumble recovery. Though Angelo Blackson had only 2 stops, he continued to be a disruptive force in the interior line.
  
• In Auburn's last 25 games, Auburn has won the tackle for loss battle only 5 times.
  
• The last time Auburn was tackled for loss at least 14 times during a game was the 1999 Ole Miss game.
  
• After giving up 57.5 yards per possession during the first 2 possessions, the Auburn defense held LSU to 21.4 yards per possessions during the last 11 possessions.
  
• The Auburn offense has been held to under 20-points in 9 of their last 13 games.
  
• Since 1981 and prior to tonight, Auburn has allowed an average of 26-points per game, when their offense was held to under 200-yards in offense. Another testament to how well the defense performed.
  
• Auburn has now gone 16 consecutive games without throwing for at least 200-yards, slowly closing in on the 18 consecutive games from 1984-1985.
  
• Over the past 50 seasons, the 2012 Auburn pass-offense is currently rated as the 34^th best. Of the last 34 Auburn pass-offenses that averaged at least 20 pass attempts per game, the 2012 pass-offense has the second lowest yards per game average (144.8 YPG).
  
• During Auburn's last 700 games, the Tigers have held their opponent to under 13-points in 261 games, posting a record of 242-17-2.

Final Word…

Until Auburn resolves their issues on pass-offense, it will be difficult for Auburn to defeat any team with a pulse. In this modern era of football, you must be able to throw the football consistently, something Auburn has failed to do since 2010. Scot Loeffler still remains a work in progress as a play-caller but you have to wonder how much better the offense would be with a consistent pass-offense. Though Kiehl Frazier is still attempting to improve it will be interesting to see how long the coaching staff will stick with him before making a change to spark the pass-offense. The quarterback position can be a tricky situation because you want to allow time for a young player to develop but you don't want to squander opportunities to win like tonight. I thought it was a tremendous gesture by Jason Campbell to reach out Kiehl Frazier.

The 1-3 start is rough to say the least but it's come against 3 ranked opponents and a combined record of 12-3 on the season. One could argue this team could be at least 3-1 with an above average pass-offense. The passing issues are not all Kiehl Frazier but he has done a poor job of taking care of the football. He is currently on pace to throw over 20 interceptions during the regular season. His quarterback rating after tossing his first interception of the game is 83.7 and 144.8 before the first pick. This is a strong indicator his performance diminishes even more after making that first critical mistake, like many young quarterbacks do. Coach Loeffler will need to continue working with the struggling quarterback with the hope there is still potential for growth this season.

I'm not advocating a change at quarterback because there have been moments in every game this season, where you see the "wow" factor, when he steps into a throw and zings a pass right to his receiver. When I see those types of completions by Frazier, I know he could be very good if he could just string them back to back. I've also seen previous Auburn quarterbacks struggle early but developed into solid starters in time. The disappointment comes knowing Auburn has to endure games like last night during Frazier's maturation process. It's easy to wish or believe there is a better option sitting on the bench but that is rarely the case in reality.

Despite Auburn's losing record, this team still has potential to be a competitive squad. The running game with better execution and play calling can be very reliable. The defense continues to improve and special teams except for punt-return offense has been very good all season. Standing in their way is a struggling pass-offense, untimely penalties and too many turnovers. If Auburn has any chance of finishing with a winning record, they have to clean up their self-destructive ways, which has haunted them in every game this season. The good news is that they showed plenty of life and fight against the No. 2 team in the nation, which will hopefully carry over against Arkansas in two weeks.

War Eagle!