Roundtable:What it takes to reach Playoff

[WFE12 9,191]

 

Roundtable: What Auburn must do to make College Football Playoff in 2018

By Lauren Shute, SEC Country staff

May 9, 2018

 

Auburn looked bound for the College Football Playoff last November after taking down top-ranked Georgia and Alabama in a three-week span. However, the Tigers fell just short, instead watching their two biggest rivals compete for a national championship in January.

Even after a disappointing ending, the future was promising. Gus Malzahn’s team is full of experienced players who know what it takes to become one of the four best teams in the country.

RELATED: Charting weight gains, losses of Auburn football team

Opinions vary on what exactly Auburn needs to do to earn a playoff spot. Media and fans duke it out on message boards and different social platforms. Yet those who have the best understanding of what the Tigers need to do literally have walked in cleats.

Here’s what former players — members of some of Auburn’s most successful teams through the years — think the Tigers must do to finally wind up in the College Football Playoff next season:

Jason Campbell: Well, first, I believe our defense is two deep in our front seven, which is great when you talk about a long season in the SEC.

Junior Rosegreen: Right. Defense has to score when they get opportunities to, and they must play physical and fast. Marlon Davidson, Nick Coe, Jamel Dean and Jeremiah Dinson are guys who come to mind defensively. They have to be great every single time out.

Tray Matthews: Defensively, we just have to build on what was left behind. The culture is set, but they can take it to an even higher level. Having the same defensive coordinator again is major. We almost lost Coach [Kevin] Steele last year.

Campbell: Offensively, it’s a little different. I believe we have to find out who our combination of running backs are going to be and who will step up on the offensive line and at the receiver position.

Brad Lester: I think this season, being consistent in the passing game will make a huge difference in their chances of making the playoff. Opening up the passing game will allow the group of new running backs to have successful run games and will keep defenses off balance. That, with a balance between pass and run play calls, will lead them to have a great season — it might even give them a chance at a national championship.

Rosegreen: There’s a lot of pressure on Jarrett Stidham and Nate Craig-Myers. They have to be the leaders and the engines of the offense.

Matthews: This year, in my opinion, Auburn needs to be a 50/50 team, meaning they have to throw the ball and run the ball. That way, like Brad said, they will keep the defenses they face on their toes. Then, on top of all that, everyone has to stay healthy. It could be a special season.

[McLoofus 35,182]

8 minutes ago, WFE12 said:

Campbell: Offensively, it’s a little different. I believe we have to find out who our combination of running backs are going to be and who will step up on the offensive line and at the receiver position.

This made me chuckle.

"Except for the QB, our entire offense is a giant question mark. Which is a little different than being 2-deep with NFL talent in our defensive front 7."

[gr82be 14,402]

Matthews: This year, in my opinion, Auburn needs to be a 50/50 team, meaning they have to throw the ball and run the ball. That way, like Brad said, they will keep the defenses they face on their toes. Then, on top of all that, everyone has to stay healthy. It could be a special season.  I don't see us being close to 50/50 since '95 was the only time I can find that was even close and it was very close that year. No need to be 50/50 though with our typical run game (provided it's typical this season). Just have an effective middle of the field and down field passing game, that's all I want to see. Give the opponent something else to think about please. 

[DAG 33,955]

1 hour ago, WFE12 said:

 

Roundtable: What Auburn must do to make College Football Playoff in 2018

By Lauren Shute, SEC Country staff

May 9, 2018

 

Auburn looked bound for the College Football Playoff last November after taking down top-ranked Georgia and Alabama in a three-week span. However, the Tigers fell just short, instead watching their two biggest rivals compete for a national championship in January.

Even after a disappointing ending, the future was promising. Gus Malzahn’s team is full of experienced players who know what it takes to become one of the four best teams in the country.

RELATED: Charting weight gains, losses of Auburn football team

Opinions vary on what exactly Auburn needs to do to earn a playoff spot. Media and fans duke it out on message boards and different social platforms. Yet those who have the best understanding of what the Tigers need to do literally have walked in cleats.

Here’s what former players — members of some of Auburn’s most successful teams through the years — think the Tigers must do to finally wind up in the College Football Playoff next season:

Jason Campbell: Well, first, I believe our defense is two deep in our front seven, which is great when you talk about a long season in the SEC.

Junior Rosegreen: Right. Defense has to score when they get opportunities to, and they must play physical and fast. Marlon Davidson, Nick Coe, Jamel Dean and Jeremiah Dinson are guys who come to mind defensively. They have to be great every single time out.

Tray Matthews: Defensively, we just have to build on what was left behind. The culture is set, but they can take it to an even higher level. Having the same defensive coordinator again is major. We almost lost Coach [Kevin] Steele last year.

Campbell: Offensively, it’s a little different. I believe we have to find out who our combination of running backs are going to be and who will step up on the offensive line and at the receiver position.

Brad Lester: I think this season, being consistent in the passing game will make a huge difference in their chances of making the playoff. Opening up the passing game will allow the group of new running backs to have successful run games and will keep defenses off balance. That, with a balance between pass and run play calls, will lead them to have a great season — it might even give them a chance at a national championship.

Rosegreen: There’s a lot of pressure on Jarrett Stidham and Nate Craig-Myers. They have to be the leaders and the engines of the offense.

Matthews: This year, in my opinion, Auburn needs to be a 50/50 team, meaning they have to throw the ball and run the ball. That way, like Brad said, they will keep the defenses they face on their toes. Then, on top of all that, everyone has to stay healthy. It could be a special season.

5

That would be nice now, wouldn't it?

[AUld fAUx@ 2,584]

1 hour ago, McLoofus said:

This made me chuckle.

"Except for the QB, our entire offense is a giant question mark. Which is a little different than being 2-deep with NFL talent in our defensive front 7."

I was especially tickled at the "combination" of running back"s"

[AUsince72 11,084]

 

2 hours ago, McLoofus said:

This made me chuckle.

"Except for the QB, our entire offense is a giant question mark. Which is a little different than being 2-deep with NFL talent in our defensive front 7."

 

1 hour ago, AUld fAUx@ said:

I was especially tickled at the "combination" of running back"s"

Plus, I thought... "What the heck would Jason Campbell know about having good running backs in the backfield?"

.

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.

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....wait for it.....

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.

[WDE_OxPx_2010 5,287]

Brad Lester? That's a head scratcher.

[AuburnEagle79 2,163]

We need to not have to give our best player 42 touches a game to win. We need to not have so many hills and valleys over the course of the season, balance will be key. 

[aucom96 1,614]

I don’t know that we need to be 50/50, but we need to develop an effective intermediate passing attack. Screens and hail marys aren’t going to back defenses off the line.

[McLoofus 35,182]

In terms of yards from scrimmage last season, we were freakishly balanced- 2966 to 2936. Let's bump each of those up to an even 3k and I don't really care how many snaps of each it takes to get there. 

[weagl1 1,781]

You make the playoff with a great defense and a balanced offense.  

[AUsince72 11,084]

34 minutes ago, weagl1 said:

You make the playoff with a great defense and a balanced offense.  

See Loof's post just above yours.

They had both those things last season...in spades.

Add "no coaching meltdowns" to the equation and you're not only right...but they probably win the whole prize.

As always, the new year brings us hope.

War Eagle!

[bigbird 60,368]

1 hour ago, McLoofus said:

In terms of yards from scrimmage last season, we were freakishly balanced- 2966 to 2936. Let's bump each of those up to an even 3k and I don't really care how many snaps of each it takes to get there. 

I'd rather have balance in # of plays called than in yards. The balance between pass and run plays is what makes a team more difficult to defend.  15 passes for 225 yds and 40 runs for 225 yds is a team that is pretty easy to scheme against.

[AUsince72 11,084]

3 minutes ago, bigbird said:

I'd rather have balance in # of plays called than in yards. The balance between pass and run plays is what makes a team more difficult to defend.  15 passes for 225 yds and 40 runs for 225 yds is a team that is pretty easy to scheme against.

This makes a lot of sense.

[McLoofus 35,182]

10 minutes ago, bigbird said:

I'd rather have balance in # of plays called than in yards. The balance between pass and run plays is what makes a team more difficult to defend.  15 passes for 225 yds and 40 runs for 225 yds is a team that is pretty easy to scheme against.

450 yards of offense is pretty good though, isn't it? 

I hear what you're saying. You pretty much described the 2013 offense, which isn't going to happen again unless the planets align a very specific way.

In last year's DSOR, we 17/25 passing against 46 rush attempts. In the IB, it was 21/29 and 49. So roughly 1 pass for every 2 runs would seem to be a sweet spot to aim for?

[bigbird 60,368]

23 minutes ago, McLoofus said:

450 yards of offense is pretty good though, isn't it? 

I hear what you're saying. You pretty much described the 2013 offense, which isn't going to happen again unless the planets align a very specific way.

In last year's DSOR, we 17/25 passing against 46 rush attempts. In the IB, it was 21/29 and 49. So roughly 1 pass for every 2 runs would seem to be a sweet spot to aim for?

That depends, how many of those runs were dives up the gut and how many of those passes were 30+ yards down the field or wr screens?  Play call balance must contain some type of diversity as well. 

UGA  46/71 = 64.7%   488yds

UA  49/78 = 62.8%   408yds

LSU  44/70 = 62.8%  354 yds

 

 

 

 

[McLoofus 35,182]

11 minutes ago, bigbird said:

That depends, how many of those runs were dives up the gut and how many of those passes were 30+ yards down the field or wr screens?  Play call balance must contain some type of diversity as well. 

Along with a functioning OL, the key to the season. 

[AUsince72 11,084]

12 minutes ago, bigbird said:

That depends, how many of those runs were dives up the gut and how many of those passes were 30+ yards down the field or wr screens?  Play call balance must contain some type of diversity as well. 

UGA  46/71 = 64.7%   488yds

UA  49/78 = 62.8%   408yds

LSU  44/70 = 62.8%  354 yds

 

 

 

 

OH, so YOU just want it ALL!!

?

[lionheartkc 6,150]

37 minutes ago, McLoofus said:

You pretty much described the 2013 offense, which isn't going to happen again unless the planets align a very specific way.

They key to getting back to that style of offense is getting back to being able to run 3-5 different plays out of the same look. If that happens, it honestly doesn't matter if they are runs or passes, it's going to make it infinitely harder for the defense to scheme against it.

Why we haven't been doing that lately is beyond me. Is it that we're having enough trouble mastering the base offense that we never get to the point of adding the wrinkles? Did we toss out that philosophy when coordinators figured out how to defend the read-option? Was Gus just too busy to build a new playbook for a pocket passer and Lashlee not up to the task? Maybe it's a function of the QB... We were most successful with Cam, who had lots of motion around him, giving him multiple options for hand-offs, or he could pull it and pass or run, Nick, who had the read-option and the ability to pass or run if he pulled it, and to a lesser degree, Todd, who faked better than any Auburn QB in recent memory... so maybe part of the issue is that White and Stidham aren't that good at selling the fake. It would be interesting to chat with the coaches about why we've gone away from that part of our game. 

[McLoofus 35,182]

2 minutes ago, AUsince72 said:

OH, so YOU just want it ALL!!

?

[bigbird 60,368]

3 minutes ago, AUsince72 said:

OH, so YOU just want it ALL!!

?

No reason not to.

[McLoofus 35,182]

2 minutes ago, lionheartkc said:

They key to getting back to that style of offense is getting back to being able to run 3-5 different plays out of the same look. If that happens, it honestly doesn't matter if they are runs or passes, it's going to make it infinitely harder for the defense to scheme against it.

Why we haven't been doing that lately is beyond me.

Well, with regards specifically to 2013, we don't have that particular talent available. The players on that roster were uniquely constructed to run the ball all over the field. Nick + Prosch + GRob + Dismukes + Slade + Mason + Grant + a group of WRs who were probably better at blocking than catching.......... that's just a really unlikely group to have all together at once. Marshall, Prosch and GRob in particular IMO. 

1 minute ago, bigbird said:

No reason not to.

And 49 million reasons to.

[lionheartkc 6,150]

16 minutes ago, McLoofus said:

Well, with regards specifically to 2013, we don't have that particular talent available. The players on that roster were uniquely constructed to run the ball all over the field. Nick + Prosch + GRob + Dismukes + Slade + Mason + Grant + a group of WRs who were probably better at blocking than catching.......... that's just a really unlikely group to have all together at once. Marshall, Prosch and GRob in particular IMO. 

The wide receiver blocking (and running back blocking for that matter) is definitely a key, especially when your O-Line isn't tipping their hand.

[AUsince72 11,084]

21 minutes ago, bigbird said:

No reason not to.

 

[Win4AU 4,052]

I think Gus’s biggest flaw and what cost Auburn 2 games and a playoff last year is a plan B.

if things aren’t going well and the defense is stopping what the offense is doing then you have to do something else.  See 2014 UGA, 2016 UGA, 2017 Clemson, 2017 LSU 2nd half, 2017 SEC championship game.  

Also those wanting the 2013-14 offense with Nick Marshall May get to see it next year if Willis can improve on what he learned this spring.  Hopefully he’ll get plenty of mop up duty this year.