Clearing out the Cobwebs

1. Six in a row, yeah great. Sorry for not being more excited. I was the night of the game, but my joy has been tempered by the ridiculous nature of the contract situation with Tuberville.
   
   First the Alabama win. Auburn did exactly what it needed to do to win the game. It pressured John Parker Wilson, had a strong running game, limited Alabama’s big plays, diversified its offense as much as could possibly be expected, and limited mistakes. The interesting thing about this game wasn’t that Auburn won, it was how uncomfortable Nick Saban looked through the whole thing. Look, I lived in Baton Rouge for the entire Nick Saban era of LSU football and he isn’t the type that looks happy a lot of times. But he never looked like he was downright upset to be on a football field and that is they way he looked in Jordan-Hare stadium. Why is anyone’s guess, but he just looked like he wanted the whole thing over with as quickly as possible. This might have been why he kicked an onside kick at the end of the game and gave Auburn an absolute strategic gift.
   
   The bottom line is Auburn won. It’s sixth win in a row against its archrival. That hasn’t been done before. This guy didn’t do it. Neither did this guy. So congrats to the 2002-2007 Auburn football teams, you have all been a part of a crazy ride.



2. Now the Tuberville contract/situation/fiasco. What should be a great time for Auburn football (sixth win in a row over Alabama, young team that played well down the stretch, somewhat interesting bowl matchup, etc.) is being absolutely ruined by the ongoing power struggle between Tommy Tuberville and Bobby Lowder.
   
   I don’t doubt that Jimmy Sexton talked with Arkansas. I don’t doubt that Arkansas made a legitimate offer. I don’t doubt that Tuberville would be crazier than a sack of weasels (HT: EDSBS) to pack his bags and move to Fayatteville.
   
   I do know that Tuberville was offered an extension that met virtually all of his terms except for the one that is non-negotiable. I like Tuberville, I think he is a heck of a good coach and a good person, but he is downright, nutball insane if he thinks Auburn is going to get rid of the buyout. I’m fine with a slight reduction to say $4 million or $5 million. But absolute elimination or a drastic reduction is crazy and there is no way that could reasonable be argued by Tuberville or sold to the powers that be at the school. What’s odd is that Tuberville agreed to this contract with the buyout in 2004 when he had all the leverage in the world to get anything he wanted, including a buyout for firing him, but none if he wanted to leave.
   
   Really this whole thing comes down to Tuberville wanting to not have to answer to a certain power-broker at the school. Without a buyout, Tuberville could essentially leave at anytime and that is some real leverage. I maintain that he probably doesn’t want to leave. I think he knows that he has a good thing going right now, but you never know what the future holds. As for Lowder, he is probably thinks the same as a lot of Auburn people, that “no one person is bigger than Auburn University.” The way he is going about it is a little odd. And I do think that it was Lowder that issued the anonymous tip to the Arkansas television station about Tuberville and Arkansas. Just a hunch, but I think Lowder was hoping for exactly what he got, that is a fanbase that got mad as hell at Tommy Tuberville and might force Tommy into signing a contract that he doesn’t like.
   
   The sad part about the entire thing is that this is a real chance for the one guy who is supposed to be “independent” to show some sack and calm the waters. President Gogue, you are paid by the state, not Bobby Lowder, and your job is to run the university without interference from outside forces. So, come on, you were given the job to make tough stands and tough decisions. Get with it!!!!!!

3. The BCS thingy worked again didn’t it? (Turn off sarcasm) Actually, I’m not upset about Ohio State and LSU in the title game. Given that no team really stepped up, I think you basically toss all the teams in the air and see where they fall. I personally think that USC and Oklahoma might be the best two teams in the country, but what do I know. What I am pissed off about is that the wonderful BCS doesn’t prevent Southern Cal-Illinois and Virginia Tech-Kansas. If I was an ABC executive, I’m smacking the Rose Bowl selection committee right now. What the hell are they thinking? I have heard some reports that they couldn’t have possibly taken Georgia due to some obscure rule about Georgia being protected by the Sugar Bowl because LSU was gone. In that case, take West Virginia and give us a game that would at least be interesting. Instead the Rose Bowl stuck with "tradition," whatever that is, and went with 9-3 Illinois. So, the Zooker and Pete Carroll match wits. That ought to be comical. I can't tell you too much about what will happen in 2008, but I know one thing for certain, I will not be tuning into the Rose Bowl on New Year’s Day.
   
   As for Kansas, it is ridiculous that Missouri plays one bad half of football all year and gets the Cotton Bowl in Dallas. Yippie! That is some exciting stuff. They are likely to get steam-rolled by Arkansas, but that is for a different day. Missouri deserved a BCS bowl and it is a travesty that it won’t happen.
   
   
4. Really, every year that this horrid way to determine a national champion comes to a close, I’m reminded of how much Auburn was royally screwed in 2004. It isn’t just the quality of the teams playing for the title. If the AP poll had pulled out of the BCS in 2004, Auburn might have gotten a share of the national title. What does all this mean? Nothing, just me crying in my beer. Well, except for the fact that I personally think you have to base your expectations and achievements on conference titles instead of national titles. Not to say that winning the national title isn’t important, but it can be a random occurrence that can have no basis on what you do on the field. The SEC title, you can control.
   
   
5. Last item. Can we settle any debate that is out there regarding the best college football coach in the country? For my money, the award goes to Bob Stoops. Big Game Bob is the perfect mixture of strategy, fundamental coaching, recruiting, motivation, and management. Saturday night’s game was a microcosm of all those things rolled up into one big package. First, Oklahoma game planned perfectly for Missouri, albeit aided by their earlier game, but they knew they had equal or superior athletes in almost every position, save one, quarterback. So what do they do, they attack the one advantage that Missouri had. Chase Daniels couldn’t get his feet set all night and when he left the pocket, he was brought down with superb tackling (fundamentals). Meanwhile, on the offensive side, OU repeatedly did what they have always done, effectively mixed passing and running. They probably passed a little more than they should. Sam Bradford’s inaccuracy kept Oklahoma from scoring more in the first half. But Oklahoma capitalized on Missouri mistakes and got a lead. Despite winning the statistical battle with Oklahoma in the first half, Missouri had to claw its way back to tie. In the second half, Oklahoma kicked in the afterburners. First dialing up the pressure on Missouri’s offensive line and Daniels and then making Missouri completely one-dimensional by scoring touchdowns when they touched the ball. It was a nearly perfect half of football that demonstrated the unity of offense and defense. Again, none of this should come as a surprise, Oklahoma was favored and was supposed to win the game. But that is the point, Bob Stoops prepared his team properly and they won a game that they should have won. Sure, they lost two games this year that they had no business losing, but in one of those their quarterback was knocked out in the first quarter and they still had a chance to win it in the fourth. If you win the games you are supposed to win, good things tend to happen for you. Stoops and Oklahoma took advantage of a little fortune turning their way and didn't let go. That's why he is worth every penny that Oklahoma pays him.

Iron Bowl 2007

Since I will be taking the rest of the week off, we are going to hit a few items early this week. So, how about a little Iron Bowl Preview?

First, I’m not going to talk about the Nick Saban 9/11 press conference. Saban should have known better and the rest of us just need to grow up and quit being so damn sensitive about every little thing. I mean for the media types to get their panties in a wad when Saban compares losing to ULM to 9/11 and Pearl Harbor, but not when President Bush is called a Nazi really tells me that we can’t have a serious discussion in the country any longer. So, no the Nick Saban thing isn’t worth my time….there’s football to be played.

I have to honestly say this is the strangest Iron Bowl week I have been through. I don’t know if it’s because both teams are coming in off a loss and neither side really feels that confident, if it’s the bye week, or if it’s because Thanksgiving is tomorrow, but it just doesn’t feel like the Iron Bowl is Saturday. Maybe that changes once all the leftovers have hit the fridge tomorrow night and I can get focused on the game. Hopefully, my attitude isn’t what the team is experiencing. My guess is likely not, but you never know.

So what are the keys….

When Auburn has the ball……

No mistakes. Yeah, pretty evident. Brandon Cox has to be the solid performer that he normally is against Alabama. The running backs can’t just toss the ball to the Crimson Tide like it’s a radioactive hot potato. Look at the statistics, when Auburn holds on the football, plays solid clock controlling offense it wins. When there are turnovers, sloppy play, and a lot of three and outs, well you get Mississippi State, South Florida, and Georgia.

Davis, Tate, Lester, Stewart, and Fannin, oh my. Those names should be called a lot on Saturday. It is quite evident that the quarterback and wideouts can’t get on the same page. Regardless of who is to blame, Auburn’s strength on offense lies with the running backs. The goal for Al Borges is to figure out how to get these guys productive. Sure Lester is the go-to-guy, but all of them have strengths that need to be used to their fullest potential.

Stay outside of 7. Alabama hasn’t shown much ability to consistently drive the football down the field and score. They live and die by the big play. They will hit one or two on Saturday and that’s why it is important for Auburn to be ahead by a touchdown at all times. This means scoring touchdowns inside the red zone and controlling the clock.

When Alabama has the ball….

Limit big plays. See #3 above. Muschamp must stress to the defensive backs to be prepared to run. It would be nice if some of them would actually turn around and you know get an interception every once in awhile.

Pressure the quarterback. If Auburn allows Wilson to sit back there and pick them apart or throw long bombs down the field, the game will be over in a hurry. Groves, Coleman, and Carter need to be in the backfield. Keeping good contain and not overrunning things are key, but when they get Alabama in long yardage, they need to be getting to quarterback.

Be the difference. A big play on defense, an interception return or fumble return, will be huge in this game, particularly if it is deep in either team’s territory. Scoring will be at a premium and these types of plays will be crucial.

Intangibles….

Kickoff coverage. The kickoff coverage was one bright spot from the Georgia game. There were actual kicks going down near the goal line. Obviously, if Javier Arenas can’t go, that would be big. A return guy like that would have shredded Auburn.

Get up big, early. If Auburn jumps out to a 10 or 14 point lead, that could get Alabama to quit. Clearly, there are certain corners of this Alabama team that have had their fill with Nick Saban. I’ll go on record that some of those players will be on the field on Saturday. Facing a 14 point deficit might seem too high a mountain to climb especially for what they perceive to be an egotistical jerk.

There you have it, the keys to the game. So what will happen? I have a feeling that Auburn limits mistakes and big plays, gets out to a 10 point lead and tries to coast. Alabama scores late to make it interesting and the defense comes up big at the end. Hey that sounds like a typical Iron Bowl. War Eagle and Happy Thanksgiving.

Hold It! Hold It!

Hold up in that car nice gentlemen. I’m not exactly putting too much stock in the loss to Louisiana-Monroe. Embarrassing? Yes. Disgraceful? Sure. Funny as all wholly hell? No doubt. However, let’s not forget that this Alabama team is talented and this Auburn team is prone to bad plays, terrible decisions, and scratch your head play-calling. All of these will cause Auburn to get beat on Saturday.

What does the ULM loss mean? Nothing. Zero. Nada. I told Junior last week that I thought Auburn would be about a 5.5 point favorite against Alabama. They are a six point favorite. Let’s face it. Alabama wasn’t as good as they looked against Tennessee and LSU. But they aren’t as bad as they looked against ULM and FSU. Conversely, Auburn isn’t nearly as good as they looked against Florida and LSU. Nor are they as bad as they looked against Mississippi State, Georgia, and South Florida.

I would say the benchmark games for both schools are Arkansas for Alabama and Kansas State for Auburn. Both victories at home. Both down to the wire. Both featuring good defense and adequate offense. Nothing spectacular positive and negative. My sense is that Auburn is the better team and the better team normally wins the Iron Bowl. However, if Auburn as a team seriously thinks that they can roll into Jordan-Hare and win on Saturday night, they are mistaken. I really don’t think that is the case, but I guess we will find out around 7pm (Eastern) on Saturday.

Daily Double - Back in the Saddle Again

Junior and I discussed it and due to a little linkage from Jerry at Joe Cribb’s Car Wash, we are going to try and get this thing going again.

So, on with the fart jokes and half-naked women...

1. Auburn released their 2008 Football schedule and there was much rejoicing.
   
   The highlights include a trip to Morgantown for a little couch burning, LSU, Tennessee, and Georgia at home, the usually spate of SEC games, a cupcake to start off and a cupcake for homecoming, and the bi-annual owning of Bryant-Denny stadium. Not too shabby, Junior and I are definitely in for a little Morgantown action. Plus, Junior visited this gentleman’s establishment outside of Pittsburgh one night that I have to see.
   
   I’m a little miffed at the inclusion of Tennessee-Martin. Auburn has no business scheduling non-Division I-A (or FBS, whatever) teams. I understand it is difficult to put together a schedule and all, but hell call anyone but a Division I-AA team.
   
   The folks did put in two open dates, which I like. That first open date will feel great after that stretch of games. Let’s hope Kodi Burns shows big time improvement between now and September 6th.
   
   
2. Michael Lewis trots out another column about the inequities of big time college athletics. Okay, big time college football. In the course of his column, Lewis comes off sounding very elitist, which isn’t something I normally associate with him. Nevertheless, his argument boils down to, “Hey you Neanderthals that like college football, don’t you know you are somewhat racist and holding back poor black kids from getting their just due.” I’m generally not a fan of someone calling me racist. Particularly when they do it in a rather thinly veiled way like Lewis does with the following, “At this moment there are thousands of big-time college football players, many of whom are black and poor. They perform for the intense pleasure of millions of rabid college football fans, many of whom are rich and white.” Ahh yes, the old rich white people taking advantage of poor black people argument. I will grant Lewis that the average person supporting any given college football program is fairly well off and probably white. However, this is how they spend their entertainment dollars. Dollars, I might add, that most would consider well-earned.
   
   But let’s peel the onion back a little more on Lewis’ column. He, of course, argues that college football programs make millions of dollars without properly compensating the labor creating those dollars. As an example, he says that Vince Young gave a donation of his labor to the University of Texas, a donation Lewis estimates to be $5 million. For that $5 million, Vince Young has made about $8.42 million dollars in salary from the Tennessee Titans in two years and is set to make an additional $17.32 million in the next four years (this is only his guaranteed money and does not include endorsements). If you consider the time value of money, $5 million over the first three years and $25.74 million over the next six, gives a return of 50 percent. I think any of us would take that on our 401(k) accounts.
   
   Don’t think VY is a good example to use? Okay, let’s take the average scholarship football player. He attends four years of college with room and board for free. In exchange, he plays football. I’m certainly recognizing that the tradeoff isn’t fair. However, the opportunity to earn a degree is his for the taking and he has a support system that is designed to do all it can to assist him in doing so. The average differential between a college educated person and a high school educated person is about $21,000 per year (admittedly a two-year old study, we will put our intern right on conducting a more recent study...oh wait). Over a thirty-year period (assuming three percent growth in the differential each year) at a fairly modest five percent return, the present value of the education he receives is about $58,000. On a team with 85 scholarships, what does Lewis think the average “donation” is likely to be? Hard to say, but I think most of the scholarship football players are breaking even.
   
   The largest question to ask is how is this inequity that much different than a normal student? No one who attends college is getting compensated at the time for their labors and efforts. I wasn’t given a check for the work I was putting in for Auburn’s engineering school in the mid-90s. No, I put forth effort with the expectation that I would receive future compensation that would exceed the value of the time I was expending. And this doesn’t even count the fact that I was paying to go to school. Something a scholarship athlete doesn’t do. What, you don’t think school’s benefit from their student’s achievements? Let’s see, rankings, graduate and undergraduate research, alumni donations, etc., etc., etc. Are these worth as much each year as what the athletic department rakes in? No. But the potential future earnings of the average college student and a blue-chip athlete are a little different as well.

Cheerleader of the Week (Preseason)

As usual, the entire shoot can be seen here.

Daily Double - Hell is a Little Cold Edition

1. First topic, booing. Is booing your right as a fan? When is the acceptable time to boo? Is it okay to boo pro athletes? College athletes? High-school? Steve Kelley of the Seattle Times, presents his objections to the Washington Interscholastic Activities Association proposed Boo Ban.
   
   I generally agree with Steve in the fact that I believe the ban is directed at the playful-taunting booing that occurs at most high school sporting events. I can vividly remember being at many a high school basketball game as a teenager where I and my fellow students would hurl insults at the opposing team. It was not intended to be harmful or hurtful and often the insults weren’t even true. It was just funny and juvenile humor is the most beloved genre of humor around. I present the recent success of Wild Hogs as exhibit one in defense of my argument. Anyhow, I have no issue with Steve’s argument that playful taunting is part of the allure of sports and that legislating what can and can’t be said is a dangerous road to travel down.
   
   However, I do want to make an argument against another type of booing and insult-hurling. This generally comes not from peers of the athletes, but from others, usually male, who for some reason get upset with high-school athletes. Let me just say that if you are booing a high school athlete, you are a fairly low-level degenerate in my opinion. Sure I’m not for blowing sunshine up someone’s butt and telling them how great they are, but outright public embarrassment is another thing. And, no it’s not the same thing as booing a professional or even college athlete. A professional is being paid outright for his or her services and you, as a paying fan, are allowed to voice your opinion concerning the athlete’s performance. College athletes are not paid outright, but are given compensation for their services. For whatever reason, booing college athletes hasn’t quite caught on yet. It probably has something to do with the supporters of the university feeling some affiliation with the athletes, however vague it might be. The point to all this is that I have no issue with the regulation if it gives school administrators the right to remove patrons who are booing a high school athlete in an abusive manner. Of course, giving school administrators the right to do anything is a disaster waiting to happen. Probably the best recourse is to allow the fans to police themselves. So if you are at a high school sporting event and someone is being a complete ass, do the right thing, ask them to shut up or leave.
   
   
2. I’m about to write words that I swear upon the good Lord himself I never thought I would type. Bill Simmons and I agree on Scoop Jackson. Stop. Let that sink in for a minute. Yes, Bill Simmons. No, I’m not joking. No, it isn’t about the Red Sox. Bill essentially makes the same argument that I made in this space last Thursday.
   
   By the way, a pig just flew by my window.

Daily Double - Slow Day Edition

1. Dr. Elliot Pellman stepped down as the director of the NFL’s concussion committee yesterday. He will be replaced by Dr. Ira Casson, a neurologist from Nassau, N.Y., and Dr. David Viano, a biomechanical engineer from Wayne State University. Considering that Dr. Pellman is a rheumatologist, he wasn’t exactly qualified from the get go. Oh and he is also the team doctor for the Jets, so there is an apparent conflict of interest.
   
   So this is a good thing right? The NFL is finally taking this issue seriously, yes? Eh, we shall see. Yes, these two doctors are not affiliated with any team, but what compensation do they get from the league? This is the same league that is run by the team owners who have a conflict of interest when it comes to the availability of the players they employ.
   
   Now, my free-market mind recognizes that there are owners who make sure not to endanger their employees and they are probably rewarded by players wanting to stay with that team and other players wanting to come and play for said team. I’m also cool with the idea that the players are free to choose what team to play for and in fact whether they should play with injury or not. I also recognize that these players are compensated very well to play the sport. However, those assumptions are based on sound medical advice being given to the player in order to make a decision. And I question whether team or league doctors are in the position to give sound medical advice.
   
   
2. It’s kind of a slow day around here, so three quick blurbs and we are out for the weekend.
   
   File this one under the “It was just a joke” category with John Kerry’s plea to get an education. Evidently the Celtics are employing Archie Bunker as their color analyst.
   
   Splitting time between harassing Jewish kids and doing color for the Celtics
   
   

   Jake Plummer = Master Negotiator. Jake the Snake wants to come to Houston so badly that he probably spending time in the humidor at Coors Field to acclimatize.
   
   John Daly, the picture of fitness (not that I should be talking or anything) pulls a muscle trying to stop his backswing. Funny, normally when I have had a six-pack or two, the muscles are pretty loose.