Thoughts on AU's 2006 Season

[DKW 86 7,475]

1) 10-2 with a bowl game to go.

2) Beat 2 very good teams: and may get to play in the BCSCG.

3) We were BADLY injured most of the season.

Conclusion: We might have had a great season over all in coaching. We were badly injured most of the year. We still played a very tough schedule and still won 10 GAMES!!!!!

I know it wasnt perfect, but overall, I am very happy today. We missed out on several big goals, but we still OVERCAME so many bad injuries that it would have wrecked many other teams with lesser coaching staffs.

[AUTaxMan 0]

I'm generally happy with the season. BC has been hobbled and had a subpar year. Hard to complain about 10-2. Don't like embarrassing losses. We benefitted from a generous home schedule. NEXT year will be extremely difficult to win 10 games. BC needs to step into a leadership role next year. I don't think we have the personnel on D to do what Muschamp wants to do. Will give him a pass on the subpar performance this season.

Again, 10-2...two huge wins...5 straight over Bammer...War Damn.

[autiger518 1]

Like I said in the other thread..... even though it didnt turn out the way we all expected I will take 10-2 and a win over bama all day long. We should end up in one of the big 3 (lesser) bowls of either Capital One, Outback or Cotton.

Good season overall...I think we were hurting, but I also think the lack of a single bye week hurt us a lot.

Here's to next year we should be looking pretty darn good.

[bigsixfive 328]

1) I think I have gray hairs.

2) I much prefer the blowouts.

3) uat is a loser for another 365 days.

4) AU made the plays exactly when they needed to.

5) Heck of a job pulling out W's.

6) Chris Leak clearly fumbled the ball.

7) By the rulebook, JR's pass was not interfered with.

8) Injuries are awful, they nagged us all season.

9) I'm glad Tuberville realizes player integrity is better than a W.

10) We need a bye week.

[AUloggerhead 2,260]

The record looks great. AU didn't get to play for any hardware, though. That's the tough part to swallow. We need to finish out with a bowl win and prep for next year. Thanks to the seniors:

David Irons

Kenny Irons

Tre Smith

Karibi Dede

Lee Guess

Kody Bliss

Will Herring

John Vaughn

Kevin Sears

Ben Grubbs

Tim Duckworth

Jonathan Palmer

Courtney Taylor

Christopher Browder

WDE

[sntemp 0]

I'm happy with 10-2 record but we had too many games that could have gone the other way. Even todays game against Bama could have been much different if only one or two plays had gone the other way.

LSU, South Carolina, Florida, Ole Misswere all games that could have easily been a different outcome. I just don't like every game to be in doubt all the way to the last snaps of the ball. My heart needs the rest of an offseason this year.

Not even showing up for two games at home is a HUGE disappointment!!!

I'm excited about Brad Lester and Ben Tate next season. I hope Cox improves because he was a huge let down this season for me.

Defense looked great when their backs were against the wall but way too often they made opposing offenses look unstoppable.

But 10-2 is the final result and I'll take that.

War Eagle.

[C-villetiger1 0]

Too be myself (the negeative bstrd). I will say the following

1. Injuries yes but not to the dramatic amount that some think. we never lost a single player for the season and the ones we did never missed a game. And before you jump on that KI should NOT have had to be in the game against UB, Tulane or Arky St. Cox never missed a game he was hurt but we should all be very scared of what happens if he does go down and has to miss a game.

2. Sloppy play dominated our season.... PERIOD!!

3. With some of the guys we are losing next season could be a stretch to see 9 wins. Lose Cox and we could be flipped with Bama and be 6-6 if not worse.

B.Cox needs to get the turnover thought out of his head. He spent the entire year trying not to repeat the G. tech game from last year.

I wish all of our seniors the best of luck but only a few will be on pro rosters next season. Duck, KI,DI (maybe), CT

10-2 is not what we thought at the start of the year but if you told me we would beat Fla, LSU and drop the THUMB on Bama and be 10-2 i would have run to the bank brother.

To end we had a very good season and won some we should have prolly lost and lost some we should have won. If we can get the W in a bowl game we may be poised for another shot at the only championsip I care about THE SEC.

WAR DAMN EAGLE

Hey Bama gimmie five baby!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[autiger518 1]

1. Injuries yes but not to the dramatic amount that some think. we never lost a single player for the season and the ones we did never missed a game. And before you jump on that KI should NOT have had to be in the game against UB, Tulane or Arky St. Cox never missed a game he was hurt but we should all be very scared of what happens if he does go down and has to miss a game.

2. Sloppy play dominated our season.... PERIOD!!

3. With some of the guys we are losing next season could be a stretch to see 9 wins. Lose Cox and we could be flipped with Bama and be 6-6 if not worse.

1. I disagree nagging injuries do create a problem just as much as if the guy was out, IMO Cox was hurt and contributed to a lot of of his mistakes in playing, and Kenny defintely did not look like Kenny of last year...like I said I think the lack of a bye week (to regroup) hurt tremendously.

2. I agree 100%

3. You know at the beginning of the year I would have agreed with you there, but now I dont think so, who do we lose that causes you to think that? Losses on the line of Palmer, Duckworth and Cope are big yes (and my only area of worry), but we saw Bosley step in and do fine. Lester and Tate will be just as good if not better than Irons and Lester, Taylor will of course be missed but, or WR are decent and one of the few areas I did see constant improvement throughout the year plus they have a year under their belt.

On the defensive side DL IMO improves, LB's while Herring and Dede will be missed (especially for their leadership) both I think will be replaced by capable people (we played a bunch at this position) same goes for DB's (while D. Irons was a lockdown) we were young at this position an I think we will see a big improvement....No I think you will be pleasantly surprised C-villetiger1 I think we will be set-up nice for next year.

[mcgufcm 4,107]

thoughts on this year?

1) we were sloppy, and for the first time since 2003, we didn't get better week in, week out.

2) we've clearly learned how to win games. we're great in big games and close games which is not something we could claim when tubby came. now we just need to learn a little more consistency.

3) the injuries did affect us, especially on offense. losing cope was probably the biggest loss. yes, bosley did fine, but just watching a healthy cope today makes me realize how much we missed him.

4) our defense was a disappointment. i expected an attacking defense, and we just didn't excel at that. don't know if it was a personnel issue or a coaching thing (i'm guessing a little of both), but i'm looking forward to seeing what kind of changes we make there next year. i am glad one of those changes won't be the coordinator for the first time in three years. these guys need time to learn a system.

5) the kicking game was as good as it's ever been at auburn. it probably won us a few games.

6) 10 wins with this team, with wins over florida, lsu, and alabama, is a great job. i think that national title talk was a pipe dream based on little more than the schedule setting up nicely. so while i'm sad we lost to arkansas and can't play for the sec title, i'm not disappointed in this team at all.

thanks to the seniors!!! another group that never lost to alabama! war eagle!

[sntemp 0]

Oh and I forgot something ......

Thank you Will Herring for a great senior year and career.

[tigernt'town 4]

my thoughts and arguements all season long were summed up today, defense with attitude biggest plus of the day, a bobble here and there but overall a great performance. let's go get a bowl victory and build for next year 10-2 is great!!!!!!! we need to make it 11-2 to be even better!!!!!!! overall i am satisfied with the season, losses were missed opportunities which will happen, lets reload!!!!!!

[sogaaufan 27]

I don't know about everyone else, but I am ecstatic about the future at Auburn. One thing no one seems to realize, is that CTT took a HUGE chance by redshirting 20 out of 22 players from the top ten recruiting class that came in last year. I'm sure many of those guys would have been on the field contributing on some other teams, and could have helped us out in terms of depth down the road. You have to admit, players like Tim Hawthorne and Bart Eddins could have helped this team out. As it is, these guys will be redshirt freshmen next year after a year of Coach Yox at 6:00 AM. Along with the monster class this is shaping up to be, I feel as though the talent level at Auburn is about to go to through the roof. We will need immediate help next year on the Oline and in the kicking game. Besides that, I feel as though we will be stronger at all positions next year.

BRING ON 2007!!!

[DKW 86 7,475]

I don't know about everyone else, but I am ecstatic about the future at Auburn. One thing no one seems to realize, is that CTT took a HUGE chance by redshirting 20 out of 22 players from the top ten recruiting class that came in last year. I'm sure many of those guys would have been on the field contributing on some other teams, and could have helped us out in terms of depth down the road. You have to admit, players like Tim Hawthorne and Bart Eddins could have helped this team out. As it is, these guys will be redshirt freshmen next year after a year of Coach Yox at 6:00 AM. Along with the monster class this is shaping up to be, I feel as though the talent level at Auburn is about to go to through the roof. We will need immediate help next year on the Oline and in the kicking game. Besides that, I feel as though we will be stronger at all positions next year.

BRING ON 2007!!!

You Sir took the words right out of my mouth. We are so loaded in the next few years. We have two great qbs coming out of Red Shirt. We have a D that will be vastly improved next year. We had a new DC this year and it showed from the LSU game on. 2007 is a rough year for us schedule wise. We are going to have to play very well to have a great record. We do have to rebuild our kicking game too.

[mcgufcm 4,107]

i've said this before, but i'll take the opportunity to say it here. next year is going to be a really fun year to watch auburn if you're a football fan. there won't be the everpresent pressure of this season. there won't be a ton of experience, but there will be a ton of talent. there will be good quality coaching. it's going to be fun to watch those guys grow up together next year. 2007 sets the core for auburn over the next three years, and i'm excited about it.

think about it. you're going to have open season at dt (where only rs soph. sen'derrick marks looks like a shoe in for the 4 man rotation at this point), wr (where only former walk-on rod smith has any kind of claim to a spot), lb (where rs soph. tray blackmon will be the elder statesman), cb (where only patrick lee looks like a lock), and ol (where only king dunlap returns with a starting job). that's a ton of competition for the spring and fall, and it's going to breed competitiveness on the field.

folks are always a little gunshy when they hear people drop the "we're young" line, but we're going to be a very, very young team next season. if those guys can grow up together over the course of next season, they'll be in battles together for the next two years, and they'll have the trust they built as young men. next year, more than any i can remember in a while, is a year the the auburn family needs to be positive and faithful to the guys on the field. i, for one, can't wait to watch that team. i love teams that you know are going to grow as the year progresses, and with that many new guys, that team is guaranteed to grow.

just for fun's sake:

qb: cox, caudle* (i think he beats blake out)

rb: lester*, tate*

fb: stewart, mclaughlin

wr: smith, billings

wr: hawthorne*, slaughter*

te: trott, mckenzie

lt: dunlap, gonzalez

lg: green*, berry*

c: bosley*

rg: hart*

rt: daniels*, tilley*

de: groves (he's coming back), horton*

dt: marks, eddins*, sims

ng: smith*, thompson, sims

de: coleman*, miller?*

wlb: blackmon, johnson?

mlb: trahan?* johnson? no clue

slb: stevens*, harris*

cb: lee*, mcfadden*

cb: powers*

s: brock, davis

s: savage, ferguson

that's just off the top of my head. i put a star by everyone that would either be a new starter or new to the two deep. just look at that. tons of talent. all raw. 2007 is going to be a fun year, and if we finish with a really good record (9-3ish) that would be the best job tubby's done at auburn, in my mind. love this year! love next year! war damn eagle!

[OKieAuburnDoug 1]

Can't say it was any better than a good year..Getting spanked by two inferior opponents @ HOME is flat out unacceptable. If MassChump is backj I will be shocked. THe D-PLAYERS stepped up bigtime for the rivalry I will give them the credit for that.

Injuries,suspensions definately were a HUGE part of the offensive and defensive woes....

If not for the huge losses on the O-line and @ LB Auburn would be looking at a preseason top 5 spot going into next year.

[otterinbham 0]

I think the pre-season set the tone with injuries. Further, the lack of a deep receiving corps hurt us this year.

Overall, with the exception of the Georgia game, a well-coached season. I'll even give us a pass on Arkansas, given how they've turned into such a juggernaut.

I'm looking forward to next year's talent pool. The flood of talent that was red-shirted this year will be outstanding. My great fear is the brutal road schedule against Florida, LSU, Arkansas, and Georgia.

[autiger518 1]

Getting spanked by two inferior opponents @ HOME is flat out unacceptable. If MassChump is back I will be shocked.

I wouldnt call Arkansas inferior, I happen to think they have a pretty good team, but we shall see against LSU and Florida....the UGA loss was "unacceptable" though as you so put it. However, it was also against a rival in the SEC, where I think this years proves the addage even more that any SEC team can beat any other SEC team on any given Saturday.

With respect to your comment about Muschamp, I think it was a little uncalled for...no I was not happy with the defense either, but with respect to him he stepped into a system and players that were not his. Lets give him more than a year (jeez were not bama) to establish himself and not have another coordinator change for yet another year. Everyone talks about consistency welll to be consistent you need to have a staff that is consistent and that means not changing coordinators every year....so I guess what im saying is prepare to be shocked cause I would guess he stays.

[aubrandon 5]

We finished where I had us picked at 10-2. However the teams we lost to and how was not part of it.

For the first time in a couple of years we really had to count on our depth due to numerous injuries. I thought the coaches did a good job except for the Arky and Georgia game. We lost our leaders last year. When you do that, that normally means a rebuilding year. We did a good job!

[autigeremt 6,747]

Can't say it was any better than a good year..Getting spanked by two inferior opponents @ HOME is flat out unacceptable. If MassChump is backj I will be shocked. THe D-PLAYERS stepped up bigtime for the rivalry I will give them the credit for that.

Injuries,suspensions definately were a HUGE part of the offensive and defensive woes....

If not for the huge losses on the O-line and @ LB Auburn would be looking at a preseason top 5 spot going into next year.

Not so fast my friend!

Muschamp will be back! I have been upset with him this year, too, but he needs another year. He has the ability to make the D great (LSU, ect). We have to give him another year at this. After that, he's on his own.

I'm happy with 10-2. I hated the UGA loss, but the Arky loss makes sense now that we have seen just how good those kids are.

Auburn will compete for the SEC West again next year. I see another 9-3/10-2 or who knows.....11-1?

[weagl1 1,789]

At the beginning of the season we had a thread where we gave our expected records. Mine was 10-2, so I would have to say it was about like I expected. I didin't expect the 2 to be AR and GA, or that we would basically be blown out in both games. On the other hand, I did not expect to beat both FL and LSU. That having been said, I was at times disappointed in the play of both the offense and the defense. We went through stretches where we looked anemic on offense and at other times we looked good. Then we went through stretches were we looked anemic on defense, yet at other times we looked great (LSU and second half againist FL). This was just a hard team to figure out - sort of like Forrest Gump's box of chocolates, you just never knew what you were going to get next.

[rexbo 104]

I am very hapy to beat 'Bama for the 5th straight year, a dream come true; but when we all believe that 10-2 and beating 'Bama is a great year, then we will never get over the hump to the ultimate goal. Winning the SEC Championship is a great year, winning the NC is an awesome year...

[Eagle's Claw 0]

OL: Our Offensive Line did not play especially great this year IMO. Cox was constantly getting sacked and did not have time to throw in the first half of the season. They did gel and play a little better the last few games of the season. I saw this position as our biggest weakness this year. It will be interesting to see who wins out and where for '07...

WR: We had a dissapointing year here as well. This was more due to Courtney Taylor being slowed again by injuries. Rod Smith has started stepping it up. I'm REALLY excited about our future WR's. We should be able to air it up for years to come.

QB: Cox is SOLID as they come. He was being sacked and beaten up so much the first few games I'm surprised he played through it all. He should have a great Senior season. There is no one that is going to beat him out. If he has time to throw he'll put the ball where it needs to be. It will be VERY interesting to see who lands the #2 spot over Spring & Camp. Field/Caudle/Ensminger.

RB: Lester is electrifying! KI was hurt all season which caused a dissapointment for him and fans. I didn't see enough of Tate this yr. Our future is very bright here.

DL: Second biggest dissapointment when looking at positions. Our DL was pushed around at times this year. Arkansas just ran all over us. I don't think I heard Sim's name mentioned once this yr? Marks will be a good DT. We are going to get BIG help next year with Greg Smith/Josh Thompson/Sen'Derrick Marks/Sims.

DB: Jonathan Wilhite got burned more times than I can count. Savage played great! DI's didn't play as well as he did last yr. I'm concerned about this position next yr.

LB: Tray Blackmon is a beast, BUT we need help here as well. This will be an area of rebuilding next yr.

[Ranger12 46]

Can't say it was any better than a good year..Getting spanked by two inferior opponents @ HOME is flat out unacceptable. If MassChump is backj I will be shocked. THe D-PLAYERS stepped up bigtime for the rivalry I will give them the credit for that.

Injuries,suspensions definately were a HUGE part of the offensive and defensive woes....

If not for the huge losses on the O-line and @ LB Auburn would be looking at a preseason top 5 spot going into next year.

All you know how to do is complain. You have been in Oklahoma too long. Thinking Mushcamp will not be back next year after just one year at the helm with no real chance to play his style of defense tells me you don't know jack about football!

This years team was a good one, but it was not the 2004 team. Expectations were way too high for such a young team with a first year DC. I think it is safe to say the team was overrated coming into the season, but overachieved more then it did underachieve.

You want to gripe about the close game with South Carolina? Well guess what, other teams, including Florida struggled with South Carolina. They took a possible BCSCG team, Florida, to the wire.

You want to gripe about the close game with Ole Miss? Well, they just took LSU to OT.

You say we got beat by two inferior opponents at home? Well, that comment just shows even more you don't think about what you say or either you just are not that bright when it comes to watching football. How are you calling Arky inferior? I would think by know that any common football fan would at least know Arky is for real and they may be playing in the BCSCG. To call them inferior really makes no sense at all. The other "inferior" team you refer to was Georgia, our second biggest rival who is having a rare down year. With their down year and them being a rival, I would be hesitant to call them inferior. Heck, in our rivalry with Georgia, I would guess to say that in the last 10 years or so, the visiting team has won more then the home team.

This team has a chance to go 11-2 with all the problems that David stated. To think that is not overachieving is not knowing alot about football.

[TxWarEagle 3]

Well, this has been a mixed bag season for me.

I think this is the record I thought we would have, but not at all in the way that I thought we would get it. It is disappointing to see the swings in play/preparation/execution from week to week. This same team that played up to LSU and Florida, played down to Arky (not saying Arky is bad, but we stunk it up as much as they are good) and UGA. I think this lends to youth.

I think it comes down to expectations.

If you think AU is capable of winning a NC, then you (like me) are a bit disappointed with the outcome of the season, but none the less happy. Without a doubt, the staff has us in a position to challenge for a BCS game every year.

If success is defined by beating Bama and finishing in the top 20, then you are probably really really happy.

[DCWarEagle 0]

Well, first off let me say that I don't think we can evaluate the season yet, because it is not over. We have one more game to play. I want to see what Tubs and the team do in the bowl game. Tub is only 3-3 in bowl games and we really laid and egg last year. Hopefully we can end on a high note.

That being said, here is what I think of the season so far:

I am happy with our record and thrilled that we have beaten Bama for the fifth time in a row. Bama has to be somewhere between a state of panic and dejected resignation.

I agree that it was disappointing that we did not improve from week to week. We were very inconsistent.

The defense was outstanding for the first three games, then LSU really seemed to take a lot out of us. After that our only excellent performance was the second half of the Florida game.

I was slightly disappointed in Cox. So far he has played like a good QB, but not a great one. Hopefully he can get healthy before the bowl game. I know he is a tough kid and a competitor and he gives everything he has. We need him to be a real leader next year.

Overall I'd say I'm slightly disappointed with the way we played at times, but I'm happy with our record. We got killed twice, but we won the close ones. Having a winning mentality is important. You look at Bama and we are the opposite of them. They lose the close ones, and we win them.

Next year we should be very good, but we have a brutal schedule. I expect us to play better than we did this year, but end up with a similar record. I'm already looking forward to it.

WDE!!!