aubiefifty 18,259 Posted September 26, 2023 Share Posted September 26, 2023 247sports.com A combination of things hindering Auburns quarterback play Jason Caldwell 4–5 minutes AUBURN, Alabama—Coming off a game where Auburn quarterbacks Payton Thorne, Robby Ashford and Holden Geriner combined to complete just 9-23 passes for 56 yards in a 27-10 loss at Texas A&M, coach Hugh Freeze said there will be plenty of discussion about the position this week and heading into next week’s bye week. Where does Auburn go next? That’s something that Freeze said will have to be determined this week and moving forward, but as of Monday he feels like it will probably be Thorne as the starter for the Tigers against Georgia. That doesn’t mean there aren’t questions to be answered, starting this week in practice. After going back and watching Saturday’s game again, Freeze said it was a combination of issues that kept them from being successful. “There’s times I feel like we’ve let both Payton and Robby and Holden or whoever the quarterback is, I feel like we have let them down because of all the other components that go into the passing game,” Freeze said. “That is where I’m determined to try and help get fixed this week before you give some final grade on a quarterback’s play. It’s just like when Robby came in, I thought he made two really nice throws on two deep balls. And I thought the routes were not run correctly. “So I know the quarterbacks and coaches get the blame. Coaches, we deserve it. Quarterbacks don’t always probably deserve it. Again, I’ve said we’re still a work in progress with the roster that we have. And I’ve always kind of had in my mind — I kind of divide the season up. So there’s a season one where, which is the season up until the open week. Then you’ve got a lot of evaluating to do that open week as to how you move forward from there.” In two games against Power5 opponents, Auburn’s quarterbacks are just 19-40 overall. That’s not acceptable when you consider what’s ahead for the Tigers, but Freeze reiterates that it’s not all on the play of the quarterbacks themselves. “It’s a plethora of responsibilities, but ultimately it lands in my lap and the lap of the offensive coaches to make sure the routes are run at the correct depth with the correct releases against the correct coverage,” Freeze said. “And then, obviously, the protection has to be good, which is very hard to do in 3rd-and-long situations against a talented defensive front that you see in this league. “And there were some times when the ball should have come out and it didn’t. So I think the responsibility lies in a lot of different places. But he also had a great third-down throw that puts us back in scoring position that we didn’t catch. So it’s a combination of things. But ultimately it lies with us, the coaching staff, to get those things fixed.” With Thorne expected to get the start again this weekend against Georgia, Freeze said the Michigan State transfer has to play much better than he has this season, but it’s also on the coaches to put him in a position to be successful. “His practice was really good last week,” Freeze said. “I mean, he's really sharp in practice, really sharp in practice. Last week particularly was really, really sharp in practice. And we keep hoping to see that translate into the games. And again, it's a combination. “It's not all Payton, but sometimes it is and he owns it. We had a good meeting last night and so we just gotta try this week to get a plan in place that all execute and all understand. And that falls on Phillip (Montgomery) and his staff and ultimately on me.” Kickoff for Saturday’s game against Georgia is scheduled for 2:30 p.m. on CBS. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aubiefifty 18,259 Posted September 26, 2023 Author Share Posted September 26, 2023 auburnwire.usatoday.com Hugh Freeze press conference review: Georgia week Taylor Jones 16–20 minutes Hugh Freeze returned to the podium to address the media following his team’s 27-10 loss to Texas A&M on Saturday and spent time sharing his thoughts ahead of Saturday’s game with Georgia. One of the main points of emphasis in Monday’s presser was quarterbacks. Starter Payton Thorne passes for less than 100 yards for the second-straight game and has failed to consistently complete 75% or more of his passes. Backup Robby Ashford has gotten looks, but he has not won the battle over Thorne yet. Buy Tigers Tickets Third-stringer Holden Geriner played several snaps in the Texas A&M game, could he potentially start Saturday against Georgia? Freeze shut down that possibility Monday but described the diagram for Geriner to get more looks. “I think Holden, if he ends up at some point being the guy, he must have a lot of reps. I love the way he seemed poised. His throws were inaccurate. Two balls out of bounds. He threw one really good one. Really, he was about 1-for-5 in accuracy. We are talking about a guy that we haven’t given quality reps. I think he, with the quality reps, could be more accurate. He has the quickest release. He stands tall in the pocket, and I don’t remember him having an enormous amount of pressure around him at that time, so that remains to be seen. Something that we must look at during the off week. I have a lot of things; I have a whole list that I have formulated.” Freeze hit on a number of topics including his thoughts on the Deep South’s Oldest Rivalry, Kirby Smart’s success, and his view on playcalling. Here’s a rundown of everything Hugh Freeze said during his Georgia week press conference on Monday. John Reed-USA TODAY Sports “Obviously, you never like to lose games, particularly when you don’t feel like you played your best, but there were a lot of things that I liked, especially from the defense. I thought they played extremely hard, and short-handed. Really, we easily could’ve probably held those guys to around 13 points. We were down to our third team weak safety, who obviously didn’t get enough reps, but when (Donovan) Kaufman went down, we had to take (Caleb) Wooden and move him down there. We just blew two coverages with a guy that just hadn’t played a lot of snaps. We’ve got to keep creating depth, but I thought they played a really solid game. I’m proud of that side and the staff.” “Offensively, I know you’ll find this hard to believe, but you watch the tape and there’s a lot of good things in the first half. We should’ve left the first half with a minimum of 12 points. The two holding calls that we had on 1st-and-10 inside of the 30 on both of them, that put us behind the chains. We’re not quite good enough yet to survive that. We were running the ball effectively, and then the pressure was a good bit on us, for sure, when we had to get in those throwing downs. I think they have one of the more talented defensive fronts, but we had people open. It was a mixture of, I think, us not standing in there and making the throw, and then also some times where I don’t think we had time to adequately step up and make the throw. We’ve got to continue to work and coach that better and get us more consistent and stay out of the negative play situations where we easily could’ve had some points in that first half and made that a game. So, that’s the frustrating part of it for sure. But I’m excited to be back home to play one of the gold standards in college football right now, with what Coach (Kirby) Smart has done there in his eighth season. He’s got it rolling, so it’ll be a great test for us. Thank God we’re in Jordan-Hare. I know it will be electric, and we’re going to get the kids that are healthy enough ready to play and compete in this game.” Maria Lysaker-USA TODAY Sports “Well, there’s four of them that I didn’t like, and I’ve turned them in. I don’t see them. Then there’s three that – two were intentional to try to back us up to punt and give Oscar (Chapman) a little more room to try to pin them deep. The false start can’t happen. We had one of those. I’m trying to remember what the others were. There was a holding call on a pass play that was probably legit. So, I mean, it was a mixed bag. You can’t have 10 penalties though, for whatever reason. It put us behind the chains. And I thought we controlled the second quarter. I think we had it for 12 minutes and came away with three points. I think that defines the game. You control the ball 12 minutes in a quarter, you’ve got to get some points. We certainly felt like we were in field goal range at least – forget touchdowns – let’s just say we were in field goal range on four different occasions and got knocked out, either because of penalties or a sack, after that. That’s really where the game… and then the seven-minute span in the third quarter, where we did not get any first downs and they got explosive plays, for whatever reason. I think just flipped the game. So, can’t have the 10 penalties, and that’s not typically who we are, and we got to get that cleaned up. It’s good to see us not turn it over.” Maria Lysaker-USA TODAY Sports “We’re still kind of wading through that, but that’s probably where we’ll land this week also.” Austin Perryman/Auburn Athletics “Practice was really good last week. He is really sharp in practice, last week particularly. We keep hoping to see that translate into the games. It is a combination, it’s not all Payton. But sometimes it is. He owns it. We had a good meeting last night. We have to try this week to get a plan in place and execute. It falls on Philip (Montgomery) and his staff and on me.” Logan Riely/Getty Images “Well certainly with more consistent play, but there are times I feel like where we’ve let both Payton (Thorne) and Robby (Ashford) or Holden (Geriner) down. Because of all the other components that go into the passing game, that is where I’m determined to help get fixed this week before you give some final grade on quarterback play. When Robby came in, I thought he made two really nice throws on two deeps balls and I thought the routes were not run correctly. I know the quarterbacks and coaches get the blame. The coaches, we deserve it and the quarterbacks don’t always deserve it. Again, I’ve said we are a work in progress with the roster that we have. I’ve always had that in my mind. I kind of divide up the season up. There is season one which is the season going up to the open week. We have a lot of evaluating to do that open week as to how you move forward from there.” Austin Perryman/Auburn Tigers “It’s a combination. It’s a plethora of responsibility, but ultimately, it lands in my lap and the lap of the offensive coaches to make sure the routes are run at the correct depth, with the correct releases, against the correct coverage. Then obviously, protection has to be good. It’s very hard to do that in third-and-long situations against the talented defensive front that you see in this league. There were some times where the ball should’ve come out and it didn’t. I think the responsibility lies in a lot of different places. But we also had a great third down throw, that put us back in scoring position, that we didn’t catch. It’s a combination of things. But ultimately, like I said, it lies with us, the coaching staff, to get those things fixed.” The Montgomery Advertiser “Damari (Alston) will be out for a period of time for sure. They are doing more tests today with that, but he had a dislocated shoulder for sure and sometimes those things can heal on their own. Other times they require some more work, and we really don’t know. (Donovan) Kaufman tried, but just kept being gimpy with the ankle and we’ll have to see how he is day to day. (Zion) Puckett obviously left with a shoulder and that really hurt us. He was doing a good job keeping us on the same page with our coverages and that really cost us two touchdowns. We had to move (Caleb) Wooden to our nickel position because J.D. Rhym couldn’t play and we were already without Keionte (Scott) and Kaufman. That really took a toll and hurt us there but, all those guys will be day-to-day. I don’t think it’s anything that will keep them out a significant amount of time.” Logan Riely/Getty Images “I loved the game plan and thought we ran the ball really well in the first two quarters. Had some explosive runs. Again, controlled the entire second quarter with the run game and just didn’t convert any drives for the reasons I’ve already mentioned. The second half game plan could have been better, particularly in the third quarter. But I felt good about the first half. We made some mistakes that hurt us on a few calls that should’ve been executed. Obviously, we haven’t coached them well enough. I thought there would have been even more explosive plays. We have to transition and block better at the perimeter and that would’ve made those 10-yard runs and 20-yard runs. We still got a lot of coaching to do on that side of the ball, but I thought the game plan was really solid when you look at the film. People were running open. On the routes that were designed, we either didn’t have enough time or misread a wheel route that was probably a touchdown. We would overthrow it. We had a seam route. (Tyler) Fromm running wide open and missed that. We got to make those plays when we have them. A lot of those designs, we either got to coach it better or we got to execute it better. It’s a combination.” Todd Kirkland/Getty Images “Well, I don’t want to quote something that is inaccurate. It’s the oldest rivalry in the South for sure. I don’t know about nationally. Am I saying that correctly? I don’t sense that it has the hatred that is in some other rivalries I’ve been a part of. Nonetheless, I think its intense. I’ll find out. I’m not big on hate. I’m big on that this game means so much to so many people so we should compete in a way out of love for our people. Not necessarily for hate to other people. That’s kind of the way I operate. I hope we compete because we love Auburn and it means something to the Auburn people to compete against Georgia. That’ll be my approach. Love is a great motivator for me.” Maria Lysaker-USA TODAY Sports “We love play action. The week before we were very productive in the RPO game. This week we threw zero RPO’s. That is not something I am happy about. I probably am where I am today because I brought the RPO game to this conference or one of the first people would say. That sounded bad. I don’t want to sound like I created the RPO world or anything. But I do think I was one of the first to bring it to this game with tempo. We have gotten away from that. I do not really understand that. We have got to figure out our identity. Who we really are and what can Payton do? What can Robby do? What can Holden do? I know people do not want to hear it. They want success now and to win every single game. I get all of that. This is not my first rodeo taking over a program that has struggled. Certainly not at all fazed. Hungrier than ever to move forward and get better, and we will. Some of that is going to help with recruiting. In the meantime, you’ve got to get the ones you have better. That is our job. For us to be all over the map, one week you throw effectively and the next week we don’t. Why? We have to figure that out.” Photo: Walker White, 247Sports “I do not know if we will have enough tickets for all of the recruits that want to come. I am glad I am not having to deal with that. Recruiting staff is working diligently. We have official visits; we have top kids here unofficially. It will be all hands on deck, Auburn putting their best foot forward, which I know we will. Our people are incredible. Our place is incredible to watch a game. Now we have to make sure they see what Auburn is really about.” Joshua L Jones/OnlineAthens “I played Kirby his first year (at Georgia) when I was still at Ole Miss. I know kind of what he inherited because I coached in that game. I know what the outcome was. It is a great testament to his vision, his work ethic, his staff, his administration being patient to have the year he needed to, to recruit. The dividends are paying off greatly. They are one of the gold standards in college football right now. They are recruiting a top-three class every single year. That is hard to compete with and they are well coached. You have to give them credit. I know it’s a rivalry game, but the truth is the truth. He has built a dang good football program there. It means a lot of things. It means he has the support from the administration and the fans.” John Reed-USA TODAY Sports “I don’t get to decide that. The good thing is I don’t worry about that anymore. I used to but I am older now. I am comfortable in the way that we are building this program and mentoring young people and teaching them the lessons that football teaches for life. The wins will come; I believe that firmly. Whatever people’s patience level is, I can’t control that so I can’t worry about it, and I really don’t worry about it. I worry about the people in this building and our administration. I worry about our fans too, but I can’t control their patience level. If I can be really candid, I think that it is kind of ridiculous that those are already discussions that in and around our kids. It’s not something we worry about, but they should expect us to improve. That’s a reasonable expectation and I think our kids have played hard. I’ll let the other people that really matter decide their patience level. I know that there’s a lot of programs that have taken three to four to five years to get where they are now. They’re probably happy that they did that. But everybody has to decide their own feelings on that, and I can’t worry about that.” Mickey Welsh / Advertiser / USA TODAY NETWORK “I don’t get to decide that. The good thing is I don’t worry about that anymore. I used to but I am older now. I am comfortable in the way that we are building this program and mentoring young people and teaching them the lessons that football teaches for life. The wins will come; I believe that firmly. Whatever people’s patience level is, I can’t control that so I can’t worry about it, and I really don’t worry about it. I worry about the people in this building and our administration. I worry about our fans too, but I can’t control their patience level. If I can be really candid, I think that it is kind of ridiculous that those are already discussions that in and around our kids. It’s not something we worry about, but they should expect us to improve. That’s a reasonable expectation and I think our kids have played hard. I’ll let the other people that really matter decide their patience level. I know that there’s a lot of programs that have taken three to four to five years to get where they are now. They’re probably happy that they did that. But everybody has to decide their own feelings on that, and I can’t worry about that.” The Montgomery Advertiser “We’re searching truthfully, that was one of the things. I think we have to get more swagger on the offensive side. The most positive guy by far at this point is Luke Deal. I think he’s the one that has a good grasp on how this league plays out, and how challenging they are for 60 minutes, and how you can have three bad possessions in a row. We’re not the only ones that have those. Yet, you have to maintain this positive attitude that the next one could be the one that matters. He’s definitely been that for the offensive side.” The Montgomery Advertiser “That’s a balancing act. I’m always truthful with our team. I tell them every Monday and our truth meeting this afternoon. This game, you’re the favorite, you should win it. This game is a toss-up. You’ll be the underdog, and here is how we’re going to win it. I’ve done that everywhere I’ve ever been. I think it creates transparency and authenticity. At the same time, I tell them to be very clear on the fact that I’ve never walked into a game thinking we can’t win it, and they shouldn’t either. I give them plenty of examples that you’re not supposed to take a Liberty team and beat Arkansas either. Or Virginia Tech. Or Ole Miss when we beat Alabama. But we’ve done that, and we can do it here too.” Logan Riely/Getty Images “I am trying to remember the other games, but we drove it right down the field the week before (vs. Samford). We did not get it in the end zone and threw it on the first and second down, then we had a penalty. I don’t know that we had another possession in the first quarter in that game that I can remember, because we went right down the field on every possession. Obviously, the game plan, other than the tight red zone, was fine. In this game we rattled off four first downs in the first drive and the second drive the same way. In this game we got in field goal range, and we shot ourselves in the foot with either a penalty or a sack. Maybe we have to evaluate when we need to go to more max protection, so we will have to look at that. We should have had points in the first quarter, but we didn’t. That has got to get fixed.” Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aubiefifty 18,259 Posted September 26, 2023 Author Share Posted September 26, 2023 Coach Freeze discusses the offensive play-calling going forward Andrew Stefaniak 2–3 minutes Coach Freeze discussed if he would be more involved in play calling. Auburn's offense was nonexistent on Saturday against the Texas A&M Aggies, and the question is whether this has more to do with play-calling or execution. There were some receivers running open, and Payton Thorne wasn't able to hit them, so there is blame to go all around. Coach Freeze was asked about getting more involved in the play-calling, and this was his response, "This is something I'm struggling with. That's all I should probably say. This is new for me. I'm afraid when I get too involved that, it could cause confusion with terminology. Obviously, they're going through the gameplay with me. I thought the gameplay was solid last week. It's a struggle for me; let's see how the year unfolds, but I'm confident that I'm going to be more involved. It's difficult when it's not your terminology; it's hard to make adjustments on the fly on the sideline. We worked together a lot last night and a lot this morning." We are not deep enough into the season to fully bash to current play calling, but in the two games against power five opponents, the offense has struggled to score. Still, to this point, the best play call of the season was the fade to Rivaldo Fairweather against Cal, and Coach Freeze admitted he made that call. Regardless of who is calling plays, the Auburn offense needs to start moving the football and scoring points. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aubiefifty 18,259 Posted September 26, 2023 Author Share Posted September 26, 2023 saturdaydownsouth.com Hugh Freeze evaluates Auburn’s QBs, suggests starter for Georgia Cory Nightingale | 10 hours ago 3–4 minutes Questions at the all-important quarterback position are not exactly the questions you want to be answering on the Monday before playing 2-time defending national champion Georgia. But that’s where Auburn is at right now, and that’s what Tigers head coach Hugh Freeze was doing 5 days before the 4-0 Bulldogs invade Jordan-Hare Stadium to face a 3-1 Auburn team that’s reeling a bit after last Saturday’s 27-10 loss at Texas A&M. When asked if junior Payton Thorne is still his starting quarterback going into the Georgia showdown, Freeze leaned toward the Michigan State transfer but wasn’t able to firmly commit to him. “We’re still wading through that,” said Freeze. “But that’s probably where we’ll land this week.” Thorne threw for just 44 yards and finished with 11 carries for minus-34 yards against the Aggies in a forgettable conference opener that dropped the Tigers from the ranks of the unbeaten. It was an eye-opening performance for all the wrong reasons for Thorne, who threw for 282 yards and ran for 123 more the week before in a blowout victory over Samford. Freeze also used sophomore Robby Ashford, who was 1-for-4 passing for 4 yards, and freshman Holden Geriner, who was 2-for-7 for 8 yards, in the loss to the Aggies. Texas A&M made life miserable for all of Auburn’s quarterbacks on Saturday, piling up 7 sacks and 15 tackles for loss. Freeze came out in support of his quarterbacks on Monday. “I feel like we have let them down because of all the other components that go in the passing game,” said Freeze, who will eventually have to make a decision on a starter against Georgia. “We’re still a work in progress with the roster that we have,” he admitted. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aubiefifty 18,259 Posted September 26, 2023 Author Share Posted September 26, 2023 247sports.com Georgia anticipating one hell of an environment at Auburn for 1st road game Jordan D. Hill 4–5 minutes There’s been no place like home for the Georgia Bulldogs this season, as each of their first four games were played in the friendly confines of Sanford Stadium. The challenge that the Bulldogs face kicks up a notch on Saturday, when the Bulldogs head west to play in what promises to be a raucous road environment. Georgia’s first road game of 2023 will be Saturday’s 3:30 p.m. ET meeting with Auburn in a rivalry matchup that will likely put the Bulldogs to the test. The Bulldogs understand that the Auburn crowd will not be very welcoming to the nation’s No. 1 team, which could cause problems for a squad that has yet to play an away game this fall. Georgia head coach Kirby Smart pointed out that he’s probably coached in Jordan-Hare Stadium more than any other stadium besides the ones in Athens and Tuscaloosa. Smart noted having the first road game of the season this late in the schedule is not ideal — remember, Georgia was supposed to play at Oklahoma in Week 2 — but there can’t be any excuses when it comes to the task at hand. “I really believe in playing at a neutral site or getting a road game [early in the year], but there's not a lot of control I have over that either. It will be one hell of an environment. They do an incredible job with their fan base,” Smart said. “It's just an incredible environment. Their fan base is second to none. They're believing, and they've got a new coach and a new energy and they're doing a really good job. It will be tough. We have to prepare that way, and hope our players acknowledge that.” Saturday’s showdown will be the first road start for a number of Bulldogs, including quarterback Carson Beck. Beck took care of business in his first four games by completing just under 73% of his attempts for 1,184 yards with 6 touchdowns and 1 interceptions, but that success came in front of stadiums full of Georgia fans. Beck will make his first SEC road start in what is considered one of the loudest stadiums in the country, which will certainly test the junior as well as the other 10 Bulldogs as they try to operate the offense. Beck acknowledged a road game means some changes logistically in the lead-up to Saturday, but he sounded nothing but confident about the challenge the Bulldogs are facing. “It's always a little bit different as far as going on the road 'cause it's a different schedule. We have to travel, get on the plane,” Beck said. “I think we'll handle it well. We'll get in there on Sunday and start preparing.” The good news for Beck is he has plenty of players around him who have taken the field at Auburn before. Georgia right tackle Xavier Truss pointed out that Saturday’s game will be his third time playing at Auburn, and he described Jordan-Hare as “one of the great bucket-list stadiums to visit.” That said, Truss understands the Auburn fans will be trying their best to make life difficult on the Bulldogs — especially the big men up front. Truss said his goal this week is to make Georgia’s younger players understand what playing an SEC away game really means. Truss knows as well as anyone that the level of difficulty is kicking up a notch on Saturday, and his aim is to make sure none of his teammates are caught off guard by that. “Some of these guys have never played at Auburn. It's an electric atmosphere. You know how it is there when the crowd gets rocking,” Truss said. “Just getting them in the right mindset to show them how important getting the right preparation for this week is for an away SEC game.” Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aubiefifty 18,259 Posted September 26, 2023 Author Share Posted September 26, 2023 247sports.com On Georgia week Freeze preaches patience as Auburn chases the gold standard Nathan King 5–6 minutes Auburn’s SEC home opener against one of college football’s “gold standards” is a reminder to Hugh Freeze of where his program is, and the heights it aspires to reach. Kirby Smart’s budding dynasty comes to town, as No. 1 Georgia looks to make it seven straight wins in the Deep South’s Oldest Rivalry. The Tigers aren’t often double-digit underdogs in Jordan-Hare Stadium, but against a program looking to three-peat as national champions, it’s currently over two touchdowns in favor of the visitors. Alabama and its six national titles under Nick Saban are still alive, of course, but Georgia’s level of success is where Auburn — and everyone else in the sport — wants to be. And Auburn, at least for the foreseeable future, will continue playing both every season. “I know it's a rivalry game, but the truth is the truth, and he's built a dang good football program there,” Freeze said. “So that means a lot of things. That means he's got the support from the administration. It means he's got support from the fans.” After all, didn’t take long for Smart to win over his alma mater. The team he took over had won 20 games in its last two seasons under Mark Richt. But Year 1 had its lumps: The Bulldogs needed a last-minute field goal to beat Nicholls State at home. They lost at home to Vanderbilt. They lost to rival Georgia Tech — and have won seven straight in that series since. Georgia’s patience never had a chance to wear thin, as the Bulldogs won the SEC the next year and almost won a national championship. The situation isn’t exactly comparable to Freeze taking over a depleted Auburn roster. But patience is still something Freeze wants to ensure Auburn fans want to practice after an ugly, SEC-opening loss at Texas A&M. “The good thing is I don't worry about that anymore,” Freeze said. “I used to, but I'm older now. I'm totally comfortable in the way we're building this program and mentoring young people and teaching them the lessons football teaches for life. The wins will come, I believe that firmly, but whatever people's patience level is — I can't control that. I can't worry about it, and I don't worry about it. I worry about the people in this building and this organization. I worry about our fans, too, but I can't control their patience level.” Auburn fans can’t look to their ultra successful rivals and bank on the same results. Saban had an undefeated regular season in Year 2. Freeze has reiterated it since the offseason, but Auburn’s talent level is far from the point of competing for championships yet. He does, however, believe Auburn can compete against any opponent if it executes. Some of that showed up in the Texas A&M loss. “I think it's kind of ridiculous that those are already discussions in and around our kids,” Freeze said. “I do. But it's not something we worry about. But they should expect us to improve. That's a reasonable expectation to play hard, and our kids have played hard. I'll let the other people that really matter decide their patience level. I know there are a lot of programs that have taken three to four to five years to get to where they are now. I know they're happy they did that, but everybody's got to decide their own feelings on that. I can't worry about that.” The only previous matchup for Saturday’s head coaches was in Freeze’s last year at Ole Miss, and Smart’s first at Georgia. An Ole Miss team that finished 5-7 blasted the Bulldogs in Oxford, 45-14. Sixteen months later, Georgia was a miraculous Tua Tagovailoa throw away from winning a national title. “I know kind of what he inherited, because I coached in that game and I know what the outcome was,” Freeze said of Smart’s first SEC game as a head coach being against him at Ole Miss. “I think it's a great testament to his vision, to his work ethic, to his staff, to his administration, being patient and allowing him to go have the years he needed to recruit, and the dividends are paying off greatly.” The loss to Freeze remains the worst margin of defeat of Smart’s tenure at Georgia. Of course, that was Freeze catching a program in the early stages of a rebuild — albeit, a swift and overwhelmingly successful one — but a first-time head coach nonetheless. Now, of course, Freeze is in Year 1 at Auburn. But it hasn’t been too long since Auburn beat a No. 1 team when the Tigers were unranked: 2001, when Steve Spurrier and Florida came to the Plains and lost 23-20 to an Auburn team that finished 7-5. Auburn is certainly overmatched. Freeze knows it as well as anyone. But he hopes to get his first dose of the voodoo magic Pat Dye Field sometimes holds. “Thank God we're in Jordan-Hare,” Freeze said. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aubiefifty 18,259 Posted September 26, 2023 Author Share Posted September 26, 2023 al.com ‘We have let them down’: Auburn’s Hugh Freeze takes some blame for QB struggles Published: Sep. 25, 2023, 12:40 p.m. 5–6 minutes By Monday — back home in Auburn in his own office building — Auburn head coach Hugh Freeze has had time to finally sit down and watch the game film from Auburn’s ugly 27-10 loss to Texas A&M on Saturday. And entering a week of practice before facing the No. 1-ranked team in the country, Freeze defended his quarterback room. The blame doesn’t totally lie on them, he said. But he didn’t appear fully confident in his starter Payton Thorne, either. “We’re still kind of wading through that,” Freeze said when asked if Thorne would be the sure-fire starter against Georiga. “But that’s probably where it will land this week also.” Auburn’s quarterbacks struggled at Kyle Field. All three played — Thorne, Robby Ashford and Holden Geriner — and all three combined to throw for 56 yards. They completed nine of 23 passes. Freeze said Thorne has been accurate and has made good decisions in practice. But it hasn’t translated to the game. Freeze said that may not all be on Thorne, but Thorne has owned it thus far. Freeze suggested he’ll be evaluating all three quarterbacks again in practice this week. It isn’t a quarterback battle, at least not yet, but it is a situation where Thorne has continued to need to earn his job. He has been pushed in practice by Ashford and Geriner. But while Georgia isn’t likely the time or place to try something new under-center, he does still want to get reps for all three. “I think Holden if he ends up at some point being the guy, he’s just got to have a lot of reps,” Freeze said. “I love the way he seemed poised, his throws were inaccurate.” But Freeze took blame for the struggles too. He pinned blame on offensive coordinator Philip Montgomery as well. Frankly, Freeze put blame on the whole offense. The problem doesn’t lie in any one place, he said. “There’s times I feel like we’ve let both Payton and Robby and Holden or whoever the quarterback is, I feel like we have let them down because of all the other components that go into the passing game,” Freeze said. “That is where I’m determined to try and help get fixed this week before you give some final grade on a quarterback’s play.” The blame lies on the offensive line, which allowed seven sacks and 15 tackles for loss. It lies on wide receivers who Freeze said were seen multiple times running the round routes. It lies on penalties — Auburn was called for 10 of them including at least one penalty on all five of Auburn’s starting offensive linemen. “I know the quarterbacks and coaches get the blame,” Freeze said. “Coaches, we deserve it. Quarterbacks don’t always probably deserve it.” Certainly, there were many plays where the quarterbacks held onto the ball for too long. There were multiple missed throws, too. “People running open, go watch the film,” Freeze said. “We’ve got to make those plays when we have them. A lot of those designs were pretty good. We either have to coach it better or we have to execute it better.” There was a wheel route to wide receiver Jay Fair that Thorne overthrew. That likely would have been a touchdown had the pass been completed. Freeze also mentioned a seam route to tight end Tyler Fromm where the ball didn’t even go his direction. With issues that Freeze appears to believe extend throughout the entire coaching and personnel system of the offense, finding Auburn’s identity remains an ongoing question. Installing his own run-pass-option scheme is still taking time, and Freeze said Auburn didn’t run any RPO plays during the Texas A&M game. “We’ve got to figure out our identity, who we really are, and what can Peyton do,” Freeze said. “And what can Robby do? And what can Holden do? I know, people don’t like to hear it. People want success now. They want you to win now, every single game. I get all of that. This is not my first rodeo with taking over a program that has struggled and I’m certainly not at all fazed.” There’s a lot of uncertainty throughout the offensive side of the ball. And on the week Auburn is trying to figure it all out, the upcoming opponent is Georiga. Freeze will focus on getting through this game before Auburn gets to the bye week right after. He called the bye week the end of “Season One″, followed by a significant evaluation before Auburn travels to LSU the week after. Freeze will be watching a lot of film of his quarterbacks. But he said there is a lot more to fix. “I’ve said we’re still a work in progress with the roster that we have,” Freeze said. Matt Cohen covers Auburn sports for AL.com. You can follow him on Twitter at @Matt_Cohen_ or email him at mcohen@al.com If you purchase a product or register for an account through a link Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aubiefifty 18,259 Posted September 26, 2023 Author Share Posted September 26, 2023 al.com Auburn football: Hugh Freeze updates status of injured RB Damari Alston Updated: Sep. 25, 2023, 12:13 p.m.|Published: Sep. 25, 2023, 11:08 a.m. 2–3 minutes Hugh Freeze didn't know how fast Kirby Smart had success at UGA, talks expectations from Auburn fans After hauling in a pitch from quarterback Payton Thorne, Auburn running back Damari Alston’s right arm took a nasty blow from a Texas A&M defender’s helmet. The hit dislodged the football and the play was initially ruled a fumble recovery for a touchdown. However, after a lengthy review, the call on the field was reversed and was ruled an incomplete forward pass. At the time, it felt like a monumental break for the Auburn Tigers, who would go on to lose the game 27-10. And while Auburn might’ve dodged the disastrous result on the scoreboard, the play still came at an expense as the hit sent Alston back to the sideline — obviously in agonizing pain as he clutched his right arm. After a brief trip to the on-field injury tent, Alston took to the locker room and later emerged out of his shoulder pads and in a sling. Following the game, Auburn head coach Hugh Freeze didn’t have much of an update. In his Monday-morning press conference, however, Freeze was able to offer some clarity on Alston’s availability moving forward. “Damari will be out for a period of time for sure,” Freeze said, adding that Alston suffered a dislocated shoulder against the Aggies. “It’s just a matter of, you know, sometimes those things can heal on their own in time. Sometimes they require more work. And we really don’t know.” Freeze said Alston was undergoing further testing Monday to get a clearer picture at the injury’s severity. If you purchase a product or register for an account through a link on our site, we may receive compensation. By using this site, you consent to our User Agreement and agree that your clicks, interactions, and personal information may be collected, recorded, and/or stored by us and social media and other third-party partners in accordance with our Privacy Policy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aubiefifty 18,259 Posted September 26, 2023 Author Share Posted September 26, 2023 wvtm13.com Jordan-Hare Stadium 'will be electric' during game against #1 Georgia, Hugh Freeze says Taylor Lang 25–32 minutes Jordan-Hare Stadium 'will be electric' during game against #1 Georgia, Hugh Freeze says Weak safety who, um, obviously didn't get enough reps. Um, but when Kaufman went down, we had to take, uh, Wooton to move him down there and, um, you know, we just, we blew two coverages, you know, with, uh, with *** guy that just hadn't played *** lot of snaps and, um, we gotta, we gotta just keep creating depth, but I thought they played, um, you know, *** really solid game and I'm proud of, uh, that side and the staff obviously offensively, um, I know you'll find this hard to believe, but it, uh, you watched the tape and there was *** lot of good things in the first half and should have, should have left the first half with *** minimum of 12 points. Um, the two holding calls that we had 1st and 10 inside the 30 on both of them that, uh, put us in behind the chains. We're not quite good enough yet to survive that. Um, and those were, we were running the ball effectively and, uh, then the, the pressure was, was *** good bit on us for sure when we had to get in those throwing downs. And, uh, I think they have one of the more talented defensive fronts, but we had people open and, um, it was *** mixture of, I think us not standing in there and making *** throw. And then, uh, also some, some times where I don't think we had time to, uh, adequately step up and make the throw. So we got to continue to work and coach that better and, um, and get us more consistent and stay out of the negative, uh, play situations where, um, we, we easily could have had some points in that first half and made that *** game. So that's the frustrating part of it for sure. And, um, man, but excited to be back home to play, uh, one of the gold standards in college football right now, uh, with what coach Smart has done there and, uh, in his eighth season is, uh, he's got it rolling and so it'll be *** great test for us. Thank God, we're Jordan hair. I know it will be electric and, um, we're, we're gonna get the kids that are healthy enough. We're gonna get them ready to play and, and compete in this game. Who when you go on the road, the two things you can't do, turn the ball over and get, uh, get penalties in general. You didn't turn the ball over at all on the road in the SEC, but then you had 10 penalties. So how did you address that on Saturday? And how do you address that moving forward? Well, um, there's four of them that, um, I, I didn't like and I, I, I've turned them in. I don't, I don't see them. Then there's three that, uh, two were intentional to try to back us up to, to punt and, uh, give Oscar *** little more room to try to pin him deep. Um, the false start can't happen. We had one of those, um, trying to remember what the others were. There was *** holding call on *** pass play that was, uh, probably legit. Um, so, I mean, it was, it was *** mixed bag. You can't have 10 penalties though for whatever reason. And, uh, it put us behind the chains and thought we controlled the second quarter. I think we had it for 12 minutes and came away with three points, which that's, I think that defines the game. You, you control the ball 12 minutes in *** quarter, you got to get some points and we, we certainly felt like, um, we were in field goal range at least forget touchdowns. Let's just say we were in field goal range on, on 44 different occasions and got knocked out either because of penalties or sack after that. And, um, those were that, that's really where the game and then the seven minutes span in the third quarter, um, where we did not get any first downs and, um, and they got explosive plays uh, for whatever reasons, I think just flipped the game. So, uh, you can't have the 10 penalties and that's not typically who we are and we've got to get that cleaned up. Good to see us not turn it over. Are you still heading into this week? I think with the same mindset of Peyton as QB one and Robbie will get his touches in, in some facet. Yeah, we're still kind of, uh, waiting through that, but, uh, that's probably, uh, where it will land this week also, you know, the protection on the offensive line, I guess, from what you said in your opening statement, I feel like sometimes holding on the ball *** little too much. Sometimes, um, you know, the line breaking down on the sacks is kind of how did you see those sacks? Kind of, it's *** combination, you know, I think there's, uh, times that, uh, uh, it's, it's ***, it's, it's *** plethora of responsibility, but ultimately, it lands in my lap in the lap of the offensive coaches to, uh, um, make sure the routes are run at the correct depth with the correct releases against the correct coverage. And then obviously the protection has to be good, which is, it's very hard to, to do that in third and long situations against *** talented defensive front that you see in these leagues. Um, and there were some times where, you know, the ball should have come out and it didn't. So I, I think it's, uh, the responsibility lies um in *** lot of different places. But, uh then, you know, you also had *** great third down throw that puts us back in scoring position that we didn't catch. Um And so it's, it's, it, it, it's *** combination of things and, um, but ultimately, like I said, it, it lies with, uh with us, the coaching staff to, to get those things fixed is following up on, on the, uh, quarterbacks talked about kind of Peyton probably being the one that you were gonna look at this this week is he said that he has to keep earning the job, I guess. How does he earn the job going forward at this point? Well, certainly with more consistent play, but there's, again, there's times I feel like we've, we've let both Peyton and Robbie and Holden or whoever the quarterback is, I feel like we have let them down because of all the other components that go into the passing game. And, um, that is where I'm determined to try to help get fixed this week before you give some final grade on, on *** quarterback's play. Um, it's like when Robbie came in, you know, I thought he, I thought he made, uh, *** two really nice throws on, on two deep balls and I thought the routes were, were, were not run correctly. And, um, so I know that quarterbacks and coaches get the, the blame coaches, we deserve it. Quarterbacks don't always probably deserve it. Um, and so I think again, I've said we're still *** work in progress with, with the roster that we have. And I think this, I've always kind of had in my mind that, uh, you, we have ***, I kind of divide the season up. So there's, there's *** season one which is the season up until the, until the open week. And, um, then you've got *** lot of evaluating to do that open week as to how you move forward from there. He was already *** roster that was, was pretty beat up physical game on Saturday. Any updates on Demaris and, and some of those guys we saw going in on Saturday, yeah, tomorrow will be out uh for, for *** period of time for sure. Um I think they're doing some more tests today on that, but he, he had *** dislocated shoulder for sure. And just *** matter of, you know, sometimes those things can heal on their own in time. Sometimes they, they, they require more, more work. And, uh, we, we really don't know. Uh Kaufman tried but, uh, just kept being gimpy with, with, with the ankle and, uh, we'll have to see how he is day to day, uh, for sure. Um Puckett obviously left with *** shoulder and that really hurt us. He was, he was doing *** good job of, of keeping us on the same page. Back there and our coverages and that really cost us two touchdowns, um, when we had to move to, to go to, to, to the nickel position, um, because, uh, JD Rhyme couldn't play and we already, you know, without Kante and Kaufman and, and so that, uh, really took *** toll on us and hurt us there. But, um, all of those guys will be day to day. I don't think it's anything that's gonna keep them out for *** significant amount of time. But, but day to day coach, how do you, how would you characterize what you guys were trying to accomplish early in the game on Saturday offensively? And, um, would you, would you point more toward execution or game plan? How much of that do you wear as *** coaching staff? Loved the game plan. Thought we ran the ball really, really well. The first two quarters had explosive runs again, controlled the entire second quarter with the run game and just didn't convert any drives and for the reasons I've already mentioned, uh, so, uh, second half game plan could have been better, um, particularly in the third quarter. Um, but, um, certainly I felt really good about the, the first half and, and the way we, I thought blocked them, um, made *** few mistakes that really hurt us, um, on *** few calls that, uh, should have been executed and obviously we haven't coached it well enough that I thought would have been even more explosive plays, got *** transition and block better at the perimeter. Uh, that made those 10 yard runs, 20 yard runs. So we still got it. We've got *** lot of coaching to do on that side of the ball. But I, I thought the game plan was really solid when you look at the film, people are running open, uh, go watch the film. I mean, on the, on the routes that were designed, you know, either we didn't have enough time or we missed, we had *** wheel route, this is probably *** touchdown and uh we overthrow it and um had *** seam route from running wide open, missed that. Um Just, you know, you, we've got to make those plays when we have them, but, uh, *** lot of those designs were pretty good and then we either have to coach it better or, or we got to execute it better. It's *** combination. Me, all right. Um, you played in some, or coached in some major rivalry games, including the bowl? Where does Georgia Auburn kind of stand up compared to that? Well, I mean, I don't wanna quote something that's inaccurate, but it's the oldest rivalry in the south for sure. I don't, I don't know about nationally but um, it's, it's, it's, it's, am I, am I saying that correctly? Um So, um I, I don't sense that it has, uh, um I better not, I don't know if this is right or wrong, but I'm new here. But I, I don't sense the hatred that is in some other rivalries that I've been *** part of. But nonetheless I think it's, uh, I think it's intense. Ok. Well, I'll find out, um, you know, I, I'm not big on hate. I, I, I'm really not. I'm, I'm, I'm, I'm, I'm big on just man that this means something to so many people. So we should compete in *** way out of love for our people, not necessarily for hate for other people. That's kind of the way I, I operate. But man, II, I hope we compete because we love Auburn and it means something to the Auburn people to compete against Georgia. So, um that, that'll, that'll be my approach and um but nonetheless, that love is *** great motivator for me. So, yeah, you're going back to Peyton. Is there *** big gulf between the guy and practice and the guy on the game field? Because practice was really good last week. I mean, he's really sharp in practice, really sharp in practice. Uh last week particularly was really, really sharp in practice. And um and um we keep hoping to see that translate into the games and again, it's *** combination, it's not all Payton. Um But sometimes it is and he owns it. Um We had *** good meeting last night. Um And so we, we just got to try this week to, to get *** plan in place that all execute and all understand totally. And that, that falls on Philip and his staff and ultimately on me second. So, uh yes, you, um Pff uh had *** stat, uh saying Peyton was four or five on throws at feature play action. Is that *** meaningful stat at all? Is that something you could build on if we're, yeah, you know, we, we love play action. Um I'm trying to remember those um in the, in the play action world, I mean, the uh the, the week before we were very effective in the RPO game and in this game, um we threw zero RP OS. Um That's not something I'm happy about. Um I probably am where I am today because I brought the RPO game to this conference or one of the, one of the first, I think people would say. And um that sounded bad. I don't, I don't want to act like I created the RPO world or anything, but I do think I was one of the first to, to, to bring it to this, to this game with, with tempo and um and we've gotten away from that and um I don't really understand that. And so we've got to figure out our identity, who, who we really are and, and what can Peyton do and what can Robbie do and what can Holden do? And um we're, we're still, uh I know people don't like to hear people want success now, they won't, they, they want you to win now, every single game. And, uh, I get all of that. Uh, this is not my first rodeo with taking over *** program that, uh, that has struggled and, um, certainly not, uh, at all phased and, um, hungrier than ever to, to move forward and get better. And we will, um, some of that's gonna help in recruiting, but that, in the meantime, you gotta get the ones you have better and that's our job and for us to be, uh, all over the map one week, we throw effectively RP OS in the next week. We don't, why, what, why is that? And we've got to figure that out and, uh, another quick follow up which is play fakes. So I don't know what they're talking about, you know, I, I don't know what, what they're exactly saying there. If play action versus RPO for *** change of pace recruiting, you mentioned, um, how big of *** weekend will this be for you? The Georgia weekend with recruits coming here? And how important can *** weekend like this be to the future of this program? You know, uh, I don't know that we'll have enough tickets for all the crews that wanna come. Um, I'm glad I'm not having to deal with that, but our recruiting staff is working diligently. We got official visits. We've got top kids here unofficially and, and so it'll be *** it'll be, uh, all hands on deck, Auburn putting their best foot forward, which they will. Our people are incredible. Uh, our place is incredible to watch *** game at the atmosphere. And so now we've got ***, we've got to make sure they see what Auburn is really about while they're here for *** game of this magnitude. Hey, coach, uh, Kirby's coming in here two time defending national champion. I know you've been out of the conference for *** few years, but from afar watching what he's done and what he's built over there or what impresses you the most with that program and what he's done. Well, uh, you know, I played Kirby his first year, um, when I was still at Ole Miss and I, I know kind of what he inherited, um, because I coached in that game and, and I know what the outcome was and, um, I think it was ***, it's *** great testament to his vision, to his work ethic, to his staff, to his administration, being patient and allow him to go have the years he needed to, to recruit and the dividends are paying off greatly. I mean, they're, uh, one of the gold standards in college football right now and, you know, you're recruiting the top three class every single year and that's, that's hard to compete with and, and they're well coached and so, you know, you got to give them credit. Um, I know it's *** rivalry game, but the truth is the truth and, uh, he's built *** damn good football program there with. So that means *** lot of things or it means he's got the support from the administration. It means he's got the support from the fans. And, um, uh, I don't know how long it took him. I don't know what it take him three years or so to, to get there or four years. II, I don't know. Some of y'all could to do the research, but you get his second year. That's, I don't know that that's accurate. But um um anyway, so, um he did it pretty fast then. That's, that's pretty impressive. It's even more impressive coach on that note of building *** program obviously internally and externally. Sometimes there's not enough patience while you're trying to build your identity and some of these growing pains that you're kind of already seeing this season. What's the reasonable amount of patience that *** team should have to be able to build that identity and find success? Well, I don't get to decide that the good thing is, I don't worry about that anymore. I, I used to but I'm, I'm, you know, I'm older now and I am totally comfortable in the way we are uh building this program and, and mentoring young people and teaching them uh the lessons that football teaches for life and um uh the winds will come. I believe that firmly. Um But uh, the, the, whatever people's patience level is, is really, I can't control that so I can't worry about it and I really don't worry about it and I worry about the people in this building, our administration and, and I worry about our fans too, but I can't control their, their patience level and I think it's, I don't know, can I be really candid? I think it's, I think it's, I think it's kind of ridiculous uh, that, uh, that those are already discussions in and around our kids. Uh II I do. But, um, but it's not something that, that we worry about, but they should expect us to improve and that's *** reasonable expectation and, and play hard and, and I think our kids have played hard and so, um, I'll, I'll let the other people that really matter, decide, uh their, their patience level. I know there's *** lot of programs that have, that have taken 3 to 4 to 5 years to, to get where they are now and, you know, they're probably happy that they did that, but everybody's got to decide their own feelings on that and I can't worry about that. Phillip. You, uh, you're talking about something like no RP OS and those things. Uh How involved are you in, in the game plan? And do you see yourself getting more involved in the play call? Boy, this is, uh, this is something I'm struggling with. That's all I probably need to say, uh, it's not that I don't have, it's just, it's, it, this is new for me and, um, I'm afraid it, when, when, when, when I get, uh, um, if, if I did try to get too involved that it could cause confusion with, um, terminology, um, um, but obviously they're going through the game plan with me. Um, I mean, I'm, I don't, I go through the game plan with both sides and special teams and, and so again, I thought the game plan was solid last week. Um And so again, some of it is, uh, but it's, but it's *** struggle for me and I've, I've confessed that to everybody in the building, um, where that, that ultimately leads to, let's see how, how the year unfolds, but it's, uh, you know, I'm confident that I, I, I'm going to be more involved. Um, but it's still difficult when it's, it's kind of not your, your terminology and it's kind of hard to make, you know, *** lot of adjustments right on the file on the, on the sideline. And so anyway, uh, I think Monie and, and them are doing *** great job right now of, of, of trying to correct the issues that we all see. And, um, let's see how, how these weeks progress. But, um, we were together *** lot last night, *** lot this morning and we'll be this afternoon. Um, making sure now, look, you still got to block them and you still got to go win *** one on one. And that's easier said than done right now with the talent level that, that we're facing with the, uh, *** Georgia or an LSU in particular that are coming up the next two and even *** and M, but I will say, I thought we won some one on ones and just didn't get the, the, the completion for whatever reason, pressure or didn't understand the progression properly or, um, and all of that we have to get corrected as coaches. Yeah, coach, um, you know, everybody's been super impressed. I think yourself as well with Eugene and just the, you know, the heart that he plays with. Who's that guy on the offensive side of the ball? Who's the Eugene Asan of the offense that just kind of matches *** similar intensity like that. Yeah, we're, we're searching truthfully, um, that was one of the things I just, I think we've got to get more, uh, swagger on the offensive side and, and, um, like that, uh, the, the most positive guy by far to this point has been Luke deal. Uh, I think he's the one that has *** good grasp on how this league plays out, how difficult these games are and how challenging they are for 60 minutes and, and how you can have three bad possessions in *** row. Um, we're not the only ones that, that have those and, um, and but yet you have to maintain this, this positive attitude that the next one could be the one that matters. And, um, he, he's been, he's been definitely that, uh, for the offensive side for sure. Coach, you've talked about the talent gap between, you know, some of the top teams of the conference and where you feel like Auburn is at right now. You know, what message do you send to your team in spite of that? To make them feel like they have what it takes to beat these teams week in and week out. Yeah, that's the, that's, that's *** balancing act. I just, uh, I'm always truthful with our team and I tell them every Monday in our truth meeting this afternoon, hey, you're the, you, you're this game, you're the favorite, you should win it. This game is *** tossup, this game, you'll be the underdog that, I mean, you can't win it and here's how we're gonna win it. Um So I've done that everywhere I've ever been. Um, and I think it, uh, it's, it creates *** transparency and auth authenticity. Um, at the same time, II, I tell them to be very clear on the fact that I've never walked into *** game thinking we can't win it and they shouldn't either. And so I give them plenty of examples of, um, you're not supposed to take *** liberty team and be Arkansas either. Um, but our Virginia Tech or are an Ole Miss to beat Alabama, but we've, we've done that and, and we can do it here too. And so, and that's how I go about it. Zero for 4.5 for you guys over the past three games. Do you think maybe the script is getting thrown off *** little at the beginning? I know you talked about, you feel good about your, your game plan. What do you kind of throw in to factor that? Yeah. Uh, uh, I'm trying to remember the other games where we had ***, we drove it right down the field the week before and didn't get it in the end zone. We threw it on first down and second down and then had *** penalty, I think. Um, and I don't know that we had another possession in the, in the first quarter in that game that I can remember because we, we went right down the field on every possession. So obviously the game plan other than the, the tight red zone was fine there at this game. I mean, we rattled off four first downs the first drive, I believe and then, uh, the second drive the same way and, uh, in this game and you got in field goal range and we shot ourselves in the foot either with *** penalty or, or, or with *** sack. Um, so maybe have to evaluate, you know, when we're, um, maybe we have to go to more match protection. Uh, we'll have to look at that. But, um, I don't, again, we should have had points in the first quarter, but we didn't and that's got to get fixed. Wanted to ask you about Holden getting that last drive. Just how important would you think it was for him to get that experience? And what did you see out of him as *** young quarterback? I think Holden if, um, if he ends up at some point being the guy, he's just got to have *** lot of reps. Um, I love the way he seemed poised. Uh, his throws were inaccurate, you know, it was, it was two balls out of bounds that really could have, if, if catch *** ball to have *** shot. Um, he threw one really good one. but really he was about one for five on, on accuracy, um, in, in those, but it's, I, I, again, you're talking about *** guy that we hadn't get given quality reps and I think, um, I think he, with the quality reps, I think could be more accurate because he, he has the quickest release and he stands tall in the pocket and, uh, I don't remember him having ***, an enormous amount of pressure around him at that time. So that's remains to be seen. But, um, something that, uh, that we definitely, we got an open week coming up that we've got, we gotta look at *** lot of things, I got *** whole list that I'm formulating. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aubiefifty 18,259 Posted September 26, 2023 Author Share Posted September 26, 2023 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aubiefifty 18,259 Posted September 26, 2023 Author Share Posted September 26, 2023 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aubiefifty 18,259 Posted September 26, 2023 Author Share Posted September 26, 2023 al.com Goodman: Bo Nix is an Auburn hero for exposing the truth about Bryan Harsin Updated: Sep. 25, 2023, 2:34 p.m.|Published: Sep. 25, 2023, 11:34 a.m. 7–9 minutes **Editor’s Note: Time to take the 6-0 Challenge and make your Week 5 picks against “Joe vs. the Pro and the Hero.” Joseph Goodman’s popular college football picks feature, “Joe vs. the Pro and the Hero,” is adding readers to the action this season. Pick your Week 5 games here, and sign up for Joe’s newsletter to see how your picks compare to the experts (and Joe) as well as other readers. ________________________ This is an opinion column. The biggest test of the season is here for Auburn and the offense under new coach Hugh Freeze might be the worst in the SEC. If not for Alabama. We knew it would be a struggle this season for Auburn, but the true extent of former coach Bryan Harsin’s hamfisted handiwork is beginning to show itself. And now it’s time for the big reveal. Ready or not — and it’s not — Auburn gets No.1 Georgia at Jordan-Hare Stadium on Saturday. Let’s get this out of the way now. Current Auburn coach Hugh Freeze gets a pass on this entire season, and the focus of every decision for his staff should be figuring out how to recruit Atlanta like Auburn basketball coach Bruce Pearl recruits Atlanta. This is a big weekend for the Atlanta kids. I’m not saying stick a shirtless, slightly unhinged Bruce Pearl in the middle of football recruits on Saturday and then have him lead a community baptism of five stars into lakes of NIL cash and free cars, but I’m also not against the general spirit of that plan. RELATED: Auburn has a QB problem, but does this roster have an answer? RELATED: Injury update on Auburn RB Damari Alston CASAGRANDE: What we’re learning about Auburn and Alabama in this wild 2023 season GOODMAN: Low-talking Lane doesn’t have much to say Back in 2020, a prominent high school coach in Alabama was the first person to let me know that Harsin was probably in over his head at Auburn. Harsin had been Auburn’s coach for many months at that point, and he still hadn’t called the high school coach to ask about one of his top players. The high school coach knew for a fact that the player in question wanted to attend Auburn. How did the high school coach know? Because the top recruit was his son. Freeze can’t blame Harsin after this season, but everything we’re seeing on the field with Auburn’s awful offense is tied to Harsin’s wretched time on the Plains. Harsin was so destructive in his two years as Auburn’s coach that he makes me want to throw a party in honor of former Auburn coach Doug Barfield and rename a street on campus after him. Barfield Boulevard — make it a road to redemption, or at least an alleyway to absolution. We knew Harsin was the worst coach in the history of Auburn football before he was fired, but if former Auburn quarterback Bo Nix wins the Heisman this season then Harsin will go down as the worst coach in the history of the Southeastern Conference. In 2021, Harsin ran off one of the best quarterbacks in the country who had already defeated Alabama as a freshman. If Nix raises the Heisman or wins the national championship with Oregon, then the shame of allowing Harsin to lose Nix will be a ghost that haunts Auburn as long as football is played in the SEC. It’s Freeze’s job this season to pick up the pieces from that disaster and somehow figure out a way to make a bowl game. On Saturday in Auburn’s SEC opener, Freeze benched starting quarterback Payton Thorne against Texas A&M and then benched backup Robby Ashford for third-stringer Holden Geriner. What’s next? At this point, “Run It With Robby” looks like Auburn’s best option for gaining first downs. At least that’s a start. But it’s not hard to figure out what’s fundamentally wrong with Auburn’s offense these days. Just watch Oregon. The guy who at least gave Auburn a chance in every game is winning big for the Ducks. As it turned out, Nix took the field against Colorado this past Saturday just moments after Auburn’s 27-10 loss to Texas A&M went final. Nix threw three touchdowns against Colorado, completing 28 of 33 passing attempts. Auburn’s quarterbacks combined to go 9 of 23 passing against Texas A&M for a grand total of 53 yards. What did we learn about Auburn against Texas A&M that we didn’t already know? Not much, but those preseason rumors of resurrection along Auburn’s offensive line were greatly exaggerated. Texas A&M sacked Auburn quarterbacks seven times. Georgia’s defensive line is rated better than A&M’s and the Bulldogs’ secondary is tied for the conference lead in interceptions (seven). Former Auburn coach Gus Malzahn had trouble recruiting offensive linemen. The most recent former Auburn coach, Harsin, apparently didn’t even know a single phone number for an offensive line recruit. Why did Nix ultimately leave Auburn for Oregon? Because he was seriously injured playing behind Auburn’s offensive line. With better protection at Oregon, Nix is looking more and more like a first-round draft pick every week. Auburn vs. Georgia used to be one of the most balanced rivalries in the SEC. Since 2001, or Mark Richt’s first season with the Bulldogs, Georgia leads the series 17-6. Since 2011, the season after Auburn’s national championship season with Cam Newton, Georgia is 11-2 against Auburn. Georgia has now won six in a row and the gulf between the two teams is greater than at any point in the last 100 years. This past weekend, Smart became the fastest coach to reach 100 victories in the history of the SEC. Here’s something to consider about the recent history of the Deep South’s Oldest Rivalry. Since Smart took over for the Bulldogs in 2016, Georgia’s defense has only allowed more than 14 points in one game against the Tigers. Auburn has the 2017 victory on Kirby and that’s it. Led by transfer quarterback Jarrett Stidham and running back Kerryon Johnson, the 2017 Auburn Tigers blew out a No.2-ranked Georgia team 40-17 at Jordan-Hare. A couple weeks later, the Tigers knocked off No.1 Alabama 26-14 in the Iron Bowl. Unfortunately for Auburn, Georgia returned the favor in the 2017 SEC championship game and Alabama went on to win the national championship. That magical fortnight in November 2017 is the last time an Auburn football team was ranked in the Top 10 in the final month of the regular season. For his career, Nix is 0-4 against Georgia. I hope he gets another shot to finally knock off the Bulldogs this season. It wouldn’t be a victory in any sense for Auburn, but it would at least underscore the importance of his decision to abandon Harsin rather than give him cover. Nix’s legacy at Auburn is tied to Harsin, but only for this reason. Nix had to leave the team he loved to ultimately save it. He forced everyone to see how thoroughly Harsin had torn down the Tigers. For that, I’ll consider Nix an Auburn hero. Sad but true, Nix’s greatest gift to Auburn was leaving. Joseph Goodman is the lead sports columnist for the Alabama Media Group, and author of “We Want Bama”, a book about togetherness, wild times and rum. You can find him on Twitter @JoeGoodmanJr. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aubiefifty 18,259 Posted September 26, 2023 Author Share Posted September 26, 2023 al.com ‘He had a presence about him’: Alabama’s Saban reflects on late Auburn football coach Pat Dye Published: Sep. 25, 2023, 9:36 p.m. 2–3 minutes Remembering Auburn legend, Pat Dye Alabama head coach Nick Saban found himself in enemy territory on Jan. 10, 2011 as the Auburn Tigers prepared to take on the Oregon Ducks in the 2011 Tostitos BCS National Championship in Arizona. ESPN, which was airing the championship matchup, asked Saban and former Florida Gators football coach Urban Meyer to appear on the broadcast as guest analysts. And despite his apprehensions, Saban obliged. “I happened to be at the hotel and felt uncomfortable, you know, being an Alabama coach around a bunch of Auburn people,” Saban recalled in an interview for the documentary “Mighty: The Life and Legacy of Pat Dye”, which premiered Monday night. Fortunately for the Alabama football coach, he was able to find a familiar and welcoming face. It was former Auburn head coach Pat Dye. “I just happened to see Coach Dye and he came up to me and talked to me and made me feel so at home,” Saban said. “You know, he had a presence about him that a lot of the great coaches, a lot of the great coaches from the past had that you really can’t explain, but you know when you see it.” Though Dye and Saban never coached against each other, there’s no doubt the two ball coaches had a tremendous amount of respect for one another, despite rivalry lines. When Dye died at the age of 80 on first day of June in 2020, Saban offered a touching tribute. “I’ve known and respected Pat Dye for many years, and he always represented college football with with tremendous class and integrity,” Saban said in a written statement. “He was an outstanding teacher and coach who affected our game in many significant ways.” If you purchase a product or register for an account through a link on our site, we may receive compensation. By using this site, you consent to our User Agreement and agree that your clicks, interactions, and personal information may be collected, recorded, and/or stored by us and social media and other third-party partners in accordance with our Privacy Policy. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aubiefifty 18,259 Posted September 26, 2023 Author Share Posted September 26, 2023 al.com ‘I’m not going to beat around the bush’: How Pat Dye earned the commitment of Bo Jackson Updated: Sep. 25, 2023, 9:12 p.m.|Published: Sep. 25, 2023, 9:03 p.m. 3–4 minutes Bo Jackson says he turned down $5M pro offer to play for Pat Dye at Auburn Bo Jackson didn’t recognize Pat Dye’s name when the legendary Auburn football coach first introduced himself to Jackson during an in-home recruiting visit, Jackson revealed in an interview for the documentary “Mighty: The Life and Legacy of Pat Dye”. When Jackson returned home from school and his ensuing baseball practice, he wasn’t shocked to see two strangers talking with his mother at the table. “It was the big recruiting season and every other day a different coach was at the house,” Jackson recalled in the documentary, which premiered Monday night. Unfazed by the sight, Jackson continued downstairs to throw his dirty baseball uniform in the wash so that it was ready and clean for his game the following day. On his heels was one of the visiting men. “The gentleman walks up to me and calls me Vincent at the time,” recalls Jackson, whose legal first name is Vincent. “He said, ‘Vincent, my name is Pat Dye.’ It was the first time I’d ever heard the name. He said, ‘I’m the new head coach at Auburn.’.” Not long before Dye’s visit to Jackson’s home, Ken Donahue, an assistant under Alabama’s Bear Bryant, paid Jackson a visit at his high school. And when Jackson asked Donahue if he would have the opportunity to start at Alabama as a freshman, Donahue couldn’t respond in the affirmative. So when Dye visited the Bessemer, Ala. product, he knew how he had to pitch Auburn. He said, ‘I’m not going to beat around the bush, I’m just going to tell you like it is. If you tell me that you will consider coming to Auburn, I promise you I will give you every opportunity on the planet to be a starter next year when we open up against Wake Forest.’,” Jackson said, recalling the conversation between he and Dye in his home that day. “And I put my hand out to shake his hand and I said, ‘I’m coming to Auburn next year.’,” Jackson said. Dye went on to keep his promise and Jackson started against Wake Forest on Sept. 11, 1982 in a performance that saw the rookie rush for 123 yards and two touchdowns on just 10 carries as the Tigers went on to beat the Demon Deacons 28-10. It was the first of many performances that led to Jackson rushing for 829 yards and nine touchdowns as a freshman. If you purchase a product or register for an account through a link 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aubiefifty 18,259 Posted September 26, 2023 Author Share Posted September 26, 2023 al.com A trend we didn’t see coming and the Iron Bowl of full circles Published: Sep. 25, 2023, 5:01 p.m. 5–7 minutes These haven’t been the best of years for defenses. Huddles were suddenly passe’, everyone was in a hurry and scoreboards looked like slot machines. “I just think there’s got to be some sense of fairness in terms of asking is this what we want football to be?” Nick Saban famously said in 2012. The words were uttered just a few days after an exhausting 33-14 win over Ole Miss and its first-year head coach Hugh Freeze. Stick around long enough, they say, and everything comes full circle. So here we are, in 2023 after Alabama took its swing at the no huddle but appears to be settling back into something more conventional. And Hugh Freeze has an offense that can’t get out of first gear. Is defense back? Texas is and that seemed impossible not long ago, so maybe? It’s just hard to ignore some of the trends -- perhaps still on the anecdotal side of scientific, but not something to ignore. Auburn’s averaging just 215.0 yards in two games against Power 5 competition. A 230-yard night at Cal ended in a 14-10 win against that same Golden Bear defense that allowed 376 yards the following week to Idaho of the FCS and 529 in Saturday’s 59-32 loss to Washington. Maybe it’s just the offenses? Freeze’s first year at an Ole Miss program coming off a 2-10 season had the talent to manage just two sub-300-yard game in 2012. Fittingly, one was the loss to Alabama that prompted Saban’s quote where Ole Miss recorded just 218 yards, though it eclipsed the 500-yard mark three times. That team finished the season 46th nationally in total offense, up from 114th in the final year under Houston Nutt. Auburn was 73rd last year and 84th through four games, half of which were stat-padders against UMass (492 yards) and Samford (562 yards). Georgia is next and that’s less than optimal coming off a performance even worse than Week 2 at Cal. Auburn managed just 200 yards in a 27-10 loss at Texas A&M. The average snap netted 3.1 yards while the passing game contributed 56 total. Score one for the Aggie defense or Auburn’s offense? They aren’t alone, though. Hold my corn, the Ferentz family whispered because what Iowa did Saturday night at Penn State made Auburn look downright efficient. The Hawkeyes were shutout 31-0 in State College but the numbers would gag the average viewer. Here are a few. Total yards: 76 First downs: 4 (four … f-o-u-r) Total plays: 33 Time of possession: 14 minutes, 33 seconds Possessions ending in Penn State territory: 1 Somewhere in Tuscaloosa, Nick Saban smiled looking at this vomit pile of a stat sheet. Head coach Kirk Ferentz employs his son, Brian, as the offensive coordinator and had very measured postgame comments. “Sometimes those things snowball and I think that’s what took place tonight,” the elder Ferentz said. “In the first half, started out, we had the drive and had the turnover and after that we seemed to lose the momentum. They’re a good team. They’re a good defensive football team. We just have to get back to work.” That laudable first-half drive mentioned netted 30 yards. It was the longest of the night. Now Penn State has the defense is No. 1 total defense (partially because of playing Iowa). The Nittany Lions are one of six defenses allowing less than 10 points a game, a number skewed by early-season cupcakes but still notable since that’s not something you see these days. The last defense to finish a season with a single-digit scoring allowance was Alabama’s legendary 2011 team surrendered 8.2 a game. Ohio State is also among those six allowing 8.5 a game and that includes Saturday’s 17-14 classic win over then-No. 9 Notre Dame. A few other top-25 games had low scores including Utah’s 14-7 win over UCLA, Oklahoma’s 20-6 win at Cincinnati and Alabama’s 24-10 win over Ole Miss. The Crimson Tide are 18th in scoring defense (13.5 points per game) thanks mostly to the 34-24 loss to Texas. It’s a defense that’s taken its criticism in recent years but has allowed just two touchdowns in the three other games this season. Ole Miss was averaging 526 yards a game but Lane Kiffin’s group managed just 301 on Saturday. It’s kinda wild that the offensive coordinator Saban hired to modernize the Tide offense in 2014 in response to the Ole Miss and Texas A&Ms of the world is now the coach of the team that once drew Saban’s famous quote. Crazy that Alabama stuffed that team with an old-school defensive effort on the same day Freeze and Auburn looked as lost offensively as ever. Now Freeze will face Georgia, coached by the former Alabama defensive coordinator he put on skates in Oxford. Kirby Smart figures to add more symmetry to this dynamic when his No. 1 Bulldogs face this scuffing Auburn offense. Full circle, indeed. Is defense back? Or are the offenses the problem? We’re likely counting chickens and eggs but there’s at least an anecdotal difference in the football we’re seeing this season. And for Auburn, at least you’re not Iowa. Michael Casagrande is a reporter for the Alabama Media Group. Follow him on Twitter @ByCasagrande or on Facebook. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SaltyTiger 8,579 Posted September 26, 2023 Share Posted September 26, 2023 Thanx Fiddy, still working on first cup of coffee and this posted 6 hrs ago. Early morning huh? Another great day in the making here. Enough cloud cover to maybe make fishing interesting. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aubiefifty 18,259 Posted September 26, 2023 Author Share Posted September 26, 2023 42 minutes ago, SaltyTiger said: Thanx Fiddy, still working on first cup of coffee and this posted 6 hrs ago. Early morning huh? Another great day in the making here. Enough cloud cover to maybe make fishing interesting. i started binging madame secretary and i was up late last night. so i did it just for you because i knew i would sleep in. i love that show and tea leoni just tears me up.i am going to get my first cup and then continue binging after my normal morning stuff. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SaltyTiger 8,579 Posted September 26, 2023 Share Posted September 26, 2023 Is madame secretary on Netflix? Love some of that stuff. Started on some that turn to weird for my taste though. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aubiefifty 18,259 Posted September 26, 2023 Author Share Posted September 26, 2023 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aubiefifty 18,259 Posted September 26, 2023 Author Share Posted September 26, 2023 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aubiefifty 18,259 Posted September 26, 2023 Author Share Posted September 26, 2023 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aubiefifty 18,259 Posted September 27, 2023 Author Share Posted September 27, 2023 15 hours ago, SaltyTiger said: Is madame secretary on Netflix? Love some of that stuff. Started on some that turn to weird for my taste though. yes.i am on the second season. and it is fantastic. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SaltyTiger 8,579 Posted September 27, 2023 Share Posted September 27, 2023 7 hours ago, aubiefifty said: yes.i am on the second season. and it is fantastic. I will give it a try. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hank2020 3,358 Posted September 27, 2023 Share Posted September 27, 2023 9 hours ago, aubiefifty said: yes.i am on the second season. and it is fantastic. We found it great for awhile but then, landed heavily on sending messages. Watched it to the end though. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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