Good Enough for Second

Alabama played just good enough to lose and were the epitome of that cliche.

Penalties at the wrong time, missed field goals, an offensive line that couldn't keep the Auburn pass rush out of the backfield and couldn't block Auburn off the ball in short yardage situations, dropped passes, and a defense that blew the most coverages I have seen since LSU/Georgia. Those are the reasons the Tide lost to Auburn.

I am not going to get into whether Auburn deserved to win this game or not, whether they got lucky, etc etc...They played a cleaner game, they did not back down when things could have went bad, and they put themselves in a position to "get lucky".

If you listened to the commentators on CBS they would tell you Alabama came out tight. And if you saw the first drive from Alabama I think you would have to dis-agree. Now the field goal kicker might have been tight, and the punt unit might have been tight, but I think Alabama as a whole was fine. Marv Levy once said many many years ago, "Offenses sell tickets, defenses win games, and special teams win championships." That's another saying that Alabama embodied tonight. 4 missed field goals, failure to cover a field goal return, and a punt almost blocked that led to Auburn's first touchdown.

I also want to say that I fully agree with the calls Saban made in the game today. When it was 4th and 1 around the Auburn 20, under 7 minutes to go the call was made to go for it. Alabama ran it and was stuffed. This was a statement play. Alabama runs on third or fourth and short and history says they get it. This is who Alabama is and Auburn stepped up and said, "I don't care." This was not the first time in the game either. Every time Alabama tried to make that Alabama statement play with the run, Auburn won the line of scrimmage. The second call was the long field goal try. It was a gutsy call and it was a couple yards short of winning the game. No problem with that call at all.

Now what about Auburn. I want to talk about the Auburn defense first. They were up to the challenge when it mattered most all night long. I counted at least 8 times that Auburn rushed 4 or fewer and got pressure on McCarron. Alabama could not handle the defensive ends from Auburn at all. The speed of the edge consistently pushed McCarron forward to where the tackles were in his face. This caused McCarron to be slightly off early in the game. Auburn gave up yards on the ground tonight, but held on the short yardage plays that mattered, and their blitzes were either not picked up or caused more pressure. Great defensive effort (aside from Mincy getting beat for 99 by Cooper) and they never quit. And they also knew EVERYTIME Alabama was going to run a screen play and shut it down.

I finally understand what makes the Auburn offense special. They run 3 different plays but can run them a variety of ways and you cannot tell what is coming. Even when you see it coming it's hard to defend. On the first drive it was pound Mason up the middle while faking Marshall to the outside. Then the first play of the second drive, play action to Mason while Marshall kept it. I knew it was coming, Alabama had to know it was coming, it didn't matter. But when that Auburn offense starts running, you just can't keep up. On the first drive of the second half it was literally Right, Left, Middle, Left, Right, Middle, Swing pass, Right, Left Middle and Alabama had no answers, they were completely off-balance. It also doesn't hurt that Auburn has a running back like Mason. Marshall has exceptional speed and can explode to the corner like only few can, but Mason would not be denied. He broke tackles, pushed the pile, and brutalized that Bama D all night. The worst part of Auburn's offense is they would go to the well and run the same play too much on one drive and Alabama would have it sniffed out.

And as bad as the special teams were for Alabama, they were that great for Auburn. Auburn blocked a punt, blocked a field goal, had 2 punts to the 1 yard line and returned a missed field goal 200 yards for the game winning score. Hats off to Auburn and I would have no problem putting them at #1 although I doubt it happens.

I was ready to criticize the replay official for over-turning the Cooper touchdown run and the Marshall TD run. How do you over-turn those calls? I thought the evidence had to inconclusive...could have been a bigger deal but both teams scored anyways. But, on the Marshall touchdown pass to Coates that tied the game...HOW IS THAT NOT REVIEWED?!?!?! Can we truly say Marshall was behind the line of scrimmage when he threw that ball?? It was awfully damn close and NO ONE is talking about it....

Here are some stats:
McCarron was 17 for 29 but his receivers dropped 6 passes.

Alabama had 6 penalties for 45 yards. But the timing was ridiculous. A holding penalty negated a first down run on 3rd and 2 with 4 minutes to go. If that drive stays alive there's a chance Alabama scores another touchdown and seals the game. The holding penalty ensured they would try a field goal...the one that was blocked. And lets not forget the "false start" that negated another field goal earlier in the game.

Auburn ran for 296 yards against Alabama. Mason ran for 164.

Auburn was more physical on third down and converted 8 out of 15 while holding Bama to 4 out of 13. This included a 3rd and 1 on the 9th Auburn drive where the Tiger o-line completely blew the Bama d-line off the ball and Mason picked up the first. The drive ended in 0 points, but I thought that play was a great example of the heart that Auburn brought to this game.

Bottom line: Alabama has played with fire all year and has found ways to win. They have looked dominant but have had UNTYPICAL moments all year that just did not make much sense. The penalties, the defensive lapses, the lack of focus and it finally caught up with them today.

Bottom line 2: Auburn has grown a lot since they lost to LSU. They have perfected their plays, they are focused and are not making dumb mistakes. And it seems that whenever Auburn comes out of no-where in a season they have to shock the world. Tonight was no different.

Check this out: Alabama lost to Auburn who lost to LSU who lost to Georgia who lost to Missouri who lost to South Carolina who lost to Tennessee who lost to Alabama. Just another year in the SEC.

Or how about: Georgia beat South Carolina who beat Missouri who beat Georgia who beat LSU who beat Auburn who beat Alabama who beat A&M who beat Ole Miss who beat LSU who beat A&M who beat Vanderbilt who beat Florida who beat Tennessee who beat South Carolina who beat Vanderbilt who beat Georgia

Rest of the Games that Mattered

Oregon found a way late against Oregon State. The force has not been with the Beavers all year.

Texas A&M has another poor offensive scoring day and Missouri has a date with the Tigers of Auburn for the SEC Championship. If Missouri is SEC Champ, there will NOT be a SEC team playing for the National Championship without some help. I think Auburn could get in as the 1 loss SEC rep. but I am not completely confident in that either. What a year. These coaches will not get their lips off of Ohio State's Buck and see the big picture.

Ohio State hangs on at the end. Shit.

South Carolina punishes Clemson and proves they are one of the best teams in the country despite their record. Damn you Tennessee for screwing this up!!!!

Florida proves they were more over-rated than Ohio State. FSU rolls easily.

So where does that put my picks? 5 wins, 3 losses. Season record: 58-28, 67%

So where does that put the BCS?

Espn says:
1. FSU
2. Ohio State
3. Auburn
4. Alabama
5. Missouri

I say:

There are 3 SEC teams in the TOP 5!!! There are 4 in the Top 10!!! And Ohio State is going to be considered a top tier team? Who have they played? Boise State has had a better case some years!!! This is ridiculous people. How many teams are currently ranked from the B10? 3. There are 3 SEC in the Top 5....And yes an argument can be made that FSU hasn't played anyone either, the ACC isn't exactly the toughest conference. But the teams they have beat that mattered, mattered more than Ohio State's, ie Clemson at Clemson. And Florida State has been more dominant against lesser opponents than Ohio State. Give me Winston over Miller any day.

I will be back tomorrow to talk about the new BCS and then unveil my new (ie: THE REAL) top 4 rankings after I plug all the new numbers into the spreadsheet. I will also unveil a new name for my 3 Point Process, 3PP just don't get it.

It's been a great regular season!!!!