8.24.24 Football Articles

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auburnwire.usatoday.com

Alex McPherson is 'back to being himself' following health setback

Taylor Jones

~3 minutes

After battling a gastrointestinal issue during the offseason, Auburn kicker Alex McPherson’s status season was in question. Now, it appears that Auburn’s Lou Groza Award semifinalist will get a chance to return to the field sooner than imagined.

Auburn special teams coordinator Tanner Burns met with the media this week, where he shared a positive update regarding one of Auburn’s top-scoring weapons. McPherson is starting to gain weight and has begun kicking in practice.

“It was a slow process to get him to where he’s at now, but I think he weighs a little over 140 now. So he’s gaining that weight, he’s starting to kick. Really kind of amping that up this week,” Burns said. “Health-wise and everything, he’s back to being himself. There was a point in time — he’s always the type of kid that’s going to say he’s doing great whether he was having a good day or a bad day. But now the personality that we’re used to him having has shown up more and more.”

If McPherson needs to miss time, freshman Towns McGough, who became a folk legend following his A-Day performance, is ready to step up and take on the role of Auburn’s starting kicker. Burns has confidence that his kickers will give Auburn an edge in tight games.

“I feel like we’ve got the two best kickers in the country,” Burns said. “I really do. It’s not just something I’m saying. Those guys are the two most talented I’ve had in my years of coaching. Their mindset is what you want. But to be able to have Towns here in a situation that none of us could see happening, happening, and to have him here and his attitude and how he’s related to those guys and that group, and how he takes coaching. … He’s still just a freshman. No different than a wideout we have, a linebacker, anybody else. A freshman. But he had a good camp.”

McPherson reached perfection last season. He nailed all 13 of his field goal attempts with his long being 53 yards out. As for extra points, he connected on all 40 of his attempts. In two seasons, McPherson has missed just one kick. He missed a 54-yard field goal attempt in Auburn’s 13-10 win over Texas A&M in 2022. He plays a vital role in Auburn’s scoring success, so the possibility of him returning with full power will give the Tigers the upper hand in special teams.

Contact/Follow us @TheAuburnWire on  X (Twitter), and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Auburn news, notes, and opinions. You can also follow Taylor on Twitter @TaylorJones__

Edited August 24 by aubiefifty

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si.com

Auburn QB Hank Brown Sings Praises of New QB Coach Kent Austin

Keith Cummings

~3 minutes

Auburn Tigers newly anointed backup quarterback Hank Brown has gotten a chance to work with new quarterback coach Kent Austin. Head coach Hugh Freeze hired Austin to help unlock Payton Thorne and the offense this year, but It’s clear Brown has also felt the impact of the Tigers’ new quarterback whisperer. 

"Coach Freeze, his authenticity is off the charts and that's something you don't get in college football," Brown said at media availability on Thursday.. "These coaches, they'll say whatever they want you to hear in recruiting. But Coach Freeze, he's real and he'll tell you exactly what he feels. And then with Coach Austin, he's one-of-a-kind. He's, in my mind, the smartest QB coach in all of college football."

Levels of comfort will be high between both Freeze and Austin, because both men were previously at Liberty when Brown committed to go there.

Following them to The Plains seems a good fit, even if Brown has to take a seat on the bench behind experienced starter Payton Thorne. 

Where perhaps Brown can really make some strides is in soaking up the big school SEC vibes, especially as he learns what it takes to run a multi-facilitated offense.

Freeze and Austin are loading a much greater degree of detail into the offensive system this year; they appear comfortable that Thorne in particular can cope with the added responsibility.

Furthermore, the challenge for Brown as the backup quarterback will be to soak it all up, but he's certainly embracing the opportunities to learn and grow.

"I think mentally it has been a lot different too," Brown admitted. "Just being able to be developed by coach Austin and just learn the way his mind works, as well as coach Freeze. Learning the way he's going to call this offense, It has been huge. I think physically and mentally it has been important."

Making incremental progress as a quarterback is never that easy, fundamentally, it requires levels of patience which tends to clash with an athlete's competitive fire.

Learning the ropes as a diligent backup quarterback entails controlling those types of emotions, and assuming the selfless role as such is pivotal.

"I'm going to get prepared every week like I'm the starter, I have to be ready. It's one play away and you never know," Brown declared. "I have to prepare like that and be ready at all times. Being named the number two is just more motivation to work harder."

Contingency plans firmly in place, the new season now looms large.

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saturdaydownsouth.com

Auburn flips 4-star DL away from Big Ten power

Cory Nightingale | 18 hours ago

~3 minutes

Auburn has managed to flip a big-time defensive line prospect away from the defending national champion and onto the Plains.

Four-star phenom Nate Marshall, a 6-foot-4, 250-pound defensive lineman from Oak Park, Illinois, will not be attending Michigan after all.

Marshall had committed to play for the Wolverines since April, a few months after Michigan captured its 1st national championship since 1997. However, he flipped his commitment to Auburn on Friday morning:

BREAKING: Four-Star DL Nate Marshall has Flipped his Commitment from Michigan to Auburn, he tells me for @on3recruits

The 6’4 250 DL from Oak Park, IL had been Committed to the Wolverines since April

“What Cam say? Indeed”https://t.co/q6SSwqOBGY pic.twitter.com/k91PiUtZNX

— Hayes Fawcett (@Hayesfawcett3) August 23, 2024

Marshall is the No. 46 overall player in the Class of 2025, according to the 247Sports Composite rankings. He’s also ranked as the 6th-best defensive lineman in the country and the No. 2 player from the state of Illinois.

After committing to Michigan on April 22, Marshall reportedly took official visits to Michigan, Illinois, Alabama Miami and … Auburn.

Auburn is now up to 23 total commitments for the 2025 class, and Marshall is now Auburn’s 3rd-highest-ranked commitment. With Marshall now in the fold, Auburn currently has the 5th-ranked recruiting class for 2025.

Marshall earned his conference’s defensive player of the year honor as a junior after posting 38 tackles (16 for loss), 6 sacks and 4 forced fumbles. He showed his versatility by blocking 4 kicks, and he caught 4 touchdown passes on offense.

Here are some highlights from his junior season:

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athlonsports.com

Auburn Adds A Chicago Defensive Lineman To Its 2025 Recruiting Class

Brian Smith

2–3 minutes

Auburn’s 2025 recruiting class takes a major step forward by adding another top prospect.

Coming into today, On3’s team recruiting rankings place the Tigers at #6 nationally. Adding Chicago (Ill.) Fenwick defensive lineman Nate Marshall to the class certainly bolster’s the future defensive line and the overall Auburn ranking.

This morning, Marshall changed his college commitment from the Michigan Wolverines, where he’d been committed since April 22, 2024, to now being a Tiger. The 6-foot-4 and 270-pound defensive lineman holds strong recruiting rankings.

Rankings are in the order of national, defensive line, and state.

On3: 120, 12, and 4

247: 80, 12, and 2

Rivals: 29, 1, and 1

ESPN: 79, 4, and 2

Beyond Auburn and Michigan, Alabama, Tennessee, Texas A&M, Texas, Missouri, Notre Dame, Illinois, Iowa, Oregon, and Southern California are some of his other football scholarship offers.

He is a 4-star recruit now but could end up a 5-star by one or more services by the time all the final tallies are completed in December. Marshall's senior season will certainly help determine that fate. As for his junior season, it’s a major reason he already holds the lofty rankings above.

Marshall’s HUDL film even starts with wide receiver highlights. Despite Marshall’s size, he’s nimble in space and showcases tremendous hand-eye coordination during jump-ball scenarios. He runs more like a receiver than a player over 250 pounds. It’s still his future to play along the defensive line.

Whether playing on the edge or as a defensive tackle, Marshall’s first-step quickness allows him to create tackles for loss and sacks. His ability to contort his frame and maneuver through small spaces is also impressive.

Marshall becomes Auburn’s 13th defensive recruit and sixth defensive line recruit for Hugh Freeze and his staff. For Auburn’s entire 2025 recruiting class, you can see the profile of each of Auburn’s 23 commitments by clicking on the link below.

2025 Auburn Football Recruits

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247sports.com

Down 50 pounds Bradyn Joiner ready for bigger role on Auburn offensive line

Nathan King

3–4 minutes

Some players talk about how different they "feel" heading into their second season with a program, after a year to get out the freshman mistakes and continue to grow in comfort and familiarity.

For Auburn redshirt freshman offensive lineman Bradyn Joiner, he can really feel the difference. Since arriving last spring from right down the road at Auburn High School, Joiner said he's dropped nearly 50 pounds — which has been the biggest difference for Joiner in Year 2, as he's carving out a role in the Tigers' two-deep. His work with strength coach Dominic Studzinski and director of nutrition Danielle Gillen has paid off.

"I think the number one thing is being with Coach Dom a lot and me dropping 49 pounds since I enrolled here," Joiner said Thursday. "So being with him and him being helpful with me, extra workouts and stuff like that, eating right with Ms. Danielle, they just helped me out a lot to get where I'm at."

A 3-star prospect who stuck with Auburn following the coaching change from Bryan Harsin to Hugh Freeze, Joiner said he got to campus at around 358 pounds — which obviously wasn't anywhere close to playing shape for the 6-foot-1 offensive lineman. He now heads into the 2024 campaign at around 308 pounds.

He felt it on the practice field this preseason, sure. But that first film session of camp is when his eyes got really wide.

"I could tell on film," Joiner said. "When we've got a little play going, on wide zone. I feel like I look way different."

The results of Joiner's dedication, along with his progression playing the position, have result in the redshirt freshman commanding most of the second-team reps for Auburn this preseason at left guard. He and Tate Johnson have also rotated as the backup center.

Second-year position coach Jake Thornton said Joiner's versatility has served him well. And with the Tigers making some late-preseason changes to the starting offensive line — Percy Lewis kicking inside to left guard and Dillon Wade moving to tackle — Joiner's improvement could get him on the field in some capacity this fall.

"I think he can play all three interior positions," Thornton said. "Another guy that's grown up a lot in this program. Excited about his growth."

Joiner got close with Studzinski and Thornton over the past year, of course, but even more so after his dad passed away in April. He's excited to potentially see the field this fall, but he knows his Auburn accomplishments carry that much more weight.

"My dad, this being his favorite team, I just always wanted to play for Auburn," Joiner said.

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waka.com

 

Auburn QB Payton Thorne returns for Year 2 surrounded by a more talented supporting cast - WAKA 8

WAKA Action 8 News

4–5 minutes

---

Posted: Aug 23, 2024 3:08 PM CDT

by WAKA Action 8 News

By JOHN ZENOR AP Sports Writer

The Auburn Tigers are banking on a better season from quarterback Payton Thorne, and they’ve certainly surrounded him with more talented playmakers.

Thorne’s pedestrian passing numbers, lack of consistent targets and sometimes poor pass protection helped send the Tigers to their third straight losing record last season. The Michigan State transfer now has a full year under his belt after arriving last summer.

He also has an array of receivers that should make it easier to improve on a passing offense that was among the nation’s least productive last season. The Tigers open Aug. 31 against Alabama A&M.

The supporting cast matters for any quarterback. Thorne likes the group Auburn has assembled around him for this season.

“People say it’s the ultimate team game, and it really is,” he said. “It’s tough. You’ve seen great quarterbacks in the NFL, if stuff starts to break down around them, they’re still good. But they’re not the same as they are when they have all their pieces.

“It’s definitely a tough situation sometimes, and you just have to deal with what you’ve got at times.”

That’s not to say Thorne’s own play doesn’t need significant improvement. He passed for 1,755 yards and 16 touchdowns against 10 interceptions last season and was thoroughly shut down in the bowl game.

Auburn coach Hugh Freeze declared that Thorne held the “pole position” for the starting job after spring practice, but he stopped short of declaring the job his over Hank Brown and Holden Geriner. Brown appears to be Thorne’s backup going into the season.

Freeze brought in an impressive collection of receivers to replace a group that didn’t have a wideout reach 350 yards last season. Tight end Rivaldo Fairweather, the only key target to return, led the team with 38 catches for 394 yards.

Auburn added three transfers and four freshman receivers. Transfers KeAndre Lambert-Smith (Penn State) and Robert Lewis (Georgia State) and five-star freshman Cam Coleman appear to be likely starters right away.

“I feel really good with where we’re at right now,” Thorne said. “We still have young guys. We still have four freshmen who are going to potentially play for us. That’s not exactly one, common. And two, at the end of the day they’re still young. You can’t go out there and expect them to be these veteran receivers who know everything.

“There’s still going to be some times where you’re like, what the heck? But you remind yourself this kid was playing high school ball last year.”

Coleman, he said, has had few such incidents.

With all those new targets, the Tigers are hoping Thorne can at least come closer to his numbers at Michigan State. He passed for 6,494 yards in 29 games, going 16-10 as a starter for the Spartans.

He is no longer taking a crash course in Freeze’s offense.

“We’re totally different than last year,” Freeze said. “From the spring until now, his understanding of what the expectations are from him have grown leaps and bounds. He does some things out there right now that I’m really, really proud of.”

But Thorne finished last season with two of his worst performances. He was a combined 18-of-43 passing for 175 yards and was intercepted three times in season-ending losses to Alabama and in the Music City Bowl to Maryland.

But now, Thorne said, “just about everything” is different this season, including new offensive coordinator Derrick Nix and most of the players he’ll be passing to.

“Obviously there’s more talent out there as well,” Thorne said. “So it’s been really fun working these past few months. And obviously right now is the team that we have. And so this is who we’re going with.”

And the Tigers are riding with Thorne.

(Copyright 2024 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.)

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al.com

How Auburn football found a pipeline in one of the state's biggest high school programs

Updated: Aug. 23, 2024, 10:17 a.m.|Published: Aug. 23, 2024, 7:30 a.m.

5–6 minutes

Over the past month, Auburn announced itself on the recruiting trail, landing numerous commitments and shooting up the No. 5 ranked 2025 recruiting class in the country.

Friday night, the world got to see the level of talent Auburn is attracting, when two of its biggest commits of the recent recruiting surge starred for Thompson High School on national television.

Despite their team losing in overtime, both Anquon Fegans and Jared Smith lived up to their star rating in front of a national audience on ESPN2 Friday night.

Smith, an edge rusher, was arguably the most dominant player on the field, making 15 tackles and three sacks. Fegans, a safety, scored Thompson’s only touchdown in regulation on a scoop and score near the goal line.

“They’re just great individuals,” Thompson head coach Mark Freeman said after the game.

Fegans and Smith both committed to Auburn within a week of each other not long after Auburn’s Big Cat recruiting weekend.

They became the second and third commitments of Auburn’s 2025 class, as punter John Alan McGuire started the Thompson to Auburn surge a day before Fegans announced his commitment.

The run of Thompson players committing to Auburn was a symbol of a bigger theme in Auburn’s recent recruiting success: attracting in-state talent.

Of 247Sports’ top-10 ranked players in Alabama for the 2025 class, eight are currently committed to Auburn.

What’s even more noticeable about the top 10 players in the state? None are currently committed to Alabama.

“We’ve made it a priority to start here in state. Right now we’re in a good position with that plan we’ve put in place,” Auburn head coach Hugh Freeze said during an Aug. 16 press conference.

Eleven of Auburn’s 23 current 2025 commits come from inside the state and 57% of its 2024 recruiting class was made up of in-state recruits.

By contrast, only 27% of its 2023 class was made up of in-state players and 28% in 2022.

When prioritizing in-state recruiting, it’s hard to ignore Thompson High School.

Thompson won four Alabama 7A state championships in a row from 2019-2022 and was the runner up in 2023.

During its dominant run, the school has produced high-level college football players such as Taulia Tagovailoa, Peter Woods and others.

Auburn didn’t sign any players from Thompson between 2019 and 2022, but already has three commitments from Thompson in the 2025 class and signed safety Kaleb Harris out of Thompson in its 2024 class.

“They’re relentless on the recruiting trail,” Freeman said of Auburn’s staff. " I think that they made our guys feel like they needed them.”

The relationships and atmosphere at Auburn were things that both Smith and Fegans mentioned when explaining why they chose the Tigers.

“Just the culture they’re bringing down there. The atmosphere, the players and the class alone,” Smith said after announcing his commitment.

“Auburn is special. What Coach Freeze is going to bring to The Plains is going to be very, very special and it’s my job to take it and make it as special as it can be,” Fegans said after committing.

One person in particular that Freeman highlighted in Auburn’s recruiting shift was safeties coach and co-defensive coordinator Charles Kelly.

Kelly, a former Auburn player, returned to his alma mater this offseason, after spending 2023 as the defensive coordinator at Colorado. Prior to that, he spent four seasons as the safeties coach at Alabama.

“I think Charles Kelly has a lot to do with that,” Freeman said of the recent Thompson to Auburn pipeline. “He does a tremendous job recruiting, and he’s been around the state long time.”

During Kelly’s time at Alabama, the Crimson Tide signed two players out of Thompson, one of them being Tre’quon Fegans, Anquon Fegans’ older brother.

The last Alabama signee out of Thompson was Tony Mitchell in the class of 2023, and there are currently no Thompson players committed to Alabama in the 2025 class.

While Auburn hasn’t surpassed its biggest rival in recruiting yet, Alabama still has the second-highest ranked class in the country, a shift in who controls recruiting within the state may be underway.

Not only does Auburn have the in-state edge in 2025, Auburn’s 2026 class is currently ranked No. 1 in the country with three of its six commits coming from in state.

Auburn hasn’t finished a recruiting cycle with a top five ranked class since 2011 and during much of Nick Saban’s time at Alabama, the Crimson Tide often signed most of the state’s top prospects.

That’s a trend that Freeze and the Auburn staff want to reverse, and with Saban retired, there may not be a better time to do so than now.

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al.com

Auburn football flips 4-star defensive lineman Nate Marshall from Michigan

Updated: Aug. 23, 2024, 9:50 a.m.|Published: Aug. 23, 2024, 9:49 a.m.

~2 minutes

By

Peter Rauterkus | prauterkus@al.com

The recruiting wins keep coming for Auburn football

The Tigers kept their momentum on the recruiting trail going Friday morning, flipping four-star defensive lineman Nate Marshall from Michigan.

Marshall had been committed to Michigan since April 22, but Auburn didn’t give up on the top-100 prospect from Oak Park, Illinois. Defensive line coach Vontrell King-Williams was Marshall’s primary recruiter.

Marshall took an official visit to Auburn in June, and that seems to be paying off for Hugh Freeze and the staff two months later.

The 6-foot-4, 265-pound defensive lineman is the No. 46 overall player in the class of 2025, according to the 247Sports composite rankings. He’s also ranked as the sixth-best defensive lineman in the country.

Auburn is up to 23 total commitments for the 2025 class so far and Marshall is now Auburn’s third-highest ranked commitment. With Marshall committed, Auburn has the No. 5 ranked recruiting class for 2025.

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al.com

 

Auburn football to celebrate 20th anniversary of 2004 undefeated team Nov. 2

Published: Aug. 23, 2024, 4:07 p.m.

~2 minutes

---

By

• Peter Rauterkus | prauterkus@al.com

The 2024 football season marks the 20-year anniversary of Auburn’s undefeated season in 2004.

To celebrate, Auburn is hosting a 2004 football reunion during the first weekend of November, coinciding with Auburn’s home matchup against Vanderbilt.

The reunion will include an event the night of Friday, Nov. 1 and a pregame tailgate on Saturday before the Tigers take on Vanderbilt.

Kickoff is scheduled for the ESPN early window, meaning the game could start at either 11 a.m. or noon.

Despite finishing undefeated, the 2004 team didn’t play in that season’s national championship, finishing third in the regular season BCS rankings.

After knocking off Tennessee in the SEC Championship, Auburn finished its season with a Sugar Bowl win over Virginia Tech.

The team was led by head coach and current U.S. Senator Tommy Tuberville and featured notable players such as Carnell Williams, Jason Campbell, Ronnie Brown and others.

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al.com

NCAA could eliminate football’s spring transfer portal window, report says

Updated: Aug. 23, 2024, 1:38 p.m.|Published: Aug. 23, 2024, 1:37 p.m.

~2 minutes

By

Creg Stephenson | cstephenson@al.com

The NCAA could soon eliminate the spring transfer portal window for football, according to a report Friday by Yahoo Sports’ Ross Dellenger.

According to the report, the NCAA Football Oversight Committee has proposed the change to the Division I Council, which is set to meet virtually next month and in-person in October. Should the proposal pass, football players would, effective immediately, be limited to one 30-day window in December and January in which to enter the portal.

Currently, there are two transfer windows, the one in December/January, and another for 15 days in the second half of April. The second window took place after spring practice, which often clarified many players’ status within their team.

The proposal has the backing of the Power 4 conference commissioners, as well as the American Football Coaches Association, according to Dellenger’s report. Players who choose to transfer outside the portal window would need an NCAA waiver for immediate eligibility at their new school.

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[aubiefifty 18,260]

 

[aubiefifty 18,260]

it is good to be back. the place needs a little paint.  salty is coming over later to fry some fish and drink a brewski while i gummy out. we might take his golf cart for a hell ride later............

Edited August 24 by aubiefifty

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al.com

 

How have Auburn football coaches fared in Year 2? From Jordan to Harsin, a look back

Updated: Aug. 23, 2024, 8:24 a.m.|Published: Aug. 23, 2024, 6:30 a.m.

11–14 minutes

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Many SEC coaches have taken a great step forward in their second season at a particular job.

Alabama’s Nick Saban jumped from seven wins to 12 and an SEC West Division championship in 2008. Georgia’s Kirby Smart improved from 8-5 in his 2016 debut to 13-2 and playing for a national title in Year 2.

The modern history of Auburn football — which really began with the hiring of Ralph “Shug” Jordan in 1951 — has been a mixed bag in terms of coaches who fared better in their second year than in Year 1. One coach in particular, however, made it all the way to the top of the mountain in his second season on The Plains.

Could a similar “leap” be in the offing for Auburn and Hugh Freeze in 2024? The Tigers finished 6-7 in Freeze’s debut last season, but have spent the offseason reloading the roster with transfers and top-level recruits.

We took a look back — in reverse chronological order — at each of the eight men who have preceded Freeze as Tigers head man, and here’s what we found (year in parentheses is the coach’s second year at Auburn):

Bryant Harsin was fired midway through his second season as Auburn's football coach, with an overall record of 9-12. (AP Photo/Butch Dill)AP

Bryan Harsin (2022)

Second-year record: 3-5 (1-4 SEC)

Better than Year 1?: No (6-7, 3-5)

Iron Bowl: Fired in October

Postseason: None

Harsin’s tenure was one of the worst in history of the SEC football, with seemingly one misstep after another from the day he was hired. He ended his first season on a five-game losing streak (though he did nearly beat Alabama), and things actually got worse in Year 2. Only an inexplicable overtime win over Missouri in Week 4 allowed him to keep coaching at Auburn into October 2022, but four straight losses — to LSU, Georgia, Mississippi State and Arkansas — led to his ouster on Halloween. Cadillac Williams took over as interim coach for the final four games, and led the Tigers to a 2-2 record.

After Auburn won the SEC championship and reached the BCS title game in 2013, Gus Malzahn's second Tigers team went 8-5. (AL.com file photo by Mark Almond)BN

Gus Malzahn (2014)

Second-year record: 8-5 (4-4 SEC)

Better than Year 1?: No (12-2, 7-1)

Iron Bowl: Lost 55-44 in Tuscaloosa

Postseason: Lost to Wisconsin 34-31 in Outback Bowl

Malzahn’s debut season was one of the greatest in SEC history, with the “Kick Six” Iron Bowl win, an SEC championship and a 3-point loss to Florida State in the national title game. Year 2 got off to a rocky start off the field with the suspension of quarterback Nick Marshall, but the Tigers still began 5-0 and stood at 7-1 and in the College Football Playoff picture following a 35-31 win over Ole Miss on Oct. 1. Things fell apart from there, however, with losses to Texas A&M, Georgia and Alabama and in the bowl game. There were some highlights later in Malzahn’s tenure (including an SEC West title in 2017), but things were never as good again as they were in his first one-and-a-half seasons.

Gene Chizik, right, and Cam Newton led Auburn to a national championship in 2010, Chizik's second season as head coach. (Birmingham News file photo by Hal Yeager)BN

Gene Chizik (2010)

Second-year record: 14-0 (8-0 SEC)

Better than Year 1?: Yes (8-5, 3-5)

Iron Bowl: Won 28-27 in Tuscaloosa

Postseason: Beat Oregon 22-19 in BCS National Championship Game

After a solid debut — which included a 5-0 start and a narrow loss to eventual national champion Alabama in the Iron Bowl — Chizik led the Tigers to the greatest season program history in 2010. Though he’s been accused of riding the coat tails of offensive coordinator Malzahn and Heisman Trophy-winning quarterback Cam Newton, Chizik’s national championship ring shines just as brightly as anyone else’s. The Tigers won five games by three points or fewer, including the “Camback” in the Iron Bowl in Tuscaloosa and the last-second field goal for the national title. Chizik’s program took a step back in 2011 before collapsing to 3-9 overall, 0-8 in the SEC in 2012. He was fired less than two years after winning a national championship.

Tommy Tuberville's second Auburn team finished 9-4 and won the SEC West championship in 2000. The Tigers had gone 5-6 in his debut season. (Press-Register file photo by Mary Hattler)BN

Tommy Tuberville (2000)

Second-year record: 9-4 (6-2 SEC)

Better than Year 1?: Yes (5-6, 2-6)

Iron Bowl: Won 9-0 in Tuscaloosa

Postseason: Lost to Michigan 31-28 in Citrus Bowl

Tuberville and the Tigers took their lumps in Year 1 (including becoming the first Auburn team to lose the Iron Bowl at Jordan-Hare Stadium), but emerged as a championship contender in his second season. Led by SEC Player of the Year Rudi Johnson, the 2000 Tigers started the season 5-0, then won their final four regular-season games to capture the West Division title. Included in that run was a 9-0 victory in the first modern Iron Bowl played in Tuscaloosa. Auburn lost to Florida in the SEC championship game and to Michigan in the bowl game, but had planted the seeds for what would be a mostly enjoyable decade of Tigers football to come. Tuberville’s 2004 team went undefeated and won the SEC title, and he recorded six straight wins over Alabama from 2002-07.

Terry Bowden's first Auburn team went 11-0 in 1993, and ran its winning streak to 20 before tying Georgia the following season. The Tigers finished 9-1-1 in 1994. (Birmingham News file photo)BN

Terry Bowden (1994)

Second-year record: 9-1-1 (6-1-1 SEC)

Better than Year 1?: No (11-0, 8-0)

Iron Bowl: Lost 21-14 in Birmingham

Postseason: None

Bowden’s debut is up there with Malzahn’s among the greatest first-year coaching performances in SEC history. He took over a program reeling from NCAA sanctions that occurred under Pat Dye (which kept the Tigers off TV in 1993 and out of the postseason in 1993 and 1994) and went undefeated, including victories over powerhouse Florida and defending national champion Alabama. Auburn won the first nine games of Bowden’s second season as well — including a win at No. 1 Florida — to reach 20 straight victories before stumbling at the end. The Tigers tied Georgia 23-23 at Jordan-Hare Stadium, then lost a tightly contested Iron Bowl at Legion Field. There were no postseason rewards for Auburn in 1994, but they did get to 10 wins and an SEC West title in 1997 before things came crashing down (as they always seem to at Auburn) around Bowden the following season.

Pat Dye's second Auburn team went 9-3 in 1982, beating Alabama for the first time in a decade. It was a sign of things to come for the Tigers, who won or shared in four SEC championships from 1983-89. (Alabama Media Group file photo)BN

Pat Dye (1982)

Second-year record: 9-3 (4-2 SEC)

Better than Year 1?: Yes (5-6, 2-4)

Iron Bowl: Won 23-22 in Birmingham

Postseason: Beat Boston College 33-26 in Tangerine Bowl

Auburn finished with a losing record in Dye’s first season, but had given Tigers fans some hope with solid performances in losses to Georgia and Alabama at year’s end. Dye’s team broke through in Year 2, again taking eventual SEC champion Georgia to the limit before losing, then stunning Alabama 23-22 at Legion Field in what proved to be Paul “Bear” Bryant’s final Iron Bowl. The Tigers then won their bowl game to finish 9-3, their highest victory total in eight years. Auburn won the SEC and narrowly missed out on a national championship in 1983, then would add additional shared or outright league titles in 1987, 1988 and 1989. Dye brought the Iron Bowl to Jordan-Hare for the first time in 1989, resulting in Auburn’s fourth straight victory over Alabama. His last two teams were subpar, however, and he resigned amid NCAA controversy at the end of the 1992 season.

Auburn improved from 3-8 to 5-6 in 1977, Doug Barfield's second season as head coach. Barfield had some good teams later in the decade, but went 0-5 vs. Alabama. (Birmingham News file photo)BN

Doug Barfield (1977)

Second-year record: 5-6 (4-2 SEC)

Better than Year 1?: Yes (3-8, 2-4)

Iron Bowl: Lost 48-21 in Birmingham

Postseason: None

Barfield had the misfortune of taking over at Auburn when Bryant’s Alabama program was at its height, in the midst of eight SEC championships in nine years and three national titles in the decade of the 1970s. His second team got incrementally better, beating Tennessee, Florida and Georgia, but once again getting blown out by Alabama. Barfield did record winning seasons in 1978 and 1979 — though NCAA sanctions kept the Tigers out of the postseason, but he was doomed by an 0-5 record against Alabama. After slipping back to 5-6 in 1980 — a season that included an 0-6 SEC mark and double-digit losses to Tennessee, Florida, Georgia and Alabama — Barfield was fired with a dead-even record of 27-27-1 at Auburn.

Ralph "Shug" Jordan coached at Auburn for 25 years, winning the national championship in 1957. However, his second team took a step back to 2-8 in 1952, following a 5-5 finish in Year 1. (Birmingham Post-Herald file photo)BN

Ralph “Shug” Jordan (1952)

Second-year record: 2-8 (0-7 SEC)

Better than Year 1?: No (5-5, 3-4)

Iron Bowl: Lost 21-0 in Birmingham

Postseason: None

Auburn had won a total of nine games since the end of World War II and went 0-10 in 1950, so the fact that Jordan was able to coax a 5-5 record out of his first team was something of a miracle. The Tigers did end that season with four straight losses — including 46-14 to Georgia and 25-7 to Alabama, which did not portend well for Year 2. Auburn beat only Wofford and Clemson in 1951, getting shut out by Georgia Tech 33-0 and Alabama 21-0 to finish winless in SEC play. Things got better in a hurry for Jordan and the Tigers after that, however, as they went 7-3-1 in 1953, the first of 12 consecutive winning seasons. Auburn beat Alabama four straight years from 1954-57, including a 40-0 blowout at Legion Field to cap a 10-0 national championship season. Bryant was hired the following year at Alabama, and Jordan beat the Crimson Tide just five more times — in 1958, 1963, 1969, 1970 and 1972 — before he hung it up after the 1975 season. “Shug” retired with a career record of 176-83-6 in 25 seasons at his alma mater.

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So exactly half — four of eight — Auburn coaches in the last 70-plus years have had better seasons in Year 2 than in Year 1. Chizik and Tuberville enjoyed what you might call major breakthroughs, while Dye’s second team showed signs of what was to come in future years.

Bowden and Malzahn took steps back in their second year, though they’d set the bar so high in Year 1 that it would have been difficult to repeat that success. But as Chizik and Barfield showed, second-year improvement does not necessarily foreshadow long-term success either.

Most are predicting that Freeze’s second Auburn team will continue to climb after playing within one score of SEC powers Georgia and Ole Miss and coming within one unlikely play of pulling off a major upset of Alabama in 2023. Anything less eight wins and a second-tier New Year’s bowl berth this year would likely be viewed as a major disappointment.

Creg Stephenson has worked for AL.com since 2010 and has covered college football for a variety of publications since 1994. Contact him at cstephenson@al.com or follow him on Twitter/X at @CregStephenson.

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[SaltyTiger 8,581]

4 minutes ago, aubiefifty said:

it is good to be back. the place needs a little paint.  salty is coming over later to fry some fish and drinks a brewski while i gummy out. wee might take his golf cart for a hell ride later............

Mrs Salty went with me Thursday afternoon for the first time in forever. She caught a bunch of monster bream. I just watched, took fish off the hook, and drank beer. 
 

Good to some morning coffee articles.