OFFENSE
The Good...
Dominating up front
Auburn's defense never got its legs under it all year. Bama made sure that the last act was no different than the other acts. Auburn's front 4 and front 7 were constantly on their back heel and rarely moved AJ from the pocket. The running game got off to a quick start as well. Lacy had gaps to run through that most of us 30 somethings could hit. The Offensive Line basically made the game end by the end of the first quarter because they had established the tone and bit Auburn's neck and refused to let go.
Lacy on a mission
Lacy is getting healthy and gaining confidence at the right time. His best game of the year was Missouri, but Auburn was a close second. In both, he was hitting the hole fast and refused to go down on the first contact. For Bama to win against UGA, they will need Lacy to come out with the same fire and determination.
Cooper the Julioian Effort
I could get into a deep discussion on the Cooper vs. Jones- the Freshman Resumes- but there is no doubt that he is in that class of player. It is also not hard to see why the staff was so excited to get him and invite him early. He is a game changing player and will only get better if he stays healthy. Auburn's tackling was about like watching my son's 5&6 year old team tackle, but to slip 3 tackles to the endzone for a WR is up there with a running back breaking 4 or 5 men. He is the favorite target for AJ McCarron and rightfully so. He also is an All SEC/Freshman All American.
The Bad...
Bell's injury
You never want your players to get hurt in a game, and you really don't want to see it when your team is about to go to the "playoffs". While I don't see his injury as a huge loss, it is still another slot on the depth chart that they cannot fill at this point. The injury does one of two things. It will either reduce the rotation and go with Norwood, Christian Jones, and Cooper more or it will require Shinn and Black to play more and step up. For pure speculative purposes, I would throw out the concept of Blake Sims or Kenyon Drake as a 5th WR option. Both would open the field up in a variety of ways. In all seriousness, I look for them to lean on the 3 experienced WRs more against UGA because they will have to use Williams more to contain Jones off the edge and use Lacy/Yeldon as safety valves or additional pass blockers.
The Ugly...
Auburn's offensive game plan, and Offense as a whole
Ok so it isn't Alabama....but there wasn't hardly a single poor play the whole game and Auburn had a lot to do with that.
DEFENSE
The Good...
The Depth Chart Unloaded
The best news from the Auburn game outside of the lopsided score was that even the 2nd string defense came out and strangled Auburn's offense. Pagan and others were able to showcase their skills on national television for a longer period of time. That is a very good thing because now UGA and Notre Dame have to scout for that.
25%, 33%, and 163...
What are those numbers? Auburn's 3rd down conversion rate, completion rate, and total yards. Alabama had more yards by the end of the first quarter.
The 4th shutout of the year
It was obvious that once the rout was on, the stats and significance of the attainment was key. I know some will bark about that, but Saban does play for stat padding. It is why Lacy was running in the 3rd quarter. They wanted the 4th shutout, it was a mark only obtained last by the 79 defense that is held in a pretty high regard. So when they were playing for the shutout, they knew what it meant and why they wanted it.
The Bad...
Letting Auburn past midfield twice....
Bama still has an issue with crossing routes and slant patterns. Auburn even exposed it to a small scale. For Bama to win in the must win games now, they have got to find a way to cut down some of the bleeding from crossing patterns. Moving Geno Smith to Star is a start. I also won't be surprised to see them use Mosely more in coverage to pick up the rub. If not him, Lester perhaps will be that player. Regardless, there has to be a player to recognize the play and react to it.
The Ugly...
Auburn's tackling prowess...
They just flat out stunk at it. I have never seen an SEC team that poor at tackling and that includes 30 years of seeing Vandy and the Mississippi's.
RANDOM THOUGHTS...
The End of the Chizik Era
While the Aubsession will be high during the period from the Sunday after the SEC Championship to New Year's, the main focus for any fan should be what happened at Auburn and how to avoid it.
Some will say karma, some will say cheating and all sort of tin foil hat material, but the honest answer is that Auburn's fate was sealed when they hired Chizik. He wasn't a winner before and he wasn't a winner there. The main thing to realize is that good players can make an average or bad coach look good. See Mike Shula, Mike DuBose, Jeff Tedford and a host of others that have had 1 "good" year and then failed to follow up. Chizik had the perfect storm in 2010. Veteran players that were talented, and caught lightning in a bottle with Cam Newton. Once those seniors and Cam were gone, the truth about Jim...err...Gene was there. He can't coach a lick.
Where Auburn goes from here is pure fodder and I could care less, but they will have to have a load of patience from the start because the foundation is sand right now. They have nothing at Quarterback, nothing in the secondary, and very little to work with beyond that. Granted, a good coach can make those parts work and get 6 wins in his first year, but that task is something that even James Franklin- a guy folks better start respecting- won't take on right now.
Jawga Pride
Here's the bottom line with Georgia. Their schedule has not prepared them for the two tests ahead. Whereas Notre Dame has played a man's schedule and been through a schedule that has them championship tested, Georgia has had 2 games worth consideration- South Carolina and Florida. One game they were embarrassed for four quarters and the other they were blessed with 6 turnovers. This game is not the game they really want to see. Georgia over the years has not been at their best when a team comes at them and punches back. They are better suited when they control the physical nature of the game. If Bama comes out and can get their front 4 and a corner blitz to work, they will be able to break Georgia's spirit early. Bama's offense will not be stunned by much of what Georgia throws out there. They can contain Jones and if they do that, the rest is pretty much average. Remember, Georgia Tech gained over 300 yards on them, and Georgia Southern wasn't far behind that. Bama just has to control the time of possession and control the turnovers. That is where Florida failed. Bama should live off the South Carolina game plan on both sides of the ball really, they did everything perfectly in regards to how to play them.
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