Sean White dismissed

[WarEagle1983 2,185]

Just now, wdefromtx said:

From the looks of his mugshot he looked like he could care less about being arrested, could be the booze or whatever he was on. But to me it said a lot more is going on than meets the eyes.

At this point, he probably does have a don't care attitude. 

[wdefromtx 3,159]

Just now, WarEagle1983 said:

At this point, he probably does have a don't care attitude. 

Which at some point you have to let them crash and burn and hope they can get themselves together. Sucks, but that is the way it is sometimes.

[Glen from West Glenn Ave 44]

Anyone notice that he was arrested within sight of the Police headquarters? Makes me wonder if he did something to draw attention to himself.

[ArgoEagle 1,792]

1 hour ago, FoundationEagle said:

Good policy. Unfortunately, that's a tough sell these days. Anyhow, that ship has sailed in this case. SW may not even truly be an addict of any particular substance, just having fun or dealing with some issues and it gets polarized by being an SEC player. 

Either way, the route for him now begins with grace and humility. Get the right people in his life and he will be just fine. Unfortunately, very few people these days are willing to be the right people. 

Agree with you. For the record, I was not calling Sean an addict, just making a generalized statement about addicts. I don't know if he is or not. I do know he does not do well with second chances. It's ok to make a mistake ( that is ignorance), but not to learn from that mistake is stupidity.

[PowerOfDixieland 3,226]

I hate it for him and his family, hits fairly close to home for me.

From a practical standpoint, we just made it easier on defenses...no way there is a true read option.  Pretty sure it hasn't existed since Marhall and maybe not really even then.

[cole256 17,084]

2 hours ago, PoetTiger said:

The mix of college football stardom, fast ladies, endless parties, people wanted to hang with u, booze, drugs, etc. For some players it's a bad mix. They just can't handle it. SW was one of them. Good luck kid.

That's every football player on the team

[War Knight 514]

Its sad. That's all I can say right now without veering off topic.

[3rdgeneration 6,469]

This is incredibly sad and absolutely NOT on Gus. What was going on with Sean could very well have been a big disruption on the offensive side of the ball. Who knows how much time and effort and worry was spent on him, trying to get his head right, from coaches to friends who care about him. He could have been sending negative ripples throughout the team. I don't know that and I am not going to place the responsibility of any offensive woes on Sean White. But I do remember that there seemed to be a collective sigh of relief when Duke Williams was dismissed and the players put that behind them and were able to focus more on the game. I hope that happens in this instance.

I wish you nothing but the best going forward, Sean. I fervently pray that this is the wake up call you needed to take a hard look at your choices. Even if you were never meant to be an NFL player, you had the opportunity of a lifetime and we are thankful for what you did give to the University. Now, go and get it together and make your family proud of you!

[DyeCampAlum 335]

I'm just spitballing here, but I've been been a faculty member in D1 institutions.

Once you sever a relationship with a player, you really can't continue to offer direct support. It's one thing to be friendly. And how you say goodbye matters. But it's really not about whether our football coaches or athletic department are kind or faithful. They've cut off their legitimate line of connection. Wishing White every kind of success.

[PoetTiger 1,899]

1 hour ago, cole256 said:

That's every football player on the team

i know but Sean apparently could not handle it....

[PoetTiger 1,899]

any insight on how he may have been in the locker room? did he show attitude problems or was it just off the field stuff?

[WDE0007 166]

He's a good kid and a talented player, and I do hope he takes advantage of his next opportunity, where ever it may be.

However, Sean's off-the-field issues go all the way back to the 2015 season. I'm going to preface this by saying I graduated from Auburn a little over a year ago. Us students know things, students know people who know people who've witnessed it. This is all from highly reliable insiders.

As many of you have pointed out, Malzahn always seemed reluctant on naming him the starter and sometimes seemed like he would try to avoid it. From what I know and have heard from reliable insiders, CGM indeed was. The coaches knew he was the best QB on the roster in 2015, however there were off-the-field issues that needed to be fixed before giving him the privilege of being QB1 of a major football program. Yes, I believe being QB1 is a privilege, not a right. Please don't hate me for that statement. After the season was progressing the way it did with JJ6 behind center, the coaches gave Sean the chance (obvious reasons are, well, obvious).

Same thing emerged in 2016. They knew he was the best QB on the roster. They knew strictly in terms of playing, he was the best choice. However, the off-the-field issues had the coaching staff reluctant. But again, they gave him the chance at QB1 again for obvious reasons.

His suspension and subsequent dismissal is an accumulation of three seasons worth of off-the-field issues. Personally, I think CGM made the right call and I support him on this one. It wasn't an easy decision for him; he finally had depth at QB. But he also gave Sean multiple opportunities to fix it and tried to help. As his coach, there's only so much he can do until he bites the bullet and lets his player go.

[mustache eagle 2,410]

5 hours ago, ArgoEagle said:

I know I'll probably get hammered for this by a few people, but going to say it anyway. I always have taught the youth in my church that if you don't ever take that first drink of alcohol, you will never be an alcoholic and you don't ever partake of that first drug, you will never be a drug addict. Abstinence is always the best policy to not ruining your life (doesn't mean it won't get ruined some other way; in my case marrying the wrong woman). Just think if Sean hadn't taken that first drink, he would not be in the embarrassing situation he is in now.

lots of people could benefit from this advice.  unfortunately the ones who would benefit the most often don't heed it.  i didn't because i like me an intoxicant or 2 ... i also am a big fan of moderation when required and discretion when moderation isn't required.

[AU_Dungeon_Master 31]

Yesterday I was making light of the situation a bit because I thought the public intox charge was not that big a deal but now that I'm seeing that it's a bigger issue than what many of us including myself realized, I truly feel bad for Sean and I feel bad about kidding around about it.  I imagine Sean's feeling pretty bad right now and on top of everything it's in full public view which just adds to the horribleness and embarrassment of the situation for him.  Even though he may have caused a lot of his own problem, I still feel bad for him because he might not be in control of himself at this point in his life.  I knew people that had issues during my time in Auburn: people that had drug issues, legal problems, the onset of serious mental illness in one case and it was sad to see.  Not all of them recovered and not all of them are alive anymore.  You're at a crossroads in life sometimes at that age.  21 years old really is just a youngster; Sean can completely recover from this and rise to even higher heights in another program if he takes his situation seriously.  Everyone loves a redemption story.  Or he can rise to greater heights away from football all together.  Or he can let this destroy him.  I really hope he recovers and does well.  

[augolf1716 21,235]

5 hours ago, WarDamnEagleWDE said:

What makes you think White will play football again? I bet he doesn't. 

agree...........I would put money on it

[AubieAH3 238]

7 hours ago, weathergeakal said:

To think people were talking about how many QB we had before the start of spring.

To think I posted something saying I was worried that JF3 and Woody were both showing signs of wanting to transfer and got blasted by some for it ?

[AU_Dungeon_Master 31]

6 minutes ago, augolf1716 said:

agree...........I would put money on it

Yeah...the things I'm hearing and the reading between the lines: this young man's football days are behind him.  I wish him nothing but the best.  Football really isn't important in the big picture.  

[au701948 1,001]

I am sad that SW let this play out the way it did. I have never spoken with him nor met h in, but because he is an Auburn Man, I wish him the best. Enough said.

[AuburnArch13 185]

7 hours ago, McLoofus said:

"We" do it every spring. It would be charitable to call "us" insane.

I'm not sure what you mean. Malik Willis, Justin Fields, Joey Gatewood, Bo Nix, Chosen Newton... we've got depth for years, Loof.

[Slammer1 409]

Sean, take this from a guy that has been down your road. You are at a point in your life that will decide your future in our society and  for the rest of your life. In my case, I enlisted in the Marine Corps and it saved me from myself. I am not saying that is your solution but it was for me. I eventually became a Marine aviator and an officer and it gave me a purpose for living and direction. I hope the  best for you young man, please don't screw your life up at this juncture, you have a long way to go. If you read this, please take it to heart.and seriously think about it. Semper Fi and War Eagle!!!

Slammer

[Shift 350]

6 hours ago, PigskinPat said:

Some don't need a reason, just an opportunity.

Ha Ha !!  This was definitely the case when I was there!!

[3rdgeneration 6,469]

Any idea who Sean's big partying buddies were? I hope they weren't our O-Line guys or WRs!!!  Just adding a little brevity...

Ooops! I meant levity, not brevity! I knew that didn't sound right!

[CountStandya 81]

10 hours ago, weathergeakal said:

Hey, Woody, we have a backup spot for ya now...

No and no....we need some talent...

[AU80cruiser 1,102]

2 hours ago, 3rdgeneration said:

Any idea who Sean's big partying buddies were? I hope they weren't our O-Line guys or WRs!!!  Just adding a little brevity...

Must be Miller and Martin....only kidding

[gr82be 14,443]

Some here don't like Scarbinsky but I think he's the one writer at the place which shall remain nameless on this board, who tells it like it is and he nailed this too:

Don't blame Gus Malzahn for Sean White's mistakes

By Kevin Scarbinsky

Of all the issues troubling the Auburn football team three games into the 2017 season, here's one we didn't see coming. Sean White is no longer a member of the team.

The former starting quarterback who lost his job when Jarrett Stidham signed up lost his roster spot after White's late Saturday night arrest for public intoxication.

That was the last strike for Gus Malzahn, who dismissed White and explained his reasoning in a three-sentence statement. One of those sentences resonated more than the others.

"He has made poor decisions that are not in the best interest of our program, and more importantly, himself," the statement said.

Translation: The person most responsible for White's behavior that led to his dismissal is White himself. Going forward, he has more important things to worry about than football.

Let's hope, with the help of family, friends and the toughness he's displayed on the field, he gets back on the right path.

A look back at Sean White's up-and-down Auburn career

If White's two-game suspension to start the season wasn't enough of a clue that he might not be handling his backup status well, his arrest after not getting any snaps against Mercer made it clear.

Remember his admirable August press conference after Stidham inevitably was named the starter? White said all the right things that day and was praised for being a stand-up guy by many - me included - but his actions have spoken louder than those words.

His actions, some of which predated his demotion, suggest he needs to forget about football and focus on life for a while. Now he can do just that.

Now about the embattled head coach. For all his faults, Malzahn remains in the minority as a head coach willing to cut loose a talented player for unacceptable behavior despite his potential value to the team.

See Duke Williams, Jovon Robinson, etc.

Unless White committed multiple violations of an Auburn policy that demanded his dismissal, Malzahn deserves some credit for making a decision that leaves his team terribly thin at the most important position on the field.

Thanks to a combination of questionable evaluation and development, which is on the head coach, Auburn is left with two scholarship quarterbacks on the roster. That's an uneasy place to be with nine regular-season games to play and an offense that surrendered 11 sacks against Clemson.

If at all possible, it would be in Malzahn's best interests to get White some help with his issues and keep him around as an experienced insurance policy. What if Stidham can't withstand another blitzkrieg by a real defense? What if true freshman Malik Willis simply isn't ready to assume the position should Stidham get nicked and sidelined for a play, a series or longer?

Instead the Tigers are left with a starter still shaking off the rust of a two-year layoff and a backup fresh out of high school still learning the ropes.

What Sean White's dismissal means for Auburn at QB

If you want to blame Malzahn for keeping White in last year's Georgia game far too long with an obviously wounded wing, go right ahead. Be my guest. I've got your back.

If you want to blame Malzahn for signing a minimally mobile drop-back passer to compete for the starting quarterback job after Nick Marshall's successful run at the position, join the crowd.

White reached his peak during last year's six-game winning streak, but let's be honest. The hyperventilation of Trent Dilfer and others to the contrary, he was never going to be the quarterback to beat Alabama and lead Auburn back to the SEC Championship Game.

So you can blame Malzahn for a number of things where White's concerned, but if you want to blame the coach for the young man's inability to avoid poor decisions, go there on your own. That's a bridge too far from what's fair.