Barnacle

It was a joke

They never had Chandler friggin' Cox either

Agreed. I know he at least did it once Saturday.

I kind of agree with this and I kind of don't. Byron did have all the tools to be great. To me, what made Byron stand out coming out of High School was how he had already developed physically. He already had the size, strength and burst to compete in the SEC. He was physically impressive. So, yeah in that sense he had all the "tools". But we sign guys every year who I think have just as much potential, just not right of the gate. They might need a year to add weight, get stronger, etc. To me the intrigue with Cowart was that he might develop into a dominant player early - that he might be a big time contributor in the same way that Davidson was last year.

Incomprehensible. Hopefully we'll get some answers soon. He can't go a whole season like this....can he???

preach

I did forget about Shivers, and I'm also very excited about him. Thank you for reminding me. I don't mean to belabor the point, but I think our differences have always been about whether we see KJ as an every down back, and you're right that I have cited to his size among other factors in the past to support my position, but I can't recall us coming to differences about RB size as a general rule. As a general rule, top SEC backs weigh around and over 200 pounds. That's not my opinion, it just is what it is. And, it applies to Auburn's top running backs. So, if I do have a preoccupation with size, that's why. I'm not saying it can't be done, but Kam Martin becoming a successful RB1 for Auburn would constitute an exception to the rule. The last exception that I can think of is what Dexter McCluster did during the second half of the 2009 season. I agree that Kam Martin has been shown to be effective as a role player. As an every down back he's also shined, but against weaker, smaller teams: Alabama A&M and Georgia Southern. Not to take anything away from either of those two fantastic performances, but I'm asking whether he can withstand 20+ carries over the course of a full SEC schedule. Malik Miller played 2 games and 16 snaps in 2016 against Arkansas State and Louisiana Monroe. He had 3 carries against Georgia Southern. So, its difficult for me to say that Miller has been a "meaningful" contributor. I can't understand for the life of me why Gus has been so reluctant to use our other backs more. However, when you've got 3 guys on the bench, and you refuse to take an injured player out of the game, that tells me something. Is Gus rational? No. But, I don't see him risking his job and Pettway's health if he has another player on the bench that can be trusted perform that job in a tough spot or big game. Assuming there isn't such a player, it doesn't excuse the lack of rotation. I just don't know what else to think.

Thanks, you beat me to it. The Land-Shark makes more sense than the Bear ever did, IMO. It's something that has grown organically by the students and fan base, as opposed to something selected by the University.

They'd still be the Ole Miss Rebels. No one would call them the land-sharks just like no one calls Auburn the War Eagles.

Stidham will get better. I'm not necessarily that concerned about where he is right now, either. Agreed about Willis - I guess I'm going off of the presumption that he's remotely good as we hope. But, if Gus has taught us anything, it's to presume absolutely nothing. As for RB, if Pettway were to leave (not saying he will), then we've got: 1) KJ - A genuine all-purpose SEC back when healthy, but one who happens to be injury prone. 2) Kam Martin/Malik Miller/Devan Barrett - two of whom weigh less than 200 pounds, and all of whom our (current) coaches won't give meaningful snaps to except in the absence of Pettway AND Johnson. 3) ...Asa Martin? If Martin remains committed and signs with Auburn, the situation doesn't look as bad, but in either scenario you are wholly dependent on someone not named Kerryon Johnson being worthy of the RB1 spot. Unfortunately, no one out of the committee of running backs on our current roster have accomplished that, nor have any of them shown the talent and or size to handle such a role. Don't get me wrong, KM and Barrett appear to have the requisite skill set, but they don't have the size - in my opinion, of course. At 6'0", Barrett has the frame to put on some considerable weight in the off-season. Martin seems to me the most likely out of the group, but he'll be a true freshman and we're still a long way off from signing day. Edit: I'm not saying that KJ wouldn't be the de facto RB1 in the above scenario, he would be. I'm saying that we need someone who can also fill that role when necessary.

I'm comfortable with a 3-Deep that includes Stidham, Willis and one of the freshmen. This isn't to mention RB depth. I suspect that he will, but we very badly need Pettway to play his senior year.

Auburn Arkansas Kentucky LSU South Carolina Tennessee Alabama Florida State Oklahoma State Mississippi State 53

I think our defense has a slight letdown. Offense will shine against an abysmal Missouri defense, and after coming off of a 5 turnover game. Auburn: 45 Mizzou: 24

Tough crowd