LSU postgame thread (merged threads)

[jetermary 6]

2 hours ago, ChltteTiger said:

Oh yea the refs lost it for us. Sound like a bammer!

We lost by 3 pts. One bad call is too many.

[autigers1101 14]

26 minutes ago, wildlife alumni said:

I agree as well. People tend to think AU should just come out and dominate every aspect of the game. Coach’s will always have a perfect game plan and it will always be better than the other teams plan. When everything does not work its time freak out. This is not a video game and It is getting increasingly difficult for a coach to overmatch the other teams in the SEC. Put Gus and this team in the PAC 12 and he is one of the best coachs and a lock for the playoffs. I am going to support AU win loose or draw. War Eagle!

Yep -- it seems to me the success of the other team in the state is getting to some people's heads... they are on a streak like nobody has seen in a very long time, and everyone is expecting us to play like a semi-pro team with a two-deep of 5 star guys. The reality is these are kids and they aren't going to be perfect. We had so many opportunities today to hit an open guy streaking for the end zone, convert on passes that hit guys in the hands, make one more block to get the first down, etc. (not to mention some questionable penalties and no calls). Sure, there's always a few of these as you would expect, but today we had more than our fair share and they happened to come at the most inopportune times. This is not one of those games where our staff didn't put our players in a position to win, and at some point it comes down to execution and a little luck -- which certainly wasn't on our side today.

[Brad_ATX 13,654]

46 minutes ago, clwn said:

I watched the game. Of course it would have been.

Fun read:

http://thefixisin.net/theproof.html

I imagine you'll be one of those thinking it's impossible for games to be fixed. All it takes is a few calls and no calls at certain points of a game. Shame it's leaking into College now.

Impossible?  No.

Likely?  Also no.

End of the day, Auburn didn't execute for the entire first quarter and much of the second half.  The refs didn't whip our o line during those stretches.  The LSU D did.  The refs didn't throw two picks.  Stidham did.  Etc, etc.

[Dual-Threat Rigby 8,671]

I said it earlier this week, but Jarrett really looks like a really good game manager at times. A terrible pick on the roll out, miscommunication with a senior receiver (the way he placed the ball would've been out of position for Slayton anyway) for another, and really inconsistent at best touch on deep throws. IDK if anyone wants to hear this but I promise Marshall had more touch than Stidham on some of these long balls and he had 1/4th of the receiver talent. I gave him a pass in the ASU game cause it seemed like we were just running through the motions with those passes to prepare for this game, but we got to this game and he made the EXACT same touch issues. It doesnt get spoken about enough because there are departments far more inept to complain about, but we ripped Sean about it so I think JS deserves that too

 

Another quality point I saw on YT is that the DB coach is not teaching these boys any semblance of when to turn your head, or even if they ever should. Noah got ripped apart again because of that, and would've had a RZ fade delivered on his head if his non-responsive frame didn't miraculously (read: unconsciously) knock the ball away. Davis has also taken a huge step back since becoming THE man and really as a unit, they're just getting devastated. Even SeLA's DBs played these guys better than we did

[Dual-Threat Rigby 8,671]

3 hours ago, WarEagle1983 said:

Yep! He was on the money with quick passes. I agree. We have to take what the defense gives us. We don't have to be the raid offense but it's clear that as of now our OL is not where we're going to dominate with a ton of run yards. Quick throws...4 and 5 WR sets to get the ball out quick to our WRs. I actually think that would be best b/c we have so many WRs that are athletic. Just doubt we'll ever see that kind of change. 

I dont think you could stop this team in a 5 WR set, but I dont think you can stop Gus from being too mentally inept to draw them up consistently

[Dual-Threat Rigby 8,671]

4 hours ago, weagl1 said:

All they did was max protect and put 2 guys in the pattern.  You would think 4 DBs could cover 2 receivers but that’s not what we are doing.  We go man coverage every time and our corners are not capable of doing that.  I hate to see what Tua and the Bammer receivers are going do to that.  

I was hating on Tua because I thought Stidham was actually a better QB (lol) but the way he attacks the intermediate and deep ball, this could get worse than the 2014 game defensively. The DL did some QB hurries and other pressures that wont ever show up on a stat sheet, but factoring in how many open receivers Etling could at least see (don't read as hit) and Brosette's respectable day, Id say they got stalemated. With the speed of UA's receivers and their RB diversity this year.......

[Dual-Threat Rigby 8,671]

5 hours ago, Zeek said:

Stidham’s qbr continue to be atrocious 

Kam Martin had two carries?

No receiver had more than 3 catches.

NCM continually not used. His college career has been robbed from him.

Ryan Davis only has two plays where he gets the ball apparently.

Schwartz is averaging 18.5 yards and you only get the ball to him twice?

We only have one running play apparently. No buck sweep, no counter, nothing. Boobee showed he could gash them when given the ball in different ways.

Where was our d-line?

Why did we look asleep in the first quarter?

 

If I was a receiver coming to Auburn, seeing how NCM, largely Slayton, and McClain have been wasted would scare the hell out of me. Kyle Davis and Ahmmon Richards may have left us behind at different times but at least they did the right thing (although catching passes at FAU and UM might be worse) 

[WarEagle1983 2,185]

25 minutes ago, Dual-Threat Rigby said:

I dont think you could stop this team in a 5 WR set, but I dont think you can stop Gus from being too mentally inept to draw them up consistently

Agree.

[WarEagle1983 2,185]

10 minutes ago, Dual-Threat Rigby said:

If I was a receiver coming to Auburn, seeing how NCM, largely Slayton, and McClain have been wasted would scare the hell out of me. Kyle Davis and Ahmmon Richards may have left us behind at different times but at least they did the right thing (although catching passes at FAU and UM might be worse) 

I'm honestly shocked that we're still getting really good WRs to commit. Have to give Gus and the staff credit there b/c if i'm a WR or a TE i don't think AU would be the place for me. Also, have to give credit to the fact that AU is a great place to attend college. 

[AU80cruiser 1,102]

I listened to the game live today and read comments in this forum in anticipation of watching the game when I got home. I dont know fella's if I agree that we got robbed by the refs. Seems that LSU played collectively more aggressively than we did. Now I saw Whitlow,  Shivers, Seth Williams, and Deshaun Davis play their butts off. There are probably others but those four stood out to me the most. It looks like our freshman are bigger play makers than our veterans on offense. From this point forward I hope we get better. We need to fix some issues we have in the secondary. This is two games now with loads of penalties on them for PI and it needs to be corrected quickly. The season is far from over and we can still make it to the playoffs even after this loss. God luck to the team and keep improving.

[AidiAU 1,270]

5 hours ago, SouthPaw83 said:

New poster...I've been a lurker for a few years. 

I registered because I wanted to give my thoughts on today's game.

Unlike some of our recent losses, we had a good game plan for today. Was it perfect? No. We likely needed some defensive adjustments to get more pressure and to prevent our CBs from being isolated in man-to-man. We made defensive adjustments like that vs Washington, but Steele went in a different direction today. 

On the offensive side of the ball, I thought the play-calling was good. Did we need to mix some different plays in and take better advantage of some of our skill players? Sure. But the game plan was effective and more than sufficient to win. 

We lost today because of execution. Stidham's first interception was a really poor decision. It was absolutely unnecessary. On 2nd & 8, there's no need to make such a tight throw to the sideline. The DB made a good play as well, but ultimately it was a very bad decision by a veteran player that should know better. 

On the early 4th & 1 we missed in the 1st Quarter, the play call was fine. In fact, we'd have gotten the 1st if Driscoll didn't whiff when blocking the LB. 

At the beginning of the 2nd Quarter, we had 2nd & 4 at the LSU 48. We lost 6 yards on Schwartz's end around because Horton missed a key block. On the very next play, Stidham was sacked for an 8 yard loss because Tega got beat badly. 

There are many more examples of the offensive line missing key blocks, or whiffing on blocks that led to negative plays or an incomplete pass due to pressure. 

Stidham's 2nd interception was another very poor decision, and yet again it was an unnecessary risk. Thankfully, we didn't gift LSU 7 points by starting inside our own 35, but we missed an opportunity to pin LSU deep if he threw it away and we punted. Or, even a 4-5 yard scramble gives us a chance at a 55-56 yard FG if Gus wanted to risk it. 

On the defensive side, several of the interference calls were definitely weak when contrasted against the no-calls on Greedy Williams. That said, the CBs were being exploited the same way Washington did, but this time we were not able to adjust by getting more pressure by sending a LB, or playing a bit of zone so that the CBs would have safety help. 

There were strategic mistakes by the coaches to be sure. Steele didn't make the adjustments I just mentioned. Gus should've taken the points early on, but I, confess to having wanted him to go for it. Again, the play call was fine. The execution failed due to Driscoll whiffing on the LB that blew up the play in the backfield. 

But, the main reason we lost was poor execution by our team. Ultimately, both the players and coaches share responsibility for poor execution. The ultimate blame goes on Gus because he's the head coach, has to get his team ready, has to make adjustments, etc. 

One tiny thing I noticed, that may have had a big impact, was related to penalties. Other than Slayton complaining when Greedy Williams interfered with him, our players didn't lobby the refs for penalties or spots. Gus has trained the players to hand the ball to the ref and keep their mouth shut. There was a facemask on Shivers in the 2nd half after a 2-3 yard game and he didn't complain or make the facemask symbol. Contrast that with LSU. Their receivers lobbied the refs on every tight coverage play. Burrow also lobbied the ref the VERY PLAY before one of the PIs on the last drive. It clearly had an effect. Working the refs absolutely has an effect - - we see it in the NFL and College nearly every game. 

I've been a major critic of Gus in the past. I'm decidedly NOT on the Gus bus. But, this was the rare game in which I believe Gus doesn't have the lion's share of the blame. He's still RESPONSIBLE as HC, but the majority of the blame doesn't fall on him. This wasn't run the ball up the middle on 22 straight 1st/2nd down Gus. This wasn't "what's a short or intermediate pass" Gus. This wasn't "we're going to run the ball no matter what" Gus. The gameplan was good. The execution was mediocre - - particularly the offensive line and Stidham's protection of the football. And, for the first time in awhile, the defense really let us down. The 71 yard pass TD was absurd. It was thrown into quadruple coverage. Multiple guys went for the INT, there was no communication, and one of the DBs gave up on pursuit as he evidently thought the other DB was going to be able to make the tackle. That pissed me off. That's not how Auburn plays. We don't give up on plays. 

I'm not here to defend Gus, but I actually don't think today's loss in an indictment of him as a coach. He's actually shown an improvement at making adjustments, play-calling is better, and he's been less married to particular players out of stubbornness. 

We're stuck with Gus for at least two more years. We shouldn't have lost today nor vs LSU last year. But, I'll take the way we lost this year ANY DAY over the cluelessness or stubbornness of last year's Clemson & LSU games. 

Unless you were really drinking the Kool-Aid, you knew we were going to lose sometime this year. I'd rather it happen early than late. Gus is still the man ultimately responsible for any loss -- including today's -- but this was a very different kind of loss than we've had under Gus. If everyone wants to meltdown and say 8-5 or 9-4 that's fine. But, we don't play another good team until TAMU. MSU isn't that good, ARKY is a joke, Tennessee is a few years away from competing with us, and Ole Miss can't hang with any team that has a defense. 

Gus needs to do exactly what he did last year. Beat Georgia and beat Alabama. I don't believe Georgia is as good as last year, but Alabama might have the best team they've ever had. Gus is paid 7 million dollars a year for a reason. He has to get it done. No one likes to lose, but today was less an indictment of Gus than poor execution and effort by our team. He's still responsible for that, but remedying that is a much easier fix than 96 total yards in a game or 11 sacks. 

Remember, Nick Saban has rarely gone undefeated. Gus does have the ability to put us into position with Alabama and Georgia this year. Can he do it? We'll see. But today's game is absolutely not a reason to jump off the cliff. Clemson and LSU last year were much more disappointing and unexplainable losses than today.

Finally, I give LSU credit. They were more physical on both sides of the football when it counted the most. They are a talented team. Not as talented as Auburn, and we should've won, but the key will be how Gus and the team responds. I don't think Gus will take us to the promised land this year or next, but he IS capable of it. Today shows he has LEARNED whether we want to admit it or not. The question is: Can Gus keep learning and will that be enough to take us to the next level?

 

 

 

 

Quit being somewhat rational in your response!. 

Jk - welcome, lurker!  And welcome to the forum craziness that happens after a loss. 

I literally dreamt about the loss last night so clearly, I’m not over it. ?

[gr82be 14,425]

I'm wondering if the fact that Gus went for it early in the game instead of kicking the field goal is partly due to confidence in Carlson right now. Young kickers sometimes struggle and all three components of the FG unit are new. Maybe the cohesiveness isn't there consistently in practice. I don't know and I truly had no issues with going for it. I was glad we did but would have rather made it for obvious reasons. Anders missing a 50+ yrd try is not alarming by any means and should not shake his confidence. Missing from the 30-40 yd range could. All we heard from preseason practice was that he was nailing the FGs. He's currently 3/6 on FGs this year. We've come to count on our kickers being pretty much automatic. He's my mancrush so I definitely want him to get comfortable and make his kicks. I just starting thinking Gus may not be comfortable with his accuracy yet. 

[cole256 17,081]

8 hours ago, SouthPaw83 said:

New poster...I've been a lurker for a few years. 

I registered because I wanted to give my thoughts on today's game.

Unlike some of our recent losses, we had a good game plan for today. Was it perfect? No. We likely needed some defensive adjustments to get more pressure and to prevent our CBs from being isolated in man-to-man. We made defensive adjustments like that vs Washington, but Steele went in a different direction today. 

On the offensive side of the ball, I thought the play-calling was good. Did we need to mix some different plays in and take better advantage of some of our skill players? Sure. But the game plan was effective and more than sufficient to win. 

We lost today because of execution. Stidham's first interception was a really poor decision. It was absolutely unnecessary. On 2nd & 8, there's no need to make such a tight throw to the sideline. The DB made a good play as well, but ultimately it was a very bad decision by a veteran player that should know better. 

On the early 4th & 1 we missed in the 1st Quarter, the play call was fine. In fact, we'd have gotten the 1st if Driscoll didn't whiff when blocking the LB. 

At the beginning of the 2nd Quarter, we had 2nd & 4 at the LSU 48. We lost 6 yards on Schwartz's end around because Horton missed a key block. On the very next play, Stidham was sacked for an 8 yard loss because Tega got beat badly. 

There are many more examples of the offensive line missing key blocks, or whiffing on blocks that led to negative plays or an incomplete pass due to pressure. 

Stidham's 2nd interception was another very poor decision, and yet again it was an unnecessary risk. Thankfully, we didn't gift LSU 7 points by starting inside our own 35, but we missed an opportunity to pin LSU deep if he threw it away and we punted. Or, even a 4-5 yard scramble gives us a chance at a 55-56 yard FG if Gus wanted to risk it. 

On the defensive side, several of the interference calls were definitely weak when contrasted against the no-calls on Greedy Williams. That said, the CBs were being exploited the same way Washington did, but this time we were not able to adjust by getting more pressure by sending a LB, or playing a bit of zone so that the CBs would have safety help. 

There were strategic mistakes by the coaches to be sure. Steele didn't make the adjustments I just mentioned. Gus should've taken the points early on, but I, confess to having wanted him to go for it. Again, the play call was fine. The execution failed due to Driscoll whiffing on the LB that blew up the play in the backfield. 

But, the main reason we lost was poor execution by our team. Ultimately, both the players and coaches share responsibility for poor execution. The ultimate blame goes on Gus because he's the head coach, has to get his team ready, has to make adjustments, etc. 

One tiny thing I noticed, that may have had a big impact, was related to penalties. Other than Slayton complaining when Greedy Williams interfered with him, our players didn't lobby the refs for penalties or spots. Gus has trained the players to hand the ball to the ref and keep their mouth shut. There was a facemask on Shivers in the 2nd half after a 2-3 yard game and he didn't complain or make the facemask symbol. Contrast that with LSU. Their receivers lobbied the refs on every tight coverage play. Burrow also lobbied the ref the VERY PLAY before one of the PIs on the last drive. It clearly had an effect. Working the refs absolutely has an effect - - we see it in the NFL and College nearly every game. 

I've been a major critic of Gus in the past. I'm decidedly NOT on the Gus bus. But, this was the rare game in which I believe Gus doesn't have the lion's share of the blame. He's still RESPONSIBLE as HC, but the majority of the blame doesn't fall on him. This wasn't run the ball up the middle on 22 straight 1st/2nd down Gus. This wasn't "what's a short or intermediate pass" Gus. This wasn't "we're going to run the ball no matter what" Gus. The gameplan was good. The execution was mediocre - - particularly the offensive line and Stidham's protection of the football. And, for the first time in awhile, the defense really let us down. The 71 yard pass TD was absurd. It was thrown into quadruple coverage. Multiple guys went for the INT, there was no communication, and one of the DBs gave up on pursuit as he evidently thought the other DB was going to be able to make the tackle. That pissed me off. That's not how Auburn plays. We don't give up on plays. 

I'm not here to defend Gus, but I actually don't think today's loss in an indictment of him as a coach. He's actually shown an improvement at making adjustments, play-calling is better, and he's been less married to particular players out of stubbornness. 

We're stuck with Gus for at least two more years. We shouldn't have lost today nor vs LSU last year. But, I'll take the way we lost this year ANY DAY over the cluelessness or stubbornness of last year's Clemson & LSU games. 

Unless you were really drinking the Kool-Aid, you knew we were going to lose sometime this year. I'd rather it happen early than late. Gus is still the man ultimately responsible for any loss -- including today's -- but this was a very different kind of loss than we've had under Gus. If everyone wants to meltdown and say 8-5 or 9-4 that's fine. But, we don't play another good team until TAMU. MSU isn't that good, ARKY is a joke, Tennessee is a few years away from competing with us, and Ole Miss can't hang with any team that has a defense. 

Gus needs to do exactly what he did last year. Beat Georgia and beat Alabama. I don't believe Georgia is as good as last year, but Alabama might have the best team they've ever had. Gus is paid 7 million dollars a year for a reason. He has to get it done. No one likes to lose, but today was less an indictment of Gus than poor execution and effort by our team. He's still responsible for that, but remedying that is a much easier fix than 96 total yards in a game or 11 sacks. 

Remember, Nick Saban has rarely gone undefeated. Gus does have the ability to put us into position with Alabama and Georgia this year. Can he do it? We'll see. But today's game is absolutely not a reason to jump off the cliff. Clemson and LSU last year were much more disappointing and unexplainable losses than today.

Finally, I give LSU credit. They were more physical on both sides of the football when it counted the most. They are a talented team. Not as talented as Auburn, and we should've won, but the key will be how Gus and the team responds. I don't think Gus will take us to the promised land this year or next, but he IS capable of it. Today shows he has LEARNED whether we want to admit it or not. The question is: Can Gus keep learning and will that be enough to take us to the next level?

 

 

 

 

Great post ?. I think MSU is better than you may think though. They like to blitz, their linebackers are good at it and now that I see where the o line is at, that may be a problem

[cole256 17,081]

8 minutes ago, gr82be said:

I'm wondering if the fact that Gus went for it early in the game instead of kicking the field goal is partly due to confidence in Carlson right now. Young kickers sometimes struggle and all three components of the FG unit are new. Maybe the cohesiveness isn't there consistently in practice. I don't know and I truly had no issues with going for it. I was glad we did but would have rather made it for obvious reasons. Anders missing a 50+ yrd try is not alarming by any means and should not shake his confidence. Missing from the 30-40 yd range could. All we heard from preseason practice was that he was nailing the FGs. He's currently 3/6 on FGs this year. We've come to count on our kickers being pretty much automatic. He's my mancrush so I definitely want him to get comfortable and make his kicks. I just starting thinking Gus may not be comfortable with his accuracy yet. 

Why would you be nervous about that kick but try a 50 yard kick with him?

[gr82be 14,425]

14 minutes ago, cole256 said:

Why would you be nervous about that kick but try a 50 yard kick with him?

4th and 1 you can go for it is what I'm thinking and obviously what Gus thought. On the 50 yarder we had further to go to make the first so he takes a shot. Like I said, I'm just wondering myself. Kick from 50 and you might make it, might not, it's not a confidence shaker. Miss from closer range and it could shake him. Gus has had no problems in the past taking the easy 3. 

[johnnyAU 3,630]

If you go for it on 4th and 1, perhaps it's not best to run straight into the teeth of a stacked front with a 200 lb Freshman back. LSU had a pretty darn good idea what we'd try to do. 

[AuMarine 1,372]

Teams go for it on 4th and 1 all the time and they make a few and miss a few my problem is not with going for it. I liked the call we had some momentum. My problem is that the center and guard blocked no one. The leads to disaster every time. I don’t care who you are. The call wasn’t terrible, the execution was. 

[AU64 10,122]

Out of likes...but excellent posts by Southpaw and Tiger1101 above....objective and analytical without the orange and blue emotion.  Thanks.  

Hope folks take the time to read them.

[johnnyAU 3,630]

3 hours ago, AidiAU said:

I don't think Gus will take us to the promised land this year or next, but he IS capable of it.

I don't believe he is capable. These are the games that show why. This may not be as big a debacle as Clemson the last two years, or LSU last year, or UGA 2 years ago, etc....but it happens far too often.  LSU wasn't a more talented team, nor do they have a better coaching staff, and we were playing at home.  They had a better game plan, were more motivated and made the necessary plays to win the game. Out coached by Ed O 2 years running. 

If his offense doesn't evolve to the talent he has on hand, then he'll never be more than an 7-9 win coach with an occasional bump. 

I hope he proves differently. 

[sevenlee36 1,654]

33 minutes ago, gr82be said:

4th and 1 you can go for it is what I'm thinking and obviously what Gus thought. On the 50 yarder we had further to go to make the first so he takes a shot. Like I said, I'm just wondering myself. Kick from 50 and you might make it, might not, it's not a confidence shaker. Miss from closer range and it could shake him. Gus has had no problems in the past taking the easy 3. 

Gus said that he’s going to be aggressive this year. That’s what happened. It didn’t work out for him against Washington with the 2pt conversion either.

[AidiAU 1,270]

2 minutes ago, johnnyAU said:

I don't believe he is capable. These are the games that show why. This may not be as big a debacle as Clemson the last two years, or LSU last year, or UGA 2 years ago, etc....but it happens far too often.  LSU wasn't a more talented team, nor do they have a better coaching staff, and we were playing at home.  They had a better game plan, were more motivated and made the necessary plays to win the game. Out coached by Ed O 2 years running. 

If his offense doesn't evolve to the talent he has on hand, then he'll never be more than an 7-9 win coach with an occasional bump. 

I hope he proves differently. 

Um, in weird news, I never typed that. That is not my quote. 

[johnnyAU 3,630]

2 minutes ago, AidiAU said:

Um, in weird news, I never typed that. That is not my quote. 

My apologies, it was SouthPaw83

[sevenlee36 1,654]

We needed to win this game. We should not have lost the game. At this point it’s Bama vs Georgia. No way this team beats Georgia and Alabama, much less does it on the road. Our Championship talks are pretty much over. 

[AidiAU 1,270]

5 minutes ago, johnnyAU said:

My apologies, it was SouthPaw83

No worries! I was just very confused. 

[AURocketman 73]

13 hours ago, Eagle Eye 7 said:

That is not true. Stidum stunk plain and. Simple. He wasn’t under duress he just could hit the broad side of a barn.

He hit two wide open LSU defenders as they separated from the receivers.

Usually practice helps get receiver and QB on same page.  Sometimes I felt the LSU defense knew our play better than the AU players.

Do they simulate game situations in practice?  I keep looking for signs they did.