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Is Gus Sandbagging?


Weegle777

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I'm not even sure what to say about this, you think that 2010 Auburn with our best QB in history towards the END of the season is at all comparable to Auburn at this part? 2010 Auburn wouldn't have been close to KSU and no comeback would've been necessary.

Plus its a FOUR YEAR DIFFERENCE, these aren't the same teams. This team did terrible on offense for roughly 3 quarters and almost lost. That is the harsh truth. How can you possibly say the play calling would change based on 3rd quarter playcalling under Malzahn in 2013? That's literally his biggest flaw, watch Ole Miss, FSU, Alabama, Mississippi State, bad playcalling.

Oh good grief. That comparison wasn't about the teams or the players, it was about Gus Malzahn making adjustments to counter what was stopping his offense.

He didn't make adjustments, eventually the receivers started catching balls because we almost lost. The running game was never ANYTHING.

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I would bet money Gus comes out for the first snap with a different look than he has all year, like he did against AL in the iron bowl. Just something to get the DC for LSU thinking.

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when you win a game by 6 points to a team that gave you an interception actually traded for a TD, missed 3 FGs, yes that is almost losing. you can spin it differently but the point is you dont sandbag and play that close. we are struggling in some areas. we might have to adjust our expectations.

We all see things through the lens we choose to see them. Did they 'give' Auburn an interception, or did Auburn's defense force a laser beam throw from 5 yards away that the receiver couldn't handle, and then capitalize on the miscue? And how are you so sure that it would have been a TD in the first place? If AU hadn't come up with the INT, why is it presumed that KSU wouldn't have been held to a field goal? I suppose that doesn't fit the narrative you want to believe, does it?

Yes, they missed three field goals. Two of them were from beyond 40 yards, hardly considered a gimme, and one of those was from that distance because the defense came up with a sack on third down. And, again, had any of that "luck" not played out the way it did, it would have altered our game plan.

But the fact that Auburn's first touchdown came on a quick drive to answer KSU's first touchdown is a testament to how quickly we could have scored if Malzahn had been trying to push the pace and score more points. The fact that Auburn's second touchdown came on a 15 play drive when the Wildcat D failed time and again to stop the Tiger O on third down is a testament to how much more consistently we played in the second half.

The fact that the Wildcats did not get the ball with a chance to take the lead AT ANY POINT in the fourth quarter is a testament to how much they didn't come close to beating us. THAT is why I say that it isn't so far fetched to think that Gus was sandbagging, at least to some degree. The game was NEVER out of hand, and thus he was able to work primarily on execution of the base offense rather than being forced to open up the playbook and let it all hang out.

Now, I will (and have) wholeheartedly agree that we have areas to work on if Auburn is to have the season we all want to have. That's not groundbreaking news by any stretch.

But stop belittling the team's effort just because you aren't satisfied with such a close win.

If you want to stack your argument the way you did - fine. At this point I consider the game like an airplane landing - any one you walk away from is a good one.

But why put in that last line? Anyone who expresses concern, feels there is room for improvement or feels we were lucky to get out with a win is "belittling the team's effort." I think most of your arguments above are about the K-State game are delusional. Our D was so good it caused a change in the velocity of the ball which caused a wide open receiver to drop it? Gus was not pushing the pace implying he was not trying to score more points on purpose? But it is your right to have such opinions and I will not propose you should stop expressing them. Quit suggesting people should stop expressing opinions just because they are different from yours. Frank evaluation of a team's performance is not belittling the team.

LMAO. Not only that but our CB was intentionally trailing the wr 3 yards so he could have time to react to the deflection and intercept the ball.
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Guest jojo1515

when you win a game by 6 points to a team that gave you an interception actually traded for a TD, missed 3 FGs, yes that is almost losing. you can spin it differently but the point is you dont sandbag and play that close. we are struggling in some areas. we might have to adjust our expectations.

We all see things through the lens we choose to see them. Did they 'give' Auburn an interception, or did Auburn's defense force a laser beam throw from 5 yards away that the receiver couldn't handle, and then capitalize on the miscue? And how are you so sure that it would have been a TD in the first place? If AU hadn't come up with the INT, why is it presumed that KSU wouldn't have been held to a field goal? I suppose that doesn't fit the narrative you want to believe, does it?

Yes, they missed three field goals. Two of them were from beyond 40 yards, hardly considered a gimme, and one of those was from that distance because the defense came up with a sack on third down. And, again, had any of that "luck" not played out the way it did, it would have altered our game plan.

But the fact that Auburn's first touchdown came on a quick drive to answer KSU's first touchdown is a testament to how quickly we could have scored if Malzahn had been trying to push the pace and score more points. The fact that Auburn's second touchdown came on a 15 play drive when the Wildcat D failed time and again to stop the Tiger O on third down is a testament to how much more consistently we played in the second half.

The fact that the Wildcats did not get the ball with a chance to take the lead AT ANY POINT in the fourth quarter is a testament to how much they didn't come close to beating us. THAT is why I say that it isn't so far fetched to think that Gus was sandbagging, at least to some degree. The game was NEVER out of hand, and thus he was able to work primarily on execution of the base offense rather than being forced to open up the playbook and let it all hang out.

Now, I will (and have) wholeheartedly agree that we have areas to work on if Auburn is to have the season we all want to have. That's not groundbreaking news by any stretch.

But stop belittling the team's effort just because you aren't satisfied with such a close win.

If you want to stack your argument the way you did - fine. At this point I consider the game like an airplane landing - any one you walk away from is a good one.

But why put in that last line? Anyone who expresses concern, feels there is room for improvement or feels we were lucky to get out with a win is "belittling the team's effort." I think most of your arguments above are about the K-State game are delusional. Our D was so good it caused a change in the velocity of the ball which caused a wide open receiver to drop it? Gus was not pushing the pace implying he was not trying to score more points on purpose? But it is your right to have such opinions and I will not propose you should stop expressing them. Quit suggesting people should stop expressing opinions just because they are different from yours. Frank evaluation of a team's performance is not belittling the team.

LMAO. Not only that but our CB was intentionally trailing the wr 3 yards so he could have time to react to the deflection and intercept the ball.

Not agreeing with either side on the whole argument, but on the INT, the qb was under pressure and had to quickly release the ball, therefore throwing it very hard for a short 5 yard pass. The receiver was either not expecting such a fast throw, or the ball was too hot to handle. Either way, our D influenced the pass enough to make it hard to catch. This is what led to the INT...that and the fact that Jones completely blew the coverage and was somehow 3 yards behind a receiver on a 5 yard route. The INT was a little lucky but the possibility was created by the pass rush.

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when you win a game by 6 points to a team that gave you an interception actually traded for a TD, missed 3 FGs, yes that is almost losing. you can spin it differently but the point is you dont sandbag and play that close. we are struggling in some areas. we might have to adjust our expectations.

We all see things through the lens we choose to see them. Did they 'give' Auburn an interception, or did Auburn's defense force a laser beam throw from 5 yards away that the receiver couldn't handle, and then capitalize on the miscue? And how are you so sure that it would have been a TD in the first place? If AU hadn't come up with the INT, why is it presumed that KSU wouldn't have been held to a field goal? I suppose that doesn't fit the narrative you want to believe, does it?

Yes, they missed three field goals. Two of them were from beyond 40 yards, hardly considered a gimme, and one of those was from that distance because the defense came up with a sack on third down. And, again, had any of that "luck" not played out the way it did, it would have altered our game plan.

But the fact that Auburn's first touchdown came on a quick drive to answer KSU's first touchdown is a testament to how quickly we could have scored if Malzahn had been trying to push the pace and score more points. The fact that Auburn's second touchdown came on a 15 play drive when the Wildcat D failed time and again to stop the Tiger O on third down is a testament to how much more consistently we played in the second half.

The fact that the Wildcats did not get the ball with a chance to take the lead AT ANY POINT in the fourth quarter is a testament to how much they didn't come close to beating us. THAT is why I say that it isn't so far fetched to think that Gus was sandbagging, at least to some degree. The game was NEVER out of hand, and thus he was able to work primarily on execution of the base offense rather than being forced to open up the playbook and let it all hang out.

Now, I will (and have) wholeheartedly agree that we have areas to work on if Auburn is to have the season we all want to have. That's not groundbreaking news by any stretch.

But stop belittling the team's effort just because you aren't satisfied with such a close win.

If you want to stack your argument the way you did - fine. At this point I consider the game like an airplane landing - any one you walk away from is a good one.

But why put in that last line? Anyone who expresses concern, feels there is room for improvement or feels we were lucky to get out with a win is "belittling the team's effort." I think most of your arguments above are about the K-State game are delusional. Our D was so good it caused a change in the velocity of the ball which caused a wide open receiver to drop it? Gus was not pushing the pace implying he was not trying to score more points on purpose? But it is your right to have such opinions and I will not propose you should stop expressing them. Quit suggesting people should stop expressing opinions just because they are different from yours. Frank evaluation of a team's performance is not belittling the team.

LMAO. Not only that but our CB was intentionally trailing the wr 3 yards so he could have time to react to the deflection and intercept the ball.

Not agreeing with either side on the whole argument, but on the INT, the qb was under pressure and had to quickly release the ball, therefore throwing it very hard for a short 5 yard pass. The receiver was either not expecting such a fast throw, or the ball was too hot to handle. Either way, our D influenced the pass enough to make it hard to catch. This is what led to the INT...that and the fact that Jones completely blew the coverage and was somehow 3 yards behind a receiver on a 5 yard route. The INT was a little lucky but the possibility was created by the pass rush.

I was about to type out my response, but jojo did a pretty good job of explaining it. I would only add that there was a narrow enough window, both in the time that he could throw the ball and the space in which he had to throw it, that he had to put a higher amount of velocity than usual in order to get it to the receiver.

As for the pace argument, I wasn't implying anything about not trying to score points, I was saying that he had the game in hand and he was calling plays that would minimize mistakes and not give K-State a chance to take the game out of hand.

Now, regarding the point of belittling the team's effort, I should have said that a different way; I was not talking about how much effort the team put into the game, but rather the overall outcome of that effort. The fact of the matter, as I have already stated, is that Kansas State never had the ball in the fourth quarter with a chance to tie or take the lead. That is why I say that at no point was Auburn ever "about to lose", as several have suggested. Does that clear things up at all?

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Guest jojo1515

Red, it's hard to change people's point of view sometimes. What those that say we would have lost if... aren't factoring in is that we had the lead and no need to score (not that it wouldn't have helped). I agree with you that Gus was calling the game in the 4th Q to try and minimize the risk of mistakes. We were on the road, on a Thursday night, at the biggest non conference game our opponent had seen at their stadium in some 20 years. For them, this was as big as the Iron bowl. For us, it was like a Thursday at Ole Miss. We had the lead, no need for panic or to push. Our D was playing well enough to allow conservative play calling on offense. Had the game been tied or had we trailed, the offensive play calling in the 4th Q would have been a whole lot different. So while Gus may not have sand bagged in that particular game, he certainly played it very close to the vest. No need in risking anything unnecessary in a huge trap game on Thursday night, halfway across the country against a top 20 very disciplined team.

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This sounds like turd reasoning by some on this board. Everything that happens is lucky for AU but natural for everyone else. I would venture that most interceptions are deflected at some point. When a QB is rushed to throw and the delivery is not where it is supposed to be, it usually results in a incompletion or and interception. Happens quiet frequently. We missed at least two interceptions in that game that we should have also made. We dropped a couple of easy touchdowns also. In addition for those not paying attention Gus was playing ball control most all the forth quarter, and that as the only reason KS scored at the end. Why don't you uat fans posing as AU fans just go on back to your team's website, they need all the help they can get. WDE

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Getting close to game time now, perhaps it's time we all move on from games played two weeks ago. At this point, we've thoroughly beat this topic to a pulp and no ones view of past events will change. :)

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Play calling was as it should be in the 4rth. We did not establish a running game at all. The passing game was out of sync for most of the game. We won because we were just strong enough to overcome a sloppy game AND kstate did not take advantage of our sloppiness. I'm happy to be able to win despite of a less than stellar showing. I don't see why we need to make excuses for it by insinuating it was a comfortable win or claiming the coach was just toying with them. And yes we were a fumbled snap or batted pass from losing. Just fact.

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This sounds like turd reasoning by some on this board. Everything that happens is lucky for AU but natural for everyone else. I would venture that most interceptions are deflected at some point. When a QB is rushed to throw and the delivery is not where it is supposed to be, it usually results in a incompletion or and interception. Happens quiet frequently. We missed at least two interceptions in that game that we should have also made. We dropped a couple of easy touchdowns also. In addition for those not paying attention Gus was playing ball control most all the forth quarter, and that as the only reason KS scored at the end. Why don't you uat fans posing as AU fans just go on back to your team's website, they need all the help they can get. WDE

I certainly would't go so far as to say that the board has been infested with bammers who are trying to drag us down, but the line about everything that happens is lucky for AU but natural for everyone else is getting pretty close to the heart of my issues with the way some have been treating the KSU game. We had a lot of things go wrong for us, but we made a lot of good things happen, too, and highlighting the negative while dismissing the positive is evidence of what I would call, at the very least, a poor mentality.

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I agree Red. I can understand this coming from rivals but no way a true AU person could fall for such crap. Gus did take the foot off the pedal at the end of the K St game both in respect of K St's coach and not wanting to get anymore injuries. If folks listen sometimes they would hear what the coaches are really saying in their post game briefings. WDE

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Play calling was as it should be in the 4rth. We did not establish a running game at all. The passing game was out of sync for most of the game. We won because we were just strong enough to overcome a sloppy game AND kstate did not take advantage of our sloppiness. I'm happy to be able to win despite of a less than stellar showing. I don't see why we need to make excuses for it by insinuating it was a comfortable win or claiming the coach was just toying with them. And yes we were a fumbled snap or batted pass from losing. Just fact.

So they weren't sloppy at all? Waters scrambling for his life and trying to hit his favorite receiver, only to be intercepted by Trovon Reed, wasn't them being sloppy and us taking advantage? By the way, K-State did get a batted pass that they turned into an interception. Think that was when they scored the first touchdown, as well...but that wasn't them taking advantage of the sloppiness, was it?

No, the game was not as comfortable as it could have been. No, the coach wasn't toying with them, and if I ever gave indication that I thought that was what happened, then I apologize.

But you are wrong that we were a fumbled snap or batted pass away from losing. We were a fumbled snap or batted pass away from giving them a chance to take the lead, perhaps, but in both of those cases, either they score on the turnover and give us the ball back with between 1:30 and 3:00 left on the clock to drive down and kick a field goal, or we go back on defense needing only to keep them out of the end zone. Only in the most pessimistic mindset possible did we almost lose the game, and do please forgive me for daring to believe that we should think positively about Auburn's chances...especially when we've won 16 of the last 18 games, many of them requiring that the team come through in the clutch.

*Edit* The batted pass that led to an interception was not right before their touchdown drive, but it did put them in position to down a punt on our 1 yard line, flipping the field position and giving them a chance to get a good punt return after our ensuing drive ended. That punt return did set up their first touchdown...which, again, we answered with a touchdown of our own.

The bottom line is that the game was, indeed, sloppy (on both sides), but the only way I can see Auburn fans being upset is if they convinced themselves that we would win this one going away, and when things didn't work out like that, all of a sudden it seemed like the sky was falling.

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Play calling was as it should be in the 4rth. We did not establish a running game at all. The passing game was out of sync for most of the game. We won because we were just strong enough to overcome a sloppy game AND kstate did not take advantage of our sloppiness. I'm happy to be able to win despite of a less than stellar showing. I don't see why we need to make excuses for it by insinuating it was a comfortable win or claiming the coach was just toying with them. And yes we were a fumbled snap or batted pass from losing. Just fact.

So they weren't sloppy at all? Waters scrambling for his life and trying to hit his favorite receiver, only to be intercepted by Trovon Reed wasn't them being sloppy and us taking advantage? By the way, K-State did get a batted pass that they turned into an interception. Think that was when they scored the first touchdown, as well...but that wasn't them taking advantage of the sloppiness, was it?

No, the game was not as comfortable as it could have been. No, the coach wasn't toying with them, and if I ever gave indication that I thought that was what happened, then I apologize.

But you are wrong that we were a fumbled snap or batted pass away from losing. We were a fumbled snap or batted pass away from giving them a chance to take the lead, perhaps, but in both of those cases, either they score on the turnover and give us the ball back with between 1:30 and 3:00 left on the clock to drive down and kick a field goal, or we go back on defense needing only to keep them out of the end zone. Only in the most pessimistic mindset possible did we almost lose the game, and do please forgive me for daring to believe that we should think positively about Auburn's chances...especially when we've won 16 of the last 18 games, many of them requiring that the team come through in the clutch.

If 2 or 3 of those earlier dropped passes connected, the whole game changes. Crowd gets out of it, making it easier for us on offense due to noise,etc.

While not for certain, if those passes connect we could have easily turned it into a blowout.

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If 2 or 3 of those earlier dropped passes connected, the whole game changes. Crowd gets out of it, making it easier for us on offense due to noise,etc.

While not for certain, if those passes connect we could have easily turned it into a blowout.

I agree in principle, but there's a reason I didn't use those plays as evidence for us having the game under control in the second half, and you pointed it out: they would have changed the entire complexion of the game. Just like the INT in the end zone or the three missed field goals...all of those incidents, had they turned out differently, would have changed the way Malzahn and Snyder managed the rest of the contest.

As it is, both teams had missed opportunities, both teams capitalized on errors made by the other, and still it took a big time stop by the Wildcat defense, followed by a monumental drive by the K-State offense, in order to put them in a position where they could take the lead with either ANOTHER big time stop and monumental drive, or a monumental screw up by Auburn. Ergo, it stands to reason that even if they had come through on all of their opportunities, Auburn likely would have had an answer, because our Tigers had an answer for everything else in that game.

And, of course, suggesting that it was Kansas State's errors alone that prevented them from coming through denies credit to the defense for causing enough trouble that KSU committed the errors in the first place. Again, it all comes back to the lens through which one sees things.

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I'm not sure what we are arguing about now. My point is and always has been that Gus did not sandbag. The score was 6 point win. One play can change the outcome. Gus tried his best as did the players and won I'm happy we did. I don't know why we won so close and didn't look sharp but it was not by design as has been implied. So in my humble opinion we almost lost. I hope that is as close as we get.

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It is in no way being a pessimist when thinking we should of lost the k state game or that it wasn't a fumble or something away from a loss like some are disagreeing with. I think we where clearly the better team talent wise but I mean did yall watch the game.Their best receiver has a td hit him in the numbers and bounce up for a pick. Their field goal kicker missed three field goals I think. Thats 16pts they squandered. We won by 6... We clearly where close to losing. But I'm not down about it I mean how many teams can say they played one of their worse games in 2 years and that game was a win on the road against a ranked team.Thats alot better than being a 30pt blowout loss.But make no mistake some things went our way that night or its a big fat L for sure.

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I'm not sure what we are arguing about now. My point is and always has been that Gus did not sandbag. The score was 6 point win. One play can change the outcome. Gus tried his best as did the players and won I'm happy we did. I don't know why we won so close and didn't look sharp but it was not by design as has been implied. So in my humble opinion we almost lost. I hope that is as close as we get.

I don't either. I, like you, do not consider a game that can be lost on 1 play as "in hand." I've seen kickers make 40 yard field goals and I've seen receivers catch high velocity passes. Even though I feel we were somewhat lucky I'm tickled we beat a top 20 team on the road on a weirdly scheduled game in a damn tough place to play. Perhaps the most important trait any team can have is finding a way to win and we consistently do so. But to say that K-State had no chance to win is rewriting history to please oneself.

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I'm not sure what we are arguing about now. My point is and always has been that Gus did not sandbag. The score was 6 point win. One play can change the outcome. Gus tried his best as did the players and won I'm happy we did. I don't know why we won so close and didn't look sharp but it was not by design as has been implied. So in my humble opinion we almost lost. I hope that is as close as we get.

I don't think he was sandbagging in that game as much as he was being cautious...but once we took control of the game, going up two scores in the opening minute of the fourth quarter, I don't think it's unfair to say that he was not showing nearly as much of the offense, at least down the stretch, as he would have been had the game not been in hand. That's why I said in my initial reply on this thread that I do think Malzahn has been sandbagging to some degree (well, that and the playcalling against La Tech), not that he has been doing so wholeheartedly.

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It is in no way being a pessimist when thinking we should of lost the k state game or that it wasn't a fumble or something away from a loss like some are disagreeing with. I think we where clearly the better team talent wise but I mean did yall watch the game.Their best receiver has a td hit him in the numbers and bounce up for a pick. Their field goal kicker missed three field goals I think. Thats 16pts they squandered. We won by 6... We clearly where close to losing. But I'm not down about it I mean how many teams can say they played one of their worse games in 2 years and that game was a win on the road against a ranked team.Thats alot better than being a 30pt blowout loss.But make no mistake some things went our way that night or its a big fat L for sure.

Good grief. Yes, I watched the game. Again, two of those field goals were from 40+ yards. Again, that throw that hit their best receiver in the numbers was made on a rope because of the pressure on the QB and the size of the window to fit the ball in to him. Again, we had a TD pass hit OUR best receiver in the hands that he dropped. Again, had they scored on any of those missed opportunities, it would have changed our strategy going forward from that point.

And, again, it took a huge stop by their defense midway through the fourth quarter, followed by a huge TD drive by a struggling offense, just to pull within 6 points with less than 4 minutes to go. Auburn picked up one first down and the game was over.

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I don't either. I, like you, do not consider a game that can be lost on 1 play as "in hand." I've seen kickers make 40 yard field goals and I've seen receivers catch high velocity passes. Even though I feel we were somewhat lucky I'm tickled we beat a top 20 team on the road on a weirdly scheduled game in a damn tough place to play. Perhaps the most important trait any team can have is finding a way to win and we consistently do so. But to say that K-State had no chance to win is rewriting history to please oneself.

For the record, I never said K-State had no chance to win. I said it took a magnificent effort by first their defense and then their offense just to get into the position where a miracle play would have given them a victory. That, to me, means they didn't "almost win". And just to eschew obfuscation, the game wasn't in hand because of a one score lead. It was in hand because all we had to do was hold onto the ball for three and a half minutes when they had only one timeout in order to close out the game. In other words, it would have just about taken everything going wrong for Auburn and everything going right for KSU in order for them to win.

I've seen kickers miss multiple field goals from within 30 yards in the same game; does that mean it is assured to happen? I've seen receivers go airborn, twist their body around 180 degrees, catch a pass thrown high and behind them with one hand, and come down with a heel in bounds...but you'd be hard pressed to find anyone who said the defense was lucky if that receiver had made just one miscue and not pulled the ball in for the catch.

Auburn didn't dominate the game the way we hoped they would, and I really get the feeling that a great deal of the negativity surrounding the way we got the win is due to not pulling away against them the way we did against Arkansas.

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By the way, since so few seem to have bothered to pay any attention whatsoever to that long comment that caused someone to ask me what I was smoking, I acknowledged that Kansas State could have won, but that Auburn could have just as easily turned it into a blowout. If we had scored a touchdown midway through the fourth quarter instead of a field goal, that would have made the score 24-7. Had that happened, the Wildcats would have probably been beaten emotionally, giving our defense the chance to stop them three and out and force a punt, or perhaps even force a turnover if they started pressing to get quick scores and made a mistake. If that had happened, we could very easily have started manhandling their defensive line and tacked on another touchdown doing nothing but running the ball down their throat. Therefore, if we're talking about the impact of one play, it isn't so difficult to see such a play turning the game into a 31-7 trouncing rather than a 20-14 contest.

Now, that having been said, I think I've recounted every piece of my logic on the subject at least twice, so hopefully everyone understands why I think what I do, and I will do my best not to respond again unless a new aspect of the discussion comes into play. Obviously there are those who are completely unwilling to admit that there IS any logic in my argument, as it has already been dubbed delusional by one commentator, but to each their own.

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It is in no way being a pessimist when thinking we should of lost the k state game or that it wasn't a fumble or something away from a loss like some are disagreeing with. I think we where clearly the better team talent wise but I mean did yall watch the game.Their best receiver has a td hit him in the numbers and bounce up for a pick. Their field goal kicker missed three field goals I think. Thats 16pts they squandered. We won by 6... We clearly where close to losing. But I'm not down about it I mean how many teams can say they played one of their worse games in 2 years and that game was a win on the road against a ranked team.Thats alot better than being a 30pt blowout loss.But make no mistake some things went our way that night or its a big fat L for sure.

Good grief. Yes, I watched the game. Again, two of those field goals were from 40+ yards. Again, that throw that hit their best receiver in the numbers was made on a rope because of the pressure on the QB and the size of the window to fit the ball in to him. Again, we had a TD pass hit OUR best receiver in the hands that he dropped. Again, had they scored on any of those missed opportunities, it would have changed our strategy going forward from that point.

And, again, it took a huge stop by their defense midway through the fourth quarter, followed by a huge TD drive by a struggling offense, just to pull within 6 points with less than 4 minutes to go. Auburn picked up one first down and the game was over.

I agree, Red. But people see what they want to see.

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I don't believe he was sandbagging or holding back just toying with our opponents. Gus had certain things he really wanted to work on in the early games. The revamped offensive line was and is a problem. That is not something you cure overnight. He wanted to get the guys up front as much repetition on certain plays as he could to try and work on their understanding of each other and the things they wanted to get done. Now with Miller injured one only knows how that will affect things. Continuity on the O line is crucial and you can't keep running guys in and out of the lineup. If everyone can stay healthy they can pull it together. This offense isn't going to suddenly kick it into high gear and be a well oiled machine. There is a reason why they have not looked sharp in the first 4 games of the season.

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