Does Auburn Have Enough Talent?

Take a minute and think about how many times you've heard the statement "Auburn Has Talent" and then try to think how many ways pundits have tried to explain why they're not winning. Yeah I know, it's too many to count, right!? Well count me among the few that realize that the obvious truth is, Auburn does NOT have enough talent to be successful.

When Sports Talk folks on Birmingham area radio talk out of both sides of their mouth about Auburn, remember they are playing to their market and  the threat of potential attack by The Never To Yield Foundation and not necessarily telling the truth. That aside, they point to Auburn's recent history in Recruiting and declare that the talent to win must be there so the problem must be something else.

Gene Chiziks first two recruiting classes, while looking good on paper, were a complete and total bust. "Remarkably, 43 percent of Auburn's 2009 and 2010 signees are no longer on the team, or never joined the program in the first place". http://t.co/fhUIp19  Combine that with the off the field issues and subsequent suspensions since that time and the picture paints itself regardless what Tom Lugenbill or any other talking head tells you.

All you have to do when trying to decide for yourself whether Auburn is a talented football team is consider two positions. Quarterback and Middle Linebacker. When Clint Moseley/Kiel Frazier on offense and Jake Holland on defense is the best you can do the answer is abundantly clear. Auburn does NOT have a talented football team...at least where it counts the most. These are but two examples. Look at the roster. There are plenty more like them.

The un-dynamic duo of Moseley/Frazier try very hard and care quite a bit. They just don't have what it takes to compete at this level. I know Jake Holland personally and he comes from a fine family and is a good young man that has worked very hard to improve. He just doesn't have the ability to play in the S.E.C. This is not an attempt to be critical, it's simply the truth.

In 2010 the powers that be at Auburn defiantly declared that they were "All In". In the aftermath of the NCAA cloud of suspicion that was left hanging over that program we can only suspect what all that declaration entailed but fast forward to today and we can clearly see what that attitude has led to. Making a splash in recruiting by bringing in high profile recruits with questionable character has backfired and the blame lies squarely at the feet of Gene Chizik, and his "Recruiters" are the vehicle that drove them to this position.

If you have empathy have it for the unsuspecting fans of Auburn. They actually do believe in the Family mentality. They just never realized that the "Family" was being run by mob types and that they were bringing in thugs and thieves until it began to implode around them.

There are many negative issues with the Auburn Football program right now that lead to this undeniable conclusion. Auburn simply does not have the talent to compete and be a contender in the S.E.C. and based on current conditions, unless drastic measures are taken it would appear that it will be a while before they can.

Is Auburn Out Of Control

 Whatever the reason and whoever is to blame one thing is for certain. The self induced attrition due to behavioral problems at Auburn will keep them in a downward spiral regardless of where their recruiting classes are ranked by the big 3 recruiting services. 

When Gene Chizick arrived and quickly assembled his "Boog fan" proclaimed "All American" coaching staff the character issues and lawlessness soon followed. We may enjoy their downfall and the rest of the nation may be starting to see what we've known all along but the bigger picture should be that while kids were being abused at Penn St., High School aged young people are being exploited at Auburn.

They are being taken out of various difficult environments, brought together and entitled and then given no character building direction or supervision. In fact the antics of a few of their mentors serve to decay their already suspect morality because the adults given the responsibility of supervising them have failed miserably.

I believe the climate at Auburn has reached a level where outside organizations should step in and demand both answers and accountability. It's one thing to make fun of our rival and their problems. It changes when you stop to realize that the problem has risen to a level where unsuspecting young people are being exploited and ultimately abused for the sake of trying to keep up with their rival.

It's time to once and for all expose and dismantle the power structure that has ruled Auburn for the better part of 32 years. Everyone from the NCAA to SACS to the SEC office and even fans know where the trouble starts and who is responsible for it. If not now, then how many more young people must be sacrificed and how bad does it have to get before someone finally says enough?

The people and fans of Auburn should be the ones to step forward and demand that someone in a position of power at Auburn University put an end to the constant destruction of their reputation from within. If they refuse then they will deserve the misery that is sure to follow once the program implosion takes place.

Strata Sphere: SWAGGER

Strata Sphere: SWAGGER: Swag short for Swagger. A new age word used to define what an individual or a team has when they're winning. I wonder where it goes when the...

SWAGGER

Swag short for Swagger. A new age word used to define what an individual or a team has when they're winning. I wonder where it goes when they're loosing? I suppose I should check with Kirk Herbstreit since he is largely to be blamed or credited with the proliferation of such terms. There I go again. Using a big word and a new age word in the same paragraph...My bad  [pruh-lif-uh-rey-shuhn] a rapid and often excessive spread or increase. 


Don't get me wrong. 'Ol Kirk turns the heads of the girls around my house and guys pretty much want to be him. (If only for a weekend) But Herby over the years has taken common phrases and prettied 'em all up into new phrases that mean less than they once did thereby creating the need for him to explain them. Phrases such as "In the flat" and "Pounding up the middle is now "In space" and "Running down hill". Old Blue Eyes (Used to be Frank Sinatra but now is new age Kirk Herbstreit) even changed the game for coaches. Do you ever remember anyone ever using the term "Kirby Smarts defense" or "Gus Malzone's offense" prior to Herby saying it? No! He created it to shine a light on Coordinators. Good for them and good for their pocketbooks!


This brings us to Herbys favorite and most infamous term- Swagger. It can be defined by it's grammatical position:

Verb:	Walk or behave in a very confident and typically arrogant or aggressive way: "he swaggered along the corridor".
Noun:	A very confident and typically arrogant or aggressive gait or manner.
Adjective:	Denoting a coat or jacket cut with a loose flare from the shoulders.
Synonyms:	verb.  strut - brag - prance - peacock - boast - swank - vaunt noun.  strut - swank adjective.  swell - stylish - chic - spruce As you can see the term is neither flattering nor should it be endearing to those  described by it, yet Herby throws it out every week and encourages young men and teams to get more of it! Now before you get all "Leave him alone" I'd like to say that I enjoy Kirk Herbstreits input and analysis as well as his honest and fair assessment of teams and players. He is one of the good guys in a world of bias. So whats my point you ask? I use Herby as the face of new age because he represents it so well. It's not Kirk I'm opposed to it's new age thinking. As you can see from the definitions above "Swagger" is merely a new aged word that once meant "Bully" and/or "Punk". If it was back in the day I could tell you how to handle the situation but since this is a new age all I can say is if you see someone with "Swagger" just "Keep Your Head on a Swivel" and try to "Run Downhill" until you can get "Out Into Space".

Bear Bryant vs Nick Saban

With the recent success of Alabama football and that success being credited to Coach Nick Saban, the comparison to Coach Bryant and his achievements has begun. Chalk it up to the modern tendency to prematurely use the term "Greatest" or consider it a realistic assessment. Whichever side you come down on will likely identify which you believe is accurate.

Considering the deductive skills necessary, anyone that never saw and understood what took place in Tuscaloosa during the Bryant era is eliminated from providing useful input. That rules out pretty much anyone born after 1966 and also those that died before 2009. So. To those that remain within the parameters outlined let the discussion begin.

I know, I know. Those of you eliminated feel you have been unfairly treated because after all, you can read and study and research. Right!? Well let me just burst your bubble. Unless you lived it you can never understand the brilliance of Elvis, or the Patriotism associated with John Wayne or the love affair the world had with Marilyn Monroe. Don't feel bad. You still have Puff Daddy (Or Whatever He Calls Himself These Days) and Mike Tyson and Michael Jackson, and oh yeah...Tiger Woods! Way to go next generation!

The point is. Coach Saban benefited from what was forged by the many Coaches that came before him. None of them more important and beneficial than Coach Bryant. At a time when the college football world was pretty much controlled by sportswriters on the West Coast and in Big Ten territory Coach Bryant took on and beat the sweetheart teams from both areas of the country.

The result was a new found respect for both Alabama and the S.E.C. brand of Football. There had been great teams before at Tennessee and OleMiss but not until Coach Bryant grabbed them by the pen did the sportswriters and college powers take "Suthun" football seriously.

Coach Bryant was instrumental in desegregating S.E.C. programs. Before he could convince those at his own "Univusitee" he convinced others with less of a stranglehold on old worn out notions. Not long after those good 'ol boys at Alabama saw the light and John Mitchell and Wilber Jackson began amazing Bama fans with their ability. 

In the Decade of the 70's Alabama was the first team in history to win 100 games in a single decade. Now it happens all the time but back then it was monumental! I suppose I sound like I'm trying to lessen what Coach Saban is doing now. Not true. If you want to compare Coach Bryant to Coach Saban then be my guest. As for me I say, I'm glad to see this generation experience the greatness and domination of  Alabama Football! I got to enjoy it in the ^0's and 70's and now, largely due to Coach Nick Saban you get to live it too!

So what's the final verdict in Coach Bear Bryant vs Coach Nick Saban? I believe it is 2 incredible Coaches that navigate the greatest football program in history through 2 different times with incredible results because they are 2 men cut from the same mold! Coach Bryant is an undeniable Legend. Coach Saban isn't finished yet with the portrait that he is painting that will undoubtedly frame him as a Legend as well.

Eli, Eli, Eli

So now that Eli Manning has done twice what every winning Quarterback in Super Bowl history has done, which is, single-handedly win the big game, we now have to immediately rank his place in history among the elite.

Forget that just last year (2010) Eli led the NFL in interceptions, the second time he has accomplished this feat. He also did it in 2007. None of that matters because the talking heads will now and forevermore refer to the one and only winner of the Super Bowl as the starting QB of the winning team regardless of how the game played out.

Just sit back and listen over the next few days. "Eli" won "his" second Super Bowl. "Eli" now has more than Peyton so that automatically makes "him" better. They'll talk about how many Super Bowls Joe Montana won and how many this QB and that QB won and in the process likely suggest that poor ol' Tom Brady is washed up because "He" couldn't beat "Eli".

Don't get me wrong. I like Eli Manning and was actually pulling for the Giants. But to assign the victory to and only to the Quarterback is ridiculous. Is Eli good? Yes he can be very good. Does he belong among the best QB's ever? Not yet, even though he has now apparently won 2 Super Bowls all by himself.

The Cost To "Free UAB"

So the Students at UAB have started a "Free UAB" campaign and as proof that the Birmingham Alabama campus is free from their perception of the tyrannical grip of the University of Alabama Board of Trustees, they want a new on campus football stadium. Here is their pitch:  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UMqjHtq8OTg&feature=player_embedded

Now lets examine the current state of finances in the athletic department as it relates to football. Donations to UAB football dropped 26 percent from 2005 to 20010, according to UAB's most recent NCAA financial reports. In 2009 the football program received double ($2 million) what was projected it would need ($935,552) and still lost $1.7 million.

Does everyone understand why UAB wants a new place to play? Absolutely, yes we do. Are we willing to foot the bill for a 27,500 seat $75 million stadium? I for one say get out of the cellar in attendance in the "Sun Belt Conference" before you expect anyone to take you seriously. In 2011 the Blazers averaged 16,579 in home attendance and everybody is well aware of the routine give away program that is offered at each UAB home game that it took to even reach those abysmal numbers.

It's time to breakout one of the most appropriate if also most overused cliches in the book and remind the Free UAB crowd:  If you can't run with the big dogs, then stay on the Legion Field porch.

Righ Or Wrong

Another National Signing Day for college recruits is in the books and another #1 class for Coach Nick Saban and the Alabama Crimson Tide. If it's true that history has a tendency to repeat itself, then after the Tide's 3rd top ranked recruiting class in 4 years they can expect to find themselves back in the BCS Title game before their time in Tuscaloosa is done.

While the Bama Nation was all smiles and giggles at the end of the day the same cannot be said for one recruit that found himself on the outside looking in. Darius Philon 3 star DT out of Vigor High School in Mobile had been committed to Alabama for 6 months and expected to sign with the Crimson Tide on signing day, but just two weeks before the big day he was informed that there likely now would not be enough room for him to come in with the rest of the class and he was asked to take a Greyshirt and delay his enrollment.

While some have opined that he had other options that included waiting out the time period and then joining the team,  others feel that the Coaching staff should have honored the scholarship to the point of possibly losing another, potentially higher rated player in the name of principle.

It's not for me to say since I don't know anything about private conversations that went on between the player and coaches. But I can say this. Given the stature of Nick Saban and his oft testy relationship with the media, then add in the many times he stresses doing things the right way, and he is sure to come under some  harsh scrutiny over this situation. If this happens you can all but bet that who ever is doing the writing or talking will reveal their prior feelings for Saban which will likely determine the direction of the slant on the story, for or against.

Everything wasn't done right by the coaching staff, and the young man could have made a different decision. Both are true and makes neither a villain nor a saint and any attempt to categorize either only one way is inaccurate and unfair. Just remember, if we lived in a perfect world I would be sipping Margaritas on the deck of my Luxury Yacht in Charlotte Amalie right now instead of hacking away about the events of the day.

The NTYF Finally Gets It (Almost)

Well they've finally figured it out. Bama fans hate them. Congratulations Brian Kleisley and cohorts for finally realizing what so many have understood for years. People hate Auburn! Unfortunately you have yet to understand the real reasons why because you and you hoards are completely entrenched in the cult mentality that the nation has come to abhor.

A child in public can only whine for so long before everyone else acknowledges that it has gone on long enough and expect it to stop. As long as the Auburn Fambly made their delusional mumblings amongst themselves about how picked on they were and how the evil empire in Tuscaloosa was keeping them down no one noticed largely because no one cared. Most still don't even know if Auburn is in Alabama or Georgia for that matter.

So what changed? The Auburn faithful and all of their well placed media henchmen got a taste of glory (even though tainted) last year and suddenly decided that they belong. That their opinions mattered and express them they would! The problem is that their opinions are little more than a regurgitation of a generation of butthurt over not being rewarded for mediocrity.

Well, Auburn folk. To put it mildly you are that little kid and everybody has reached the point where they expect you to put up. Or shut up. Incidentally the rest of the nation is more concerned about buying players and armed robbery than they are those damned trees!

Landons Mom Needs To Grow Up

So now Landon Collins mother is doing her dead level best to screw up her sons future by bumping her gums about something she clearly doesn't understand. If she wants to go to LSU then she should do all of the qualitative work it takes and sign on up. Heck she can even try to walk on the football team for that matter. But to potentially ruin her sons future is the epitome of the term "Butthurt".

In recent days she has talked to anyone that would listen in an attempt to block her son from attending the school of his choosing and in doing so is pretty much branding herself an unfit mommy. At this time it is unclear whether or not the University of Alabama and specifically Coach Nick Saban offered a job to Collins girlfriend as a way to get him to sign with the Tide and is not really an issue since it's not a NCAA violation.

What is clear is that April Justin, Collins mother is doing him an injustice and potential great harm with her constant blathering about a decision that he made and she has repeatedly stated she did not like. Hey mom, hate to break it to you this way but it's time to grow up. Your son seems to have passed you by in that regard.

National Signing Day is upon us and what better way to look into the future for a potential BCS Champion.

 The Following numbers break down the  BCS Champions between 2005 and 2009 in order to give you an idea of the numbers your schools needs to strive for. Alabama finished 1st in recruiting in 2010 and won the 2011 BCS Championship. Notice 1 school is missing from this list. In 2010 Auburn won the BCS Championship yet their name is no where to be found on the list. Just goes to show they are the exception and not the rule. But then again didn't the SEC office and NCAA enforcement staff already clear that up for us?        

BCS Champs	Avg. Stars	Avg. Class Rank	Top 5 Classes	Top 10 Classes	Top 20 Classes
2005 Texas	3.4825	9.5	1	2	4
2006 Florida	3.66	6.25	2	3	4
2007 LSU	3.5975	8.25	2	3	4
2008 Florida	3.8825	6.5	2	2	4
2009 Alabama	3.4275	10.75	2	2	3
Totals	3.61	8.25	1.8	2.4	3.8