Why Auburn wants to win 10 games so badly

[aubiefifty 18,230]

al.com

Why Auburn wants to win 10 games so badly

Posted Dec 22, 2019

3-4 minutes

Ever since Auburn lost to Georgia, “10-win season” has become a mantra. While it’s not the same as going to the College Football Playoffs, winning 10 games would not be an insignificant consolation prize.

Auburn has only 10 or more games 14 times in school history.

“Out of all the great football that has been played here at Auburn, to win 10 games, that’s a big deal, even though we wanted something bigger,” safety Daniel Thomas said.

Going into the game against Georgia, Auburn had an outside chance of making the College Football Playoffs. If it took down both Georgia and Alabama, it would have two top-5 wins. If that wasn’t enough to make the playoffs, it would have been enough to get into a New Year’s Six Bowl. The loss to Georgia ended that, even though each of Auburn’s three-losses were close ones to top-10 teams.

“We’re a couple of plays away from being in the playoffs, but coach (Ryan) Russell called us all up and he said there were (14) teams that have won 10 games in Auburn history,” Thomas said. “You all can be one of them to do it twice.”

Under Gus Malzahn, Auburn has won at least 10 games twice. The last time was in 2017 when this year’s juniors and seniors were freshmen and sophomores.

“I feel like that's pretty special to do, to come through here and win 10 games,” senior running back Kam Martin said. “I know we did in 2017, I know went 10-4, so I have one year with 10 wins."

The upperclassmen would have helped with two-thirds of Malzahn’s 10-win seasons and 13 percent of Auburn’s 10-win seasons.

The first 10-win season happened in 1957 under coach Ralph “Shug” Jordan. Auburn was ineligible to play in a bowl that year and finished 10-0. The Tigers finished two more seasons with 10 wins, in 1972 and 1975, and won the Gator Bowl both times.

It took eight more years and two coaching changes until Auburn had another season that had double-digit W’s. In 1983, Auburn finished first in the SEC under Pat Dye. They went 11-1 and won the Sugar Bowl against Michigan. Dye coached the Tigers to three more 10-win seasons.

The Tigers got off to a hot start under Terry Bowden and went 11-0 in his first season as head coach, but they were ineligible for postseason play. They finished the Bowden era with two 10-win seasons.

It took seven years after their 10-3 1997 season to get the win column back up to double digits. In 2004, under Tommy Tuberville, Auburn went 13-0 and won the Sugar Bowl against Virginia Tech. The Tigers finished ranked second in the polls. They also went 11-2 under Tuberville and won the Cotton Bowl against Nebraska.

Between Tuberville and coach Gus Malzahn, there was only one season Auburn won at least 10 games. It was the year the Tigers won the BCS National Championship. Coached by Gene Chizik and led by quarterback Cam Newton, Auburn went 14-0 and beat Oregon in the championship.

Malzahn was at Auburn that year but did not take over until 2013, when Auburn went to the championship again but lost. They had a 12-2 season that year. In 2017, they went 10-4 and lost to UCF in the Peach Bowl.

Auburn hasn’t won two championships in three years since the Dye era when they four 10-win seasons in seven years.

“It will be good to put our name in the record books again,” defensive end Marlon Davidson said.

[Auctoritas 2,906]

That's a good perspective. Not what we were hoping for, but 10-3 is not at all bad. Let's get there consistently.

Pretty crazy that Gus has a chance to tie Shug. 

[Farmer Brown 2,461]

Good ole al.com. lol 15 bammer articles to one Auburn article. I hate to give them clicks. 

[AUBourne 425]

1 hour ago, Auctoritas said:

That's a good perspective. Not what we were hoping for, but 10-3 is not at all bad. Let's get there consistently.

Pretty crazy that Gus has a chance to tie Shug. 

What's crazy is that people consider Shug a great coach. He won one conference title in 24 years. 

[countoff 331]

OK... but keep in mind that there were only 10 regular season games in 1957.  And 11 regular season games in '72, '75, '83, and '93,  Not sure when they switched over to 12 game regular seasons.

So a 10 win season was a little bit more of an accomplishment in those earlier years.  

Still.... 10 wins this year would be a good thing.  Especially if we can see some good play out of our younger players in the bowl game.

[Auctoritas 2,906]

32 minutes ago, AUBourne said:

What's crazy is that people consider Shug a great coach. He won one conference title in 24 years. 

Hell, we named a stadium after him. At this rate we will have to rename Auburn "MalzAUhn" or something.

[I_M4_AU 8,933]

28 minutes ago, AUBourne said:

What's crazy is that people consider Shug a great coach. He won one conference title in 24 years. 

Shug was a great coach.  Shug was coaching in a different time and college football was not as it is today.  He coached when there were no scholarships limits and a certain coach in the same state got most of the recruit just because of who he was.  As for the conference titles, in 1972 he went 10-1 in the regular season and beat Bama and, by today’s standards, would have won the conference title.  However, during those years Bama would play one extra SEC team (for this very reason) and won the conference title out right due to the percentage.

https://www.sports-reference.com/cfb/conferences/sec/1972.html

 

[AUBourne 425]

21 minutes ago, I_M4_AU said:

Shug was a great coach.  Shug was coaching in a different time and college football was not as it is today.  He coached when there were no scholarships limits and a certain coach in the same state got most of the recruit just because of who he was.  As for the conference titles, in 1972 he went 10-1 in the regular season and beat Bama and, by today’s standards, would have won the conference title.  However, during those years Bama would play one extra SEC team (for this very reason) and won the conference title out right due to the percentage.

https://www.sports-reference.com/cfb/conferences/sec/1972.html

 

They were playing by the same rules as every other team. Pat Dye came in and won 4 titles in 10 years. Imagine a coach doing that at Kentucky because is basically what Pat Dye did. Now that was a great coach.  I mean Chizik got the same amount of conference titles in 4 years that Shug got in 24 years.  Even Tuberville got one and he was the definition of a mediocre coach.  Aubirn is such a sleeping giant waiting on a great coach. 

[Glen from West Glenn Ave 44]

I attended Auburn from Fall of 66 to Fall of 70.  Shug was my coach.  Recently, I did some research on win-loss records and Auburn Coaches. I found out that under Shug, Auburn only played LSU 4 times, with a record of 0 wines and 4 losses. We played Georgia 25 times with a record of 15 wins and 10 losses.  Against Bama in 25 games, we had a record of 9 wins and 16 losses.  Against these three, Auburn under Shug had a record of 24 wins and 30 losses (44%).

[I_M4_AU 8,933]

Just now, AUBourne said:

They were playing by the same rules as every other team. Pat Dye came in and won 4 titles in 10 years. Imagine a coach doing that at Kentucky because is basically what Pat Dye did. Now that was a great coach.  I mean Chizik got the same amount of conference titles in 4 years that Shug got in 24 years.  Even Tuberville got one and he was the definition of a mediocre coach.  Aubirn is such a sleeping giant waiting on a great coach. 

Do you think Auburn (or any other SEC team) would have been able to play a 7th SEC game back then?  Auburn (and every other SEC team) had to tell the SEC office that certain things Bama did was not the way they should run the Conference.  That didn’t happen overnight. By the time Pat Dye got here, things had changed enough that he was able to be successful and we started to win conference championships.  Pat Dye was successful because of the foundation Shug put down at Auburn and, yes Pat Day was a great coach.  I totally agree Auburn is a sleeping giant, but that potential is built upon every coach we have had, good or bad.

I’m not arguing which coach was better, they were both great and advanced Auburn’s status while they were here.

[ChltteTiger 649]

They didn't want to win it that badly after all. Gus sure didn't.

[hutchids 239]

In this era where some teams play 15 game seasons, ten wins might not seem impressive. But when you consider Auburn's 14 ten win seasons is 16th all-time, it's still a big deal whenever a team can do it. Given the rebuild on defense and 2 years of offensive struggles, the team really could have  used this momentum going into next year.

[SaltyTiger 8,568]

On 12/23/2019 at 10:27 AM, I_M4_AU said:

Shug was a great coach.  Shug was coaching in a different time and college football was not as it is today.  He coached when there were no scholarships limits and a certain coach in the same state got most of the recruit just because of who he was.  As for the conference titles, in 1972 he went 10-1 in the regular season and beat Bama and, by today’s standards, would have won the conference title.  However, during those years Bama would play one extra SEC team (for this very reason) and won the conference title out right due to the percentage.

https://www.sports-reference.com/cfb/conferences/sec/1972.html

 

Well said. Very different day...... No other coach in the nation would or could have come to Auburn with Birmingham and Tuscaloosa a few hours up the road and in the same state as Bryant. Amazing the foundation and tradition he was able to build. 

[SaltyTiger 8,568]

On 12/23/2019 at 11:01 AM, AUBourne said:

They were playing by the same rules as every other team. Pat Dye came in and won 4 titles in 10 years. Imagine a coach doing that at Kentucky because is basically what Pat Dye did. Now that was a great coach.  I mean Chizik got the same amount of conference titles in 4 years that Shug got in 24 years.  Even Tuberville got one and he was the definition of a mediocre coach.  Aubirn is such a sleeping giant waiting on a great coach. 

No way Dye would have come to Auburn had it not been for the structure Coach Jordan built. Coach Dye was great and came in at the perfect time. Bryant was closing in to retirement age. After coaching for almost a decade under Bryant Dye understood that the "rules" were not really the same for all. Not JMO....probably the most corrupt football program ever.

funny that you mention the the Kentucky nonsense 

"Though he led Kentucky's football program to its greatest achievement, Bryant resigned after the 1953 season because he felt that Adolph Rupp's basketball team would always be the school's primary sport."

[gr82be 14,906]

A 10 win season is a consolation prize for teams that can't get in the playoff conversation. It's not a measure of a championship caliber team. Teams that we beat are winning 11 and 12 games and they didn't make the playoff. The 10 win goal for Auburn should now be a thing of the past. If Auburn is to be a serious contender in the future they need to figure out how to get to 11 and at least be in the mix for the CFP. Sorry for being such a wet blanket but I'm sick and tired of the lack of preparation, intensity, focus, planning and success of Auburn football. 10 games has to be the absolute base camp for Auburn, not the summit. 

[AUBourne 425]

5 hours ago, SaltyTiger said:

No way Dye would have come to Auburn had it not been for the structure Coach Jordan built. Coach Dye was great and came in at the perfect time. Bryant was closing in to retirement age. After coaching for almost a decade under Bryant Dye understood that the "rules" were not really the same for all. Not JMO....probably the most corrupt football program ever.

funny that you mention the the Kentucky nonsense 

"Though he led Kentucky's football program to its greatest achievement, Bryant resigned after the 1953 season because he felt that Adolph Rupp's basketball team would always be the school's primary sport."

When coach Dye was hired AU had not been to a bowl in 7 years, had not won an SEC title in 25 years and had not beat Alabama in 9 years. My reference to UK was to just point out AU was not an upper tier program when Dye was hired. So what he accomplished was really amazing.

Dye beat Alabama in his 2nd year,  beat Doug Flutie's Boston College in a Bowl his second year, won the SEC  Championship his 3rd season, 4 SEC titles total, and went 6-2-1 in bowls. Btw I was at the Syracuse game and considered it a win. Coach Dye moved the ceiling for expectations for some fans (evidently not all) and changed the national perception of the program.  Auburn has not seen that level of consistency since Dye. 

I think Auburn's location, and conference affiliation had more to do with him leaving Wyoming than whatever structure that Barfield maintained or Jordan built. But if you want to expound on that I would find that interesting.

LSU, Ole Miss, Georgia, & Tennessee all won SEC championships from 58-75. Alabama didn't actually win them all. Kentucky won in '76. Shug should have been fired after '67. He went 17 seasons without an SEC title.  

[SaltyTiger 8,568]

3 hours ago, AUBourne said:

When coach Dye was hired AU had not been to a bowl in 7 years, had not won an SEC title in 25 years and had not beat Alabama in 9 years. My reference to UK was to just point out AU was not an upper tier program when Dye was hired. So what he accomplished was really amazing.

Dye beat Alabama in his 2nd year,  beat Doug Flutie's Boston College in a Bowl his second year, won the SEC  Championship his 3rd season, 4 SEC titles total, and went 6-2-1 in bowls. Btw I was at the Syracuse game and considered it a win. Coach Dye moved the ceiling for expectations for some fans (evidently not all) and changed the national perception of the program.  Auburn has not seen that level of consistency since Dye. 

I think Auburn's location, and conference affiliation had more to do with him leaving Wyoming than whatever structure that Barfield maintained or Jordan built. But if you want to expound on that I would find that interesting.

LSU, Ole Miss, Georgia, & Tennessee all won SEC championships from 58-75. Alabama didn't actually win them all. Kentucky won in '76. Shug should have been fired after '67. He went 17 seasons without an SEC title.  

I am well aware of what Dye did for us. Was in school in the Barfield era and made Auburn my home after graduation. Attended most games Dye coached and met the man on several occasions. Never considered the Syracuse game a win but felt Coach Dye did the correct thing and loved his reasoning when questioned about it post game.

You are probably right about location and conference affiliation and Dye. Feel sure Coach Dye would tell you the legacy Coach Jordan left made the Auburn job much more attractive though.  

By todays standards Shug would have been fired. Different day and time. Doubt it was ever seriously considered.

[musicitytiger 281]

12 hours ago, ChltteTiger said:

They didn't want to win it that badly after all. Gus sure didn't.

No kidding, how does a team put up less than 240 yards of offense in this day and age?  We would have been better off just renting a service academy offensive coordinator for a week.  

[1716AU 790]

On 12/23/2019 at 8:57 AM, aubiefifty said:

.

“We’re a couple of plays away from being in the playoffs, but coach (Ryan) Russell called us all up and he said there were (14) teams that have won 10 games in Auburn history,” Thomas said. “You all can be one of them to do it twice.”

 

 

This bothers me.  If you really think hat you're a couple of plays from being in the Playoffs, then reality and you are not on the same plain

 

This team was several plays away from being in the Playoff just in the uga game alone...

[keesler 5,957]

1 hour ago, 1716AU said:

This bothers me.  If you really think hat you're a couple of plays from being in the Playoffs, then reality and you are not on the same plain

 

This team was several plays away from being in the Playoff just in the uga game alone...

It's indeed bothersome when the actual players have that mentality.  "We're a couple of plays away from being in the CFP", a couple plays?  Really?

That sounds like many of the posters on here year after year after year.☹️

I understand people need a coping mechanism to deal with disappointment when the initial goals aren't met, but to try to rationalize the reality and think just a couple of plays were the reason for another 4 loss season is ridiculous.

[McLoofus 35,182]

Except they were 11 total points away from being in the SECCG, in which they would have faced a team to whom they only lost by 7.

Why shouldn't they think that?

It's not a moral victory thing. It's a motivation thing. What good would it do them going into the bowl game fixating on being worse than they really were? Also, that was a defensive player saying that. If anything, he's taking more ownership for the losses than he needs to just by saying "we". 

[keesler 5,957]

42 minutes ago, McLoofus said:

Except they were 11 total points away from being in the SECCG, in which they would have faced a team to whom they only lost by 7.

Why shouldn't they think that?

It's not a moral victory thing. It's a motivation thing. What good would it do them going into the bowl game fixating on being worse than they really were? Also, that was a defensive player saying that. If anything, he's taking more ownership for the losses than he needs to just by saying "we". 

Like I said, everyone has to have a coping mechanism when goals aren't met.  I guess if it makes the players feel better about a season where 3 of their goals (SECCG/CFP/10 win season) weren't met again then they have the right to say what they want.  Lord knows the guys worked hard for that 9 wins.

[McLoofus 35,182]

11 minutes ago, keesler said:

Like I said, everyone has to have a coping mechanism when goals aren't met.  I guess if it makes the players feel better about a season where 3 of their goals (SECCG/CFP/10 win season) weren't met again then they have the right to say what they want.  Lord knows the guys worked hard for that 9 wins.

Yes, it seems the fans need a coping mechanism most of all, lol. 

Dude more or less spoke the truth. There's no need to psychoanalyze it. These guys on defense showed the hearts of lions all damned season. To question something as innocuous as that comment at this stage of the game is just looking for nits to pick in the aftermath of an(other) ugly loss. 

 

[aubiefifty 18,230]

5 hours ago, 1716AU said:

This bothers me.  If you really think hat you're a couple of plays from being in the Playoffs, then reality and you are not on the same plain

 

This team was several plays away from being in the Playoff just in the uga game alone...

dude i just posted the article. it does not mean i believe what might be printed........

[keesler 5,957]

50 minutes ago, aubiefifty said:

dude i just posted the article. it does not mean i believe what might be printed........

He's talking about the players '50, not you.

He's saying if the players really believe AU was only a couple of plays from being in the playoffs then they aren't grounded in reality.  This team was several plays away just like they are every dang year since the inception of the CPF.