SECMD22 - Auburn

[Tiger Refuge 6,660]

One way or another, this is going to end in spectacular fashion.

[IronMan70 3,277]

The people who fund the NIL should be doing it for one reason, to build up the Auburn roster with good players. They should do this no matter who the AU head coach is next year. If they don't and would rather hold this out as a carrot, then they have other agendas.

As far as Harsin, I liked the statement, direct to the point, no backing down. Personally, I would like to see him call out the guy responsible for the scurrilous accusations about his family then proceed to kick his ass, but hey that's just me. I think Coach H, the players and AU get about the business of having a good season.

Edited July 22, 2022 by IronMan70

[maryland tiger 611]

“You have to be a different man to be in this program. A lot of people don’t like us.”

 

[aucanucktiger 1,789]

Interesting. I read "it didnt work" as Harsin responding to complaints by players that tried to sick dogs on him after they transferred out.

Edited July 21, 2022 by aucanucktiger

[GunsmithAU 383]

10 minutes ago, aucanucktiger said:

Interesting. I read "it didnt work" as Harsin responding to complaints by players that tried to sick dogs on him after they transferred out.

Players who left, coaches who left, people associated with his program at Boise...

Harsin was and is a known a**hole. That's only ok if you win and have some level of professionalism to keep staff/recruits around

[JerryAU 1,650]

42 minutes ago, woodford said:

I think it’s awesome. F those people who tried to sabotage his career and marriage. If you have a spine you’ll tell them they can eat sh*t. 
 

I’m bearish on Auburn football but I loved his approach. 

If he'd just made that comment - dropped the mic - and walked off the stage - while giving the entire crowd the double fisted bird I'd be just as pleased.   He shows much more discretion that I would. 

[aubiefifty 16,695]

 

[e808 3,020]

There must be a lot of self employed people in this thread 

[aubiefifty 16,695]

i have posted this twice in others articles. no i have not lost my mind i just felt some folks would not read the whole article and thought they might rather listen as you get tone in his speech as well. and i wanted to back todd up.

[aubiefifty 16,695]

 

[aubiefifty 16,695]

 

[augolf1716 21,096]

7 minutes ago, e808 said:

There must be a lot of self employed people in this thread 

or unemployed........J/K J/K

[gravejd 3,267]

Sounds like Harsin is counting on a winning season to get recruiting going. Hope he is right and can show something good this season. 

[icanthearyou 4,462]

He'd better figure out that the money and power are the game.  His role is closer to the equipment.

Sure, that stinks but,,, that is where we are.

[aubiefifty 16,695]

Bryan Harsin’s message to recruits about Auburn: Just watch

By Tom Green | tgreen@al.com

6-8 minutes

---

Recruiting is the lifeblood of college football, where talent acquisition is the name of the game.

Midway through the 2023 cycle, Auburn is lagging behind the competition. The Tigers have just four commits and the nation’s 74th-ranked class, according to the 247Sports Composite rankings, but head coach Bryan Harsin isn’t pressing the panic button. Quite the opposite, actually: Harsin is remaining patient and diligent with Auburn’s recruiting efforts this year, and on Thursday at SEC Media Days in Atlanta he shared his message to recruits who may have questions about the direction of the program.

“I think the message is: Watch,” Harsin said. “We got to go out there and play. That’s the beauty of what we get a chance to do every Saturday, alright?... We’ve told our recruits: Watch. I think the ones that have been on our campus, they see the energy and the vibe, what’s happening, how the players are responding, coaches are connecting, everything that we’re doing.”

Harsin knows the challenge Auburn faces in recruiting this cycle, with the program coming off its first losing season since 2012 — a 6-7 campaign last year that included a five-game losing streak to end the season — and a tumultuous offseason. That included an exodus of players to the transfer portal at the end of the season, turnover on the coaching staff and, most notably, the university inquiry into Harsin that cast a shadow over the program throughout February.

Harsin emerged from that inquiry triumphant, and he spoke about the “unfounded” and “uncomfortable” ordeal for the final time Thursday. While the second-year coach has long since put the investigation behind him, it has still left Auburn prone to negative recruiting from competing programs. Between that and the tailspin to end last season, Harsin knows his program must prove itself to recruits, and while he’s confident in how his staff has sold the Auburn experience to visiting prospects this year, he’s hopeful on-field results will provide a deserved boost with recruiting.

“There’s a great energy in our program right now,” Harsin said. “There’s alignment in our program right now. I know those recruits and families feel that when they step on campus. Auburn sells itself. It’s a beautiful campus. It’s a phenomenal stadium. The people there are fantastic. Everything about it is what you want to be a part of.

“Now we got to put a product on the field that players want to be a part of. We want to go out there and be successful. Our guys know that. We know that.”

Auburn opens the season with five straight games at Jordan-Hare Stadium, which running back Tank Bigsby acknowledged Thursday could help reverse the momentum from the backslide at the end of last season. The Tigers will need to take advantage of that friendly opening stretch, particularly with road trips to Alabama and Georgia, as well as a mid-November clash with Texas A&M, looming after that start.

“There’s a lot more that goes into it than just grabbing the popular guy and those things like that,” Harsin said. “We’re all competing for them, they got a lot on their plate, they’re trying to figure it out, and most likely as the season goes on they’ll make decisions based off that, where the teams are doing really well and where they end up going, and where that momentum’s at in the season, too. A lot of guys, like, if there’s a lot of momentum on a team, they might go, ‘I want to go to that team.’ They can change their mind, and until December, they got a chance to do that.”

In the meantime, Auburn hopes it can continue to build on its 2023 class as it tries to correct course on the field this fall. Auburn’s four current commits are the fewest among SEC teams, and the Tigers’ 74th-ranked class is also the lowest-ranked in the league at this time — 10 spots below the next-lowest ranked SEC class, Missouri.

The bright side for Auburn is that it gained some positive momentum earlier this month, with four-star running back Jeremiah Cobb committing July 1 and four-star receiver Karmello English pledging to the program July 4. That gave Auburn two of the top-16 players in the state of Alabama during a cycle that many believe to be the strongest in the state, talent-wise, in some time.

The other saving grace for Auburn, despite having just four commits—the other two being four-star safety Terrance Love and four-star offensive lineman Bradyn Joiner—is that the Tigers have the fourth-best average ranking per commit (91.55) among SEC teams, trailing only Alabama (94.13), Georgia (93.15) and LSU (91.59). Each of those teams has at least 13 commits so far this cycle.

Auburn still has a long way to go in filling out its class, and only time will tell if the Tigers can put together another strong finish during December’s early signing period. But Harsin is remaining confident in the program’s ability to turn things around, and he believes the recent addition of longtime NFL scout Drew Fabianich as the program’s general manager will help further advance the team’s recruiting efforts.

“There’s a lot of time between now and when December comes to go out there and see what happens during the season, see how the team’s improved,” Harsin said. “There’s going to be a lot of narrative changes that happen during that time. I will say this: All these players, they’re all open. They’re still all open. These guys, they’re trying to figure it out; they’re 17 years old.…The key is you got to stay focused on what you’re trying to get done, alright, in your recruiting.

“Like, who are you trying to bring in? Because the guys you do bring in, you want them to stay and to be a part of your team and your family, and they’re going to help come in there and develop your team.”

Tom Green is an Auburn beat reporter for Alabama Media Group. Follow him on Twitter @Tomas_Verde.

[imaolgatiger 523]

28 minutes ago, icanthearyou said:

He'd better figure out that the money and power are the game.  His role is closer to the equipment.

Sure, that stinks but,,, that is where we are.

Impossible! The PTB have interfered with every coach since Dye. We have a divided group of money people and that won’t change until some of them are no longer involved in Auburn football! 

[Tiger Refuge 6,660]

“It didn’t work”

 

[DAG 33,955]

Good for him. The players have taken the same attitude as well. Hopefully, it transcends unto the field in success.

[abw0004 10,104]

I have been going back and forth on my impression of his response.  Part of me is glad he went out and addressed it without being asked.  Just shut it down.  But how he got the information across made it an open invitation to the perception that he has not learned how to better speak to people.  Also, his pitch of "Just Watch" I am afraid will invite trolls to use that phrase against us if we lose a game.

I am just ready to start the season so we have something else to talk about.

[aucom96 1,614]

I respect it. 

I don't know how good of a coach Harsin is. I'm not sure I'll ever know. The game has become so bloated and money-consumed that I'm not sure coaching X's and O's is even in the top 10 traits a football coach at a major program needs to have. I wish it were just a game and we could just see what Harsin and his staff could accomplish, but I respect that he has defended his dignity, his family and his professionalism with passion. Too many are just waiting for that buyout or the next paycheck. I truly believe Coach Harsin has a plan and believes in it. Sadly, college football isn't at all about college and is less about football with every passing season.  

[DAG 33,955]

2 hours ago, GunsmithAU said:

Players who left, coaches who left, people associated with his program at Boise...

Harsin was and is a known a**hole. That's only ok if you win and have some level of professionalism to keep staff/recruits around

Accurate. I like what he said but now he added major pressure to himself and the team. Now he has to win. a**holes who are winners are ideal and this is in every line of sports (Connor Mcgregor, Nick Saban, Bill Belichick, John Mcenroe, Michael Jordan, the list goes on). Still, I absolutely loved it. Quite frankly what he said was either going to make the people whom has affinity towards him appreciate it and the opposite to those who don't. I wouldn't expect less at this point. 

Edited July 21, 2022 by DAG

[GunsmithAU 383]

8 minutes ago, DAG said:

Accurate. I like what he said but now he added major pressure to himself and the team. Now he has to win. a**holes who are winners are ideal and this is in every line of sports (Connor Mcgregor, Nick Saban, Bill Belichick, John Mcenroe, Michael Jordan, the list goes on). Still, I absolutely loved it. Quite frankly what he said was either going to make the people he has affinity towards appreciate it and the opposite to those who don't. I wouldn't expect less at this point.

He just locked himself into a live or die year. He probably lost the opportunity to rebuild or foster any cooperation. 

I'm sure he had fun while I'm the podium, but if he doesn't fix out busted ass recruiting class or exceed expectations on the field, his opposition will get the last laugh in about 6 months. 

[GunsmithAU 383]

That sure sounds great but Harsin doesn't really have the leash to play another 3-4 year long game. 

[DAG 33,955]

This was an interesting quote too. Like I said, I like the us against the world mentality, but now you have to be successful on the field. The quote is from Shenker, BTW.

"We had guys that were very singular, individual, and those guys are gone now. And now we have a lot of guys that are bought in to what we are doing and what Coach Harsin wants us to do. And I think that's all that matters."

 

 

[DAG 33,955]

1 hour ago, aubiefifty said:

Bryan Harsin’s message to recruits about Auburn: Just watch

By Tom Green | tgreen@al.com

6-8 minutes

---

Recruiting is the lifeblood of college football, where talent acquisition is the name of the game.

Midway through the 2023 cycle, Auburn is lagging behind the competition. The Tigers have just four commits and the nation’s 74th-ranked class, according to the 247Sports Composite rankings, but head coach Bryan Harsin isn’t pressing the panic button. Quite the opposite, actually: Harsin is remaining patient and diligent with Auburn’s recruiting efforts this year, and on Thursday at SEC Media Days in Atlanta he shared his message to recruits who may have questions about the direction of the program.

“I think the message is: Watch,” Harsin said. “We got to go out there and play. That’s the beauty of what we get a chance to do every Saturday, alright?... We’ve told our recruits: Watch. I think the ones that have been on our campus, they see the energy and the vibe, what’s happening, how the players are responding, coaches are connecting, everything that we’re doing.”

Harsin knows the challenge Auburn faces in recruiting this cycle, with the program coming off its first losing season since 2012 — a 6-7 campaign last year that included a five-game losing streak to end the season — and a tumultuous offseason. That included an exodus of players to the transfer portal at the end of the season, turnover on the coaching staff and, most notably, the university inquiry into Harsin that cast a shadow over the program throughout February.

Harsin emerged from that inquiry triumphant, and he spoke about the “unfounded” and “uncomfortable” ordeal for the final time Thursday. While the second-year coach has long since put the investigation behind him, it has still left Auburn prone to negative recruiting from competing programs. Between that and the tailspin to end last season, Harsin knows his program must prove itself to recruits, and while he’s confident in how his staff has sold the Auburn experience to visiting prospects this year, he’s hopeful on-field results will provide a deserved boost with recruiting.

“There’s a great energy in our program right now,” Harsin said. “There’s alignment in our program right now. I know those recruits and families feel that when they step on campus. Auburn sells itself. It’s a beautiful campus. It’s a phenomenal stadium. The people there are fantastic. Everything about it is what you want to be a part of.

“Now we got to put a product on the field that players want to be a part of. We want to go out there and be successful. Our guys know that. We know that.”

Auburn opens the season with five straight games at Jordan-Hare Stadium, which running back Tank Bigsby acknowledged Thursday could help reverse the momentum from the backslide at the end of last season. The Tigers will need to take advantage of that friendly opening stretch, particularly with road trips to Alabama and Georgia, as well as a mid-November clash with Texas A&M, looming after that start.

“There’s a lot more that goes into it than just grabbing the popular guy and those things like that,” Harsin said. “We’re all competing for them, they got a lot on their plate, they’re trying to figure it out, and most likely as the season goes on they’ll make decisions based off that, where the teams are doing really well and where they end up going, and where that momentum’s at in the season, too. A lot of guys, like, if there’s a lot of momentum on a team, they might go, ‘I want to go to that team.’ They can change their mind, and until December, they got a chance to do that.”

In the meantime, Auburn hopes it can continue to build on its 2023 class as it tries to correct course on the field this fall. Auburn’s four current commits are the fewest among SEC teams, and the Tigers’ 74th-ranked class is also the lowest-ranked in the league at this time — 10 spots below the next-lowest ranked SEC class, Missouri.

The bright side for Auburn is that it gained some positive momentum earlier this month, with four-star running back Jeremiah Cobb committing July 1 and four-star receiver Karmello English pledging to the program July 4. That gave Auburn two of the top-16 players in the state of Alabama during a cycle that many believe to be the strongest in the state, talent-wise, in some time.

The other saving grace for Auburn, despite having just four commits—the other two being four-star safety Terrance Love and four-star offensive lineman Bradyn Joiner—is that the Tigers have the fourth-best average ranking per commit (91.55) among SEC teams, trailing only Alabama (94.13), Georgia (93.15) and LSU (91.59). Each of those teams has at least 13 commits so far this cycle.

Auburn still has a long way to go in filling out its class, and only time will tell if the Tigers can put together another strong finish during December’s early signing period. But Harsin is remaining confident in the program’s ability to turn things around, and he believes the recent addition of longtime NFL scout Drew Fabianich as the program’s general manager will help further advance the team’s recruiting efforts.

“There’s a lot of time between now and when December comes to go out there and see what happens during the season, see how the team’s improved,” Harsin said. “There’s going to be a lot of narrative changes that happen during that time. I will say this: All these players, they’re all open. They’re still all open. These guys, they’re trying to figure it out; they’re 17 years old.…The key is you got to stay focused on what you’re trying to get done, alright, in your recruiting.

“Like, who are you trying to bring in? Because the guys you do bring in, you want them to stay and to be a part of your team and your family, and they’re going to help come in there and develop your team.”

Tom Green is an Auburn beat reporter for Alabama Media Group. Follow him on Twitter @Tomas_Verde.

Been saying this since last spring. At this point, we got to show it on the field. That is where we are at right now. Thanks for the post.