A New Era for Auburn Basketball

Bruce Pearl has arrived on the Plains, and a new day has dawned for the Auburn basketball program. The slogan in Auburn when Malzahn arrived was “It’s a New Day”, and one year later that slogan hovers over two programs now. Pearl brings immediate excitement to a team, program, and fan base that has fallen by the waste side and craving a return to the spotlight that has been missing since, at the least, 2004.

We all know the story of his downfall at Tennessee (I like to refer to it as “Cook Out Gate”), and have become used to seeing his face on ESPN giving College Basketball analysis. Those dark days are behind Pearl as he arrives on the “Loveliest Village on the Plains”. (gotta love spot quotes) Auburn’s head of compliance to the NCAA was the lead investigator in Pearl’s case at Tennessee, so obviously the athletic department felt good enough to hire Pearl, so the fan base (along with critics) should feel comfortable that Pearl has learned his lesson and play by the rules from here on out.

The show cause penalty does last until August, but that should not have much hampering on any basketball operations other than recruiting, which Pearl has already hired assistants to get out on the road to begin recruitment. The Under Armour factor will continue to play a massive role in the recruitment of players, as long as Nike has a firm hold on AAU basketball camps, and there is nothing Auburn can do about that other than dump UA, which does not seem to be a possibility. However, if there was one coach that Auburn could have hired to bring excitement and momentum back to the program to excite recruits, it is Pearl.

It is unknown whether Auburn can expect to make the tournament right off the bat, especially after losing three talented seniors, but with Pearl at the helm at least it is a possibility. A new era has arrived on the Plains for basketball, and I do not think there has been this much excitement since the Charles Barkley days of Auburn basketball. So get your popcorn and enjoy the ride Auburn, we are in for a treat.

Auburn Has Arrived in Pasadena for the National Championship, Is That Even Possible?

Gus Malzahn boards plane bound for Pasadena, CA (picture courtesy of www.oanews.com)

Four days from now, Auburn will run out of the tunnel to face the Florida State Seminoles in the BCS National Championship in Pasadena, California. No this is not a dream, this is real life and unless you have been locked away in bomb shelter for the last four months you have probably seen the incredible events that have propelled Auburn to this position. “The Immaculate Deflection” or “The Return” will be talked about between Auburn fans for generations to come, breaking down every aspect of the plays along with their personal tales of their actions and emotions. It truly has been remarkable season, considering where these Tigers arose from just thirteen months ago. They were the lowest of the low, a nightmare, a travesty for all Auburn fans when they appeared on the television, but I digress, because they have made up for that nightmare with a dream season that no Auburn fan wants to wake up from.

This Auburn team is special, there is no other way to put it.

 One play at a time, one miracle at a time

Gabe Wright celebrates in student section following victory. (c/o theAuburnVillager.com)

Many questions loomed around the Auburn Football team following their first two victories against Washington State and Arkansas State. Now entering into the first SEC game on the schedule were those questions going to be answered or would those same questions become problems and extend Auburn’s SEC losing streak even further. In their first two contests, Auburn established the run game from the offset and the new quarterback on campus, Nick Marshall, was not required to take control of the game and played like a quality “game manager” (I hate this term, but it exemplified Marshall during the first two games). However on Saturday night, Mississippi State’s defensive line dominated the line of scrimmage for most of the game, which did not allow Auburn’s rushing game to establish the dominance it had previously. Marshall overcame the “game manager” title Saturday and showed off the skill set that had become some sort of a legend before the season started.

Marshall answered the question about himself, but another looming question-The Auburn Run Defense. The 2012 season seems like a bad dream that never ends because the statistics from last year will continue to haunt the Auburn program. Last year, Auburn was horrendous against the rush so Auburn faithful wondered how this problem would be solved, would new defensive coordinator, Ellis Johnson, bring in a new system (4-2-5) that could provide new solutions? The first two games brought about improvement, but the talent level on the defensive and linebackers was obvious, which brought about another question, would freshman defenders need to be implemented this early into the season? The question has a split-part answer, yes, on the defensive line. Newcomers, such as Montravius Adams, Carl Lawson, and Elijah Daniel, have contributed in a significant manner. However, the linebacker situation has not seen the same influx of new talent. Auburn is still relying on veterans such as Jake Holland, Cassanova McKinzey, and Kris Frost. The linebacker situation will continue to be a problem throughout the season.

The Mississippi State quarterback was able to find the holes in the Auburn rushing defense and expose them. However, Auburn’s defense held the game in check and not let the score get out of hand as the offense worked through their problems on third down and establishing Marshall in the passing game.

The last drive arrived after the Auburn defense made one last final stop to give the offense one more chance to drive the ball into scoring territory with the score at 20-17. Nick Marshall and the offense started the drive inside their own 20 yard line with less than 2 minutes on the clock needing to get into the endzone. Completion after completion (again newcomers stepped up, Marcus Davis had 4 receptions on the drive), Marshall had finally moved the ball into field goal territory and the game seemed bound for overtime, but on third and 10 from the 25 yard line Marshall evaded the rush and scrambled 10 yards for the first down. This set up the Auburn offense inside the 20 yard line with less than 20 seconds left on the clock. There was no doubt in the minds of the Auburn coaches, the offense, and especially Nick Marshall that they were shooting for the endzone to win the game, forget about overtime. Marshall stood confidently in the pocket and delivered a dime to the corner of the endzone to C.J. Uzomah. A frenzy erupted inside Jordan-Hare Stadium.

This frenzy was an explosion that had been waiting to erupt in that place by those same fans and same players that went down the long road of last season. Those same people left Jordan-Hare Stadium Saturday night with a sense of relief and confidence. The fans have confidence in the new coaching staff and their players. The players have confidence in one another and believe in all the words the coaches have been preaching over the last 9 months. This confidence and trust is a long way from last season. Hopefully, this confidence will be enough as they march into Tiger Stadium (Death Valley) next Saturday night.