Nix’s familiar road struggles resurface

[aubiefifty 18,236]

Bo Nix’s familiar road struggles resurface in loss to Penn State

By Tom Green | tgreen@al.com

5-7 minutes

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This was a chance for Bo Nix to flip the script.

Instead, it was the rehashing of several familiar chapters in the Auburn starting quarterback’s rollercoaster career.

Nix struggled in familiar fashion during No. 22 Auburn’s 28-20 loss to No. 10 Penn State on Saturday night in Happy Valley. The junior completed just 21-of-37 passes for 185 yards, as his night was defined by misfires, some dropped passes and a couple of narrowly-avoided backbreaking interceptions.

“Not good enough,” Auburn coach Bryan Harsin said of the passing game. “That’s really -- we needed to hit some, some explosive plays. We got opportunities to do that. We need to catch the ball, and we need to be in the right areas in the pass concepts. That just goes back to those are things that we have to work on on this team, and those are things that have to be continually focused on. They’ve got to become priorities for everybody involved in order for us to go out there and execute those concepts that we have in there.”

It was a familiar tune for Nix, who has largely struggled on the road and against ranked teams throughout his career. Entering Saturday’s showdown at Beaver Stadium, Nix had just a 54.5 percent completion rate, with more interceptions (10) than touchdowns (nine), and a yards-per-attempt averaged of 5.65 in nine true road games. Over the course of those nine games, Nix only had two quality outings — in wins against a 2-10 Arkansas in 2019 and Ole Miss last season.

In 10 games against ranked opponents entering Saturday, Nix completed 54.1 percent of his passes for eight touchdowns, nine interceptions and 5.6 yards per pass attempt.

Nix had a chance to counter those knocks against his resume against Penn State amid the hottest start to his career. Nix entered Beaver Stadium completing 74.4 percent of his passes and looking confident and comfortable in the Tigers’ new offense, a system designed in tandem by Harsin and first-year coordinator Mike Bobo.

That blazing start to the season, which came against Akron and Alabama State, flickered out amid the 109,958 raucous fans, most clad in all-white for Penn State’s annual White Out game.

Nix completed 11 of his first 15 pass attempts against the Nittany Lions, and he appeared sure of himself and the offense early on, as the Tigers staked an early lead in a hostile environment, even as he missed a couple of downfield shots to Shedrick Jackson.

“There will be other opportunities in games moving forward as well, but explosive plays become a difference in any game, not just this game,” Harsin said. “But, if you can hit some of those explosives in the pass game -- and we did. We hit a few of them. You know, we want to create more of those and give ourselves some opportunities to do that. We’ve just got to go finish on those plays, and with that we’ll continue to be a work in progress as we go through this season.”

Things began to unravel for Nix after the promising start.

With time winding down in the first half, Nix nearly had an untimely and devastating interception. After Penn State went ahead, 14-10, Nix and Auburn tried to answer before halftime — as Harsin likes to try to take advantage of those end-of-half situations. On second down, Nix attempted to find John Samuel Shenker on the right side, but Penn State’s Brandon Smith broke up the attempt and nearly had a pick-six. He bobbled the ball multiple times, and it ultimately fell incomplete as Auburn dodged a bullet.

Things didn’t get much better for Nix in the second half. He completed just 10-of-22 passes for 86 yards.

The most unfortunate of those 12 incompletions came with 3:12 to play. The Tigers faced fourth-and-goal from the 2 and trailing by eight coming out of a timeout. Auburn ran an end-zone fade to Kobe Hudson, but the receiver never had a chance to get the ball, and the Tigers turned it over on downs.

“Before I make any comment on, you know, was that the right decision? I’ve got to go back and watch and see where the progression starts,” Harsin said. “And that’s really the one thing with the quarterback position: Sometimes those plays don’t work out, and the main question is, ‘Well, he made the wrong read.’ Not necessarily; sometimes either it’s a route, it’s the defense doing a good job in their coverage. And so, we’ll assess that tonight as we watch the film on the plane. We’ll work at it and make corrections tomorrow.

“But ultimately, you know, you want to give yourself a better chance in that situation right there. I don’t know if that was a decision -- we’ve run that thing quite a few times and we’ve had some really good plays on it. So, I trust that what he saw out there, we’ll look at it, we’ll learn from it and we’ll go from there.”

Auburn had one last-ditch effort in the waning seconds, with 62 yards to go and needing a touchdown plus a two-point conversion. Nix drove Auburn to the Penn State 26, but on fourth down, he was nearly picked off again — this time by Jaquan Brisker, whose pass breakup quelled any remaining hopes of Nix writing a happy ending to this chapter of his career on the road.

Tom Green is an Auburn beat reporter for Alabama Media Group.

[AURex 2,256]

 

Okay, everyone has been saying his mechanics look better, his pocket presence looks better, his footwork looks better, the OL protected better so he was not running for his life the entire game.

YET!

Bo is still Bo. He looks like magic against cupcakes, but against solid teams, he is just not the level of QB who can actually HELP your team.

It's the same ol' same ol' against teams that have a pulse.

Against Penn State QB rating 98.8. Completions 54.5%.

Can we blame it on the OL? NO! Can we blame it on the receivers? Well, how many balls did they drop that were actually well-thrown, catchable? Was it the coaches calling plays that made it impossible for Nix to succeed? There is justifiable criticism of the play calling, but Bo's incompletions can't be laid on the heads of the coaches.

I'm not blaming the Penn State loss on Bo. There were plenty of problems on both offense and defense. And I'm surely convinced that, once the team adapts to the new schemes on both offense and defense, they will play better.

And Auburn can still have a good season. Or, in the words of a head coach we do not miss -- a "solid" season. But, with the talent inherited by Harsin and crew, this season is really make-or-break. Much of this experienced team will be gone next year, and we know what recruiting has been like.

This year -- winning games against good opponents will likely be DESPITE Bo instead of BECAUSE of Bo. And recruiting really depends on doing well against the best of the SEC.

Just my opinion.

 

Edited September 21, 2021 by AURex

[tbone4jc 2,362]

57 minutes ago, AURex said:

 

Okay, everyone has been saying his mechanics look better, his pocket presence looks better, his footwork looks better, the OL protected better so he was not running for his life the entire game.

YET!

Bo is still Bo. He looks like magic against cupcakes, but against solid teams, he is just not the level of QB who can actually HELP your team.

It's the same ol' same ol' against teams that have a pulse.

Against Penn State QB rating 98.8. Completions 54.5%.

Can we blame it on the OL? NO! Can we blame it on the receivers? Well, how many balls did they drop that were actually well-thrown, catchable? Was it the coaches calling plays that made it impossible for Nix to succeed? There is justifiable criticism of the play calling, but Bo's incompletions can't be laid on the heads of the coaches.

I'm not blaming the Penn State loss on Bo. There were plenty of problems on both offense and defense. And I'm surely convinced that, once the team adapts to the new schemes on both offense and defense, they will play better.

And Auburn can still have a good season. Or, in the words of a head coach we do not miss -- a "solid" season. But, with the talent inherited by Harsin and crew, this season is really make-or-break. Much of this experienced team will be gone next year, and we know what recruiting has been like.

This year -- winning games against good opponents will likely be DESPITE Bo instead of BECAUSE of Bo. And recruiting really depends on doing well against the best of the SEC.

Just my opinion.

 

Preaching to the choir...

[Mikey 16,781]

This post is nonsense. Nix looked a lot better than in road games in previous years. 21/37 isn't that bad even on the surface. Then subtract the four obvious drops, the throwaway and the spikes and you've got a very good game from the QB. Auburn didn't win the game, but Bo Nix played plenty well enough to win. He did his part and then some.

[au302 2,669]

7 minutes ago, Mikey said:

This post is nonsense. Nix looked a lot better than in road games in previous years. 21/37 isn't that bad even on the surface. Then subtract the four obvious drops, the throwaway and the spikes and you've got a very good game from the QB. Auburn didn't win the game, but Bo Nix played plenty well enough to win. He did his part and then some.

I don't think many will disagree with you that he looks improved. It doesn't take an expert to see that imo. I also agree with you that he gave us a shot. Do you believe that his lack of ability to stretch the field and throw a deep ball is something we can live with, especially against better teams? That's what I'm trying to figure out right now

[aucanucktiger 1,889]

Nix was on a team that last on the road to Penn State, but inferring THIS loss was disproportionately due to him is somebody looking for a scapegoat or just hating on Bo.

[TJRanger175 209]

I think there were some growing mistakes for him, but nothing that cannot be corrected.

He is remarkably improved in almost every area.

The decisions he is being asked to make in this system is complete opposite of what he was being asked to do his first two years (where everything was pre-designated).

He will make mistakes.

He will learn.

We will be stronger for it- mainly because after playing cupcakes for the first two weeks where everything AU did worked, the coaches now have a better understanding of what the team is good at and not good at.  

[Auhud08 596]

Get this crap out of here. Onto georgia state...

[W.E.D 11,071]

There is so much gray and it seems like everyone wants to live in black and white.  There is plenty of blame to go around to Bo, the drops/falling, the play calling, etc.  It's not just one factor.

[W.E.D 11,071]

8 minutes ago, TJRanger175 said:

I think there were some growing mistakes for him

He's a Jr that has started 25 games.  These comments start to ring a bit hallow.

[TJRanger175 209]

1 hour ago, SRBautigerfan said:

This is about where I'm at.  I can see some improvement in his game but also see some of the same old not-so-good.  It is what it is at this point.  Either play someone better, ummm.. ok,  or identify and scheme around his deficiencies.  

I think we will see a lot of adjustments based on this game.

I don't think anyone knew how good Hunter was going to be. When worm gets back this is going to be a 3-headed dragon in the running game. It looks to me that all 3 running backs can catch out of the backfield.

It also looks like the TE position is in good hands.

I would not be surprised to see a power running game where Auburn tries to get 40-45 touches (ground and air) to the running backs coupled with a quick passing game that is focused on 3 & 5 step drops with the running backs and TE's as outlets. This would almost neutralize the deficiencies of the O-Line and take some of the pressure off of the inexperienced WR Corp.

Of course, this is all conjecture.

[TJRanger175 209]

2 minutes ago, W.E.D said:

He's a Jr that has started 25 games.  These comments start to ring a bit hallow.

I understand how you can be frustrated.

This is a new system that is completely different from anything he has ever run- HS and college.

I know plenty of people in the real world that say they have 25 years of experience, when in reality they only have one year of experience repeated 25 times because there was never really any growth.

Bo is in the same boat- never improved because his deficiencies were never addressed.

He is finally getting quality coaching by two people that are known for developing QB's.

Now if he is still making fundamental mistakes on a consistent basis when we are deep in the SEC portion of the schedule, I will be a little less optimistic.

[Mikey 16,781]

9 hours ago, au302 said:

I don't think many will disagree with you that he looks improved. It doesn't take an expert to see that imo. I also agree with you that he gave us a shot. Do you believe that his lack of ability to stretch the field and throw a deep ball is something we can live with, especially against better teams? That's what I'm trying to figure out right now

I'm not sold that we have any deep ball receivers. He was pretty good at hitting Schwartz & co. When Shed Jackson is targeted deep twice, there's something that isn't right.

[gravejd 3,304]

I think Bo has looked much better this season. He would not be at the top of my list of people to blame the Penn St loss on. I really don't think one guy or position caused the loss. Multiple players and coaches just not making enough plays to get the win. Both on defense and offense. 

The thing i am liking most about Bo's improvement is that he is stepping up into the pocket more to buy time. Not just roll out escape to the right constantly and then heave the ball down the sideline while he is being tackled out of bounds. I've also like that he has adjusted the deep ball to where it is no longer 15 yards beyond the closest player. He is doing better about giving our receivers a change to make a play. The receivers need to start helping him out more. Going off memory i think there was 4 blatant bad drops by the receivers and about the same number of just no where close throws by the QB. 

[AURex 2,256]

 

Okay, I agree. Bo has "looked" better in the pocket. His footwork is prettier. His armswing is shorter. He isn't running for his life because the OL is doing better.

BUT .....

In terms of actual performance, he has NOT improved. Against teams with a pulse, he is still not delivering.

98.8 QB rating. By any standard, crappy. 54% completions. By any standard, crappy.

I'm sorry, that is NOT an improved performance over previous years against decent teams.

How much of this blame do you want to lay on Harsin & Bobo? In the past, we laid all the blame on Malzahn.  Now we have new coaches to blame it on. 

Or do we just say, oh gee, Auburn  lost, just like oh gee, Auburn lost lots of other games over the past few years. no big deal, we'll be getting better SOMETIME in the future,

No, it is NOT all on Bo. But when you combine Bo plus other factors, Bo just ain't getting the job done.

ANYBODY who thinks Bo is an NFL draft candidate ..... so sorry, he has a LONG LONG way to get there.

 

[au302 2,669]

8 minutes ago, AURex said:

 

Okay, I agree. Bo has "looked" better in the pocket. His footwork is prettier. His armswing is shorter. He isn't running for his life because the OL is doing better.

BUT .....

In terms of actual performance, he has NOT improved. Against teams with a pulse, he is still not delivering.

98.8 QB rating. By any standard, crappy. 54% completions. By any standard, crappy.

I'm sorry, that is NOT an improved performance over previous years against decent teams.

How much of this blame do you want to lay on Harsin & Bobo? In the past, we laid all the blame on Malzahn.  Now we have new coaches to blame it on. 

Or do we just say, oh gee, Auburn  lost, just like oh gee, Auburn lost lots of other games over the past few years. no big deal, we'll be getting better SOMETIME in the future,

No, it is NOT all on Bo. But when you combine Bo plus other factors, Bo just ain't getting the job done.

ANYBODY who thinks Bo is an NFL draft candidate ..... so sorry, he has a LONG LONG way to get there.

 

Well said. Long post but I'm gonna give my final thoughts on Bo and move on. Disclaimer*** I am not against Bo and I desperately would love for him to become a star and lead our football team to some great victories this season. 

With his bad habits cleaned up, l think the other night gave us a better glimpse into who Bo is, at least right now, which is an average game manager. We can live with a game manager. If you look at my post history, I begged for him to stop playing hero ball and to basically be a game manager. I'm obviously not gonna complain about that. But I will argue that being a good game manager requires being able to stretch the field a little bit, and that is arguably one of Bo's biggest challenges right now

Look at his stat line from the other night. He had 21 completions for only 185 yards. That lack of ability to stretch the field, and his lack of ability to hit the deep ball, will simply not cut it against the good teams, especially in hostile road environments. People can bury their heads in the sand all they want, but it's true. We need to pound the rock, but you cannot be one dimensional in the SEC. Harsin has harped on that, and even said the other day that the passing game is not acceptable right now. The receivers deserve a ton of blame for sure. However, I just think we are going to have to be able to stretch the field better and not be one dimensional if we want to at least hang with UGA/A&M/Bama. Maybe I'm wrong. I'm just a regular guy who is no expert, which is why I enjoy this site. 

[AU9377 6,026]

17 hours ago, TJRanger175 said:

I understand how you can be frustrated.

This is a new system that is completely different from anything he has ever run- HS and college.

I know plenty of people in the real world that say they have 25 years of experience, when in reality they only have one year of experience repeated 25 times because there was never really any growth.

Bo is in the same boat- never improved because his deficiencies were never addressed.

He is finally getting quality coaching by two people that are known for developing QB's.

Now if he is still making fundamental mistakes on a consistent basis when we are deep in the SEC portion of the schedule, I will be a little less optimistic.

I don't lay this on Bo.  I also don't buy that he has had no coaching until this year.  His dad is a former OC at Ga Tech and Miami.  He played the position.  I feel certain that he knows more about playing QB than any on us commenting.  That said, it never hurts to hear it from a new source and be accountable to the new staff.

[steeleagle 2,945]

On 9/21/2021 at 9:14 AM, Mikey said:

I'm not sold that we have any deep ball receivers. He was pretty good at hitting Schwartz & co. When Shed Jackson is targeted deep twice, there's something that isn't right.

I Agree, I totally do not like Shed JAckson as a deep threat. He has never shown he has the skills to grab deep balls, or even 50/50 balls. He doesn't have that ability to adjust his body, leap over DBs, etc... To me he is a possession type of WR.

But Bo still does have problems with his accuracy on balls over 20+ yards. Both sideline deeper throws to Robertson were not accurate, and Robertson had zero chance to adjust to them. I think that is why posters are wondering what is up with the way he is throwing some of those. It looks like the coaches have worked with him to put more air under his deeper throws to give the WR a chance, but those 2 were not online with where the WR was streaking. Hopefully he improves on those...

[Mikey 16,781]

1 minute ago, steeleagle said:

I Agree, I totally do not like Shed JAckson as a deep threat. He has never shown he has the skills to grab deep balls, or even 50/50 balls. He doesn't have that ability to adjust his body, leap over DBs, etc... To me he is a possession type of WR.

But Bo still does have problems with his accuracy on balls over 20+ yards. Both sideline deeper throws to Robertson were not accurate, and Robertson had zero chance to adjust to them. I think that is why posters are wondering what is up with the way he is throwing some of those. It looks like the coaches have worked with him to put more air under his deeper throws to give the WR a chance, but those 2 were not online with where the WR was streaking. Hopefully he improves on those...

I thought the one in the end zone could have been caught had Robertson not lost sight of the ball. But anyway,,,,, another game is just days away. We've all got a lot to learn about AU's 2021 team.