The worst part to me.

[Taiyushka 0]

Saban is an a**hole. He can have turd stew and I'd take Gus any day. Football isn't the only thing AU has to offer and it's not as important as people in the South make it out to be. Imagine what we could do with all this negative energy........... :)/> Alabama Power would be wise to tap into it.

I don't know either Saban or Gus personally so I can't really say if one of them is a nicer guy than the other. What I do know is that Saban has won 4 national titles at separate schools and has teams that always compete. At two separate points tonight, Alabama was down big and never gave up, damn near pulled it out. Saban's teams NEVER get blown out. Meanwhile, Malzahn has had one stellar year, followed by an underwhelming year that included a loss to a below average A&M team and an ass beating from Georgia.

I love Auburn. I'm a fourth generation graduate. There's much more to Auburn than football. All of that being said, if I was AD and you gave me Saban and Gus's resumès and told me I had to hire one, I'd hire Saban. Gus is making more money in a year than most of us will get in ten and he hasn't proved that his head coaching career is anything but a flash in the pan. Saban is probably the best coach of the 21st century with only Meyer even close. Let's be realistic.

Football coaches should be judged on how their teams play (and behave off-field,) not on whether we think one is a nicer guy than the other.

So 2013 doesn't matter a lick? Or 2010? Gus had his hands on both. And he's a third year HC.....Saban won how many titles by year 4?

2013 was great. 2010 was better. The biggest reason for 2010 was Cam. Look, I like Gus. I really want him to succeed. God knows we can't keep paying off coaches. I just think you're being a huge homer by saying you'd take him over Saban. Gus just laid a gigantic egg today and nearly lost to an FCS team last week. I'm pretty sure Auburn didn't invest 4 million a year in him so we could suck. It's not unrealistic to expect Auburn to pound Jack State and be competitive against LSU.

[AUFriction 1,179]

As someone who specializes in talent evaluation, appraisal, and development, Saban is not a good coach. BUT before you jump on me, read this post completely. Being a college head coach has little to do with coaching. Being a good college coach is about being a good business man. College coaches don't have to coach fundamentals. That responsibility mostly sits with position coaches. College head coaches don't always call plays, as that responsibility officially sits with the coordinators. College head coaches have the following responsibilities: managing recruiting of players, bringing in the right coaches/coordinators, setting practice schedules, making the big game decisions, and motivating players. Saban does all of these (except for maybe the last one) very well. He is an excellent business man and sells his program well to players and coaches. I think he is a butt head and I don't think of him as a true "coach" but he is a great college head coach.

Literally the dumbest thing I've read all day.

Care to elaborate?

I'd also assume you are not a chess player. Position the pieces well and attack. That's what Saban does and it works. You don't have to coach players well if you get coaches that do.

[AuCivilEng1 10,994]

Saban is an a**hole. He can have turd stew and I'd take Gus any day. Football isn't the only thing AU has to offer and it's not as important as people in the South make it out to be. Imagine what we could do with all this negative energy........... :)/> Alabama Power would be wise to tap into it.

I don't know either Saban or Gus personally so I can't really say if one of them is a nicer guy than the other. What I do know is that Saban has won 4 national titles at separate schools and has teams that always compete. At two separate points tonight, Alabama was down big and never gave up, damn near pulled it out. Saban's teams NEVER get blown out. Meanwhile, Malzahn has had one stellar year, followed by an underwhelming year that included a loss to a below average A&M team and an ass beating from Georgia.

I love Auburn. I'm a fourth generation graduate. There's much more to Auburn than football. All of that being said, if I was AD and you gave me Saban and Gus's resumès and told me I had to hire one, I'd hire Saban. Gus is making more money in a year than most of us will get in ten and he hasn't proved that his head coaching career is anything but a flash in the pan. Saban is probably the best coach of the 21st century with only Meyer even close. Let's be realistic.

Football coaches should be judged on how their teams play (and behave off-field,) not on whether we think one is a nicer guy than the other.

So 2013 doesn't matter a lick? Or 2010? Gus had his hands on both. And he's a third year HC.....Saban won how many titles by year 4?

Let's be real about this, bud. Yea we won the Iron Bowl in 2010 and 2013, but that was it since Tubs left. Think long and hard about that. Those two games took literal miracles to pull off too. I hate Alabama and Saban with every inch of my soul, but realistically the reason I hate Saban is because he shows our coaches up on a pretty regular basis. And he doesn't do it with gimmicks and cheating. He does it by demanding the best out of everyone around him. He's up Lane Kiffin's butt chewing him out the whole game like a father to his son. He doesn't put up with coaches and players not doing their job. I've always been on that "Saban is overrated bandwagon too", but there is only so much you can lie to yourself before you realize that the guys is doing something right.

[metafour 4,958]

Care to elaborate?

I'd also assume you are not a chess player. Position the pieces well and attack. That's what Saban does and it works. You don't have to coach players well if you get coaches that do.

He spent four seasons as a DC in the NFL under Bill Belichick; to state that he isn't a good coach is absurd. His teams take on the identity of HIM, not his position coaches. We've hired some highly regarded position coaches over the years and our defense still blows, how does that work? You think its as easy as hiring a few position coaches/coordinators and watching the results? You're completely oblivious to what it takes. Yes, his teams are filled with talent...but maximizing that talent and breaking a bunch of inflated egos down into a TEAM is a whole new ball game, and no one does it as well as Saban.

The head coach sets the entire culture and mentality of your team. A loser head coach with the best assistants on the planet will still field a loser team.

[AUFriction 1,179]

Care to elaborate?

I'd also assume you are not a chess player. Position the pieces well and attack. That's what Saban does and it works. You don't have to coach players well if you get coaches that do.

He spent four seasons as a DC in the NFL under Bill Belichick; to state that he isn't a good coach is absurd. His teams take on the identity of HIM, not his position coaches. We've hired some highly regarded position coaches over the years and our defense still blows, how does that work? You think its as easy as hiring a few position coaches/coordinators and watching the results? You're completely oblivious to what it takes. Yes, his teams are filled with talent...but maximizing that talent and breaking a bunch of inflated egos down into a TEAM is a whole new ball game, and no one does it as well as Saban.

The head coach sets the entire culture and mentality of your team. A loser head coach with the best assistants on the planet will still field a loser team.

That is part of management though. That is all about direction and expectation management. (Ironically effective leadership is a big part of my research.) That is by definition a business function. A coach is defined as "to train or instruct." I dont see Saban as doing much of a that. I think that is at least part of the reason that he failed at Miami.

His knowledge skills and abilities make him more of a macro level manager. He oversees the direction of the program, sets goals, and makes sure that the right players and coaches are on the roster. One of my classmates (that was a bama walk on a few years ago)made some statements that seemed to confirm this.

[3Jtiger22 0]

Watching Bama, who was down 20 with 8 mins to go in the 4th, fight their tails off. Wtf, man?

it's called character and leadership. They have it year after year and we don't.

Bingo.

Name the last leader on an Auburn team.

We have clowns like Ford which tells you guys like Duke are breading foolishness, not character.

That along with a head coach that is stubborn as heck gives you what we have.

But hold on men. It is about to get ugly.

Injuries and losses are just beginning.

[EaglesWest 2]

One word: leadership. We don't have it on either side of the ball this year. We need Lawson desperately, he brings more than just tangible playing talent. How many times have you heard, "He makes everyone better", that's a leadership quality. Even the coaches look to him for a coaching-level of leadership. Not having him travel to the game yesterday was a huge mistake; maybe it had to do with the injury, I don't know.

The entire offense is running at half-speed now, just look at Duke as the perfect example. He's not even giving a quarter of the effort in him. He doesn't finish routes, blocking's horrendous etc. He knows JJ won't come close to getting the ball within a yard of him. Sad. And he knows that JJ knows that, too. That's why JJ can't lead - he has no confidence in himself, so no other player is going to, either.

Champ can yell and scream all day long, Gus can yell, "WHAT WAS THAT?!" as long as he wants. But until some on-field leadership is established, we could be looking at, as Eddie Murphy's Buckwheat used to say, the "Oh no, not a'din" days of 2012 again.

[Vandelay 5]

Worst part to me is realizing the state of our football program after watching these last two games. Gus can be a genius when he gets the pieces to fall into place, but when that doesn't happen his flaws as a head coach stand out like a sore thumb. I no longer believe Gus has the acumen required of a high level D1 head coach to bring this program the sustained level of success (that Auburn fans will demand) under his tenure. I hope he proves me wrong.

We often talk about teams and QB's going through growing pains and taking their lumps, but it should now be very evident to us that our coach is going through some long-term growing pains. Perhaps he will eventually own up to and learn from his mistakes, but as it stands now he comes across as very stubborn and prideful to a fault.

War Eagle, but I feel like it's time for me to stop getting so heavily invested in the season like I do every year...

[AURealist 2,185]

The worst part to me:

The coaching staff during preseason practice couldn't tell the difference between 'SEC Championship caliber team w/Heisman candidate' and 'Dumpster Fire'.

Now that it's clear where the reality lies and that issues exist, those issues can be addressed. I think (hope) Gus will be bold from now on and the team will come together.

[aujeff11 6,243]

Worst part to me is fact CGM thought our best RB to be third team to start season. He has had JJ 3 years and thought he could start for almost any SEC team last year. It was game 3 before he realized T Mason should be starting RB, 4 games into season before knowing what kind of QB Cam was and how to best use him. I was lead to believe on the Recruiting board that Chubb was ours if we would only earnestly pursue him. Not being able to accurately evaluate talent and playing the best worries me most about Gus. Not playing the best players will ALWAYS produce bad attitudes! The players KNOW.

is the Chubb part for real?

[kd4au 1,145]

The worst part to me is it looks as if there is no PLAN at all to fix this mess.

[wdefromtx 3,159]

The worst part to me is it looks as if there is no PLAN at all to fix this mess.

That's the scary part.

[alexava 6,972]

worst part is the coaches didn't see this (JJ)in preseason.

[OnthePlains 2,014]

worst part is the coaches didn't see this (JJ)in preseason.

Or they did and heaven help us White is worse???

[Sully to Beasley 643]

If ever a thread needed to be locked this one surely does!

[juscAUse 1]

The worst part to me was the defensive ends, LBs, or whoever was playing the zone read or option. Just go ahead and drill the QB! Every Tim you have a shot at him. They will stop running it or have to get a new QB.

[Dual-Threat Rigby 8,627]

Saban is an a**hole. He can have turd stew and I'd take Gus any day. Football isn't the only thing AU has to offer and it's not as important as people in the South make it out to be. Imagine what we could do with all this negative energy........... :)/> Alabama Power would be wise to tap into it.

Have you seen the profits they make off of Saban?? You talking about effects from outside of football, it's one effect called "stability". We've had 3 HCs since Saban came into the SEC and are still paying the prior 2, I'm pretty sure. Not to count their assistants. You're not thinking correctly.

[doug3020 842]

Care to elaborate?

I'd also assume you are not a chess player. Position the pieces well and attack. That's what Saban does and it works. You don't have to coach players well if you get coaches that do.

He spent four seasons as a DC in the NFL under Bill Belichick; to state that he isn't a good coach is absurd. His teams take on the identity of HIM, not his position coaches. We've hired some highly regarded position coaches over the years and our defense still blows, how does that work? You think its as easy as hiring a few position coaches/coordinators and watching the results? You're completely oblivious to what it takes. Yes, his teams are filled with talent...but maximizing that talent and breaking a bunch of inflated egos down into a TEAM is a whole new ball game, and no one does it as well as Saban.

The head coach sets the entire culture and mentality of your team. A loser head coach with the best assistants on the planet will still field a loser team.

That is part of management though. That is all about direction and expectation management. (Ironically effective leadership is a big part of my research.) That is by definition a business function. A coach is defined as "to train or instruct." I dont see Saban as doing much of a that. I think that is at least part of the reason that he failed at Miami.

His knowledge skills and abilities make him more of a macro level manager. He oversees the direction of the program, sets goals, and makes sure that the right players and coaches are on the roster. One of my classmates (that was a bama walk on a few years ago)made some statements that seemed to confirm this.

Isn't Saban really hands on with their secondary? Bama's only had what, 8 All Americans in the secondary alone since he began coaching in turdville.