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Tony Franklin debuted his version of the spread offense on Saturday night, in front of 87,000+ at Jordan-Hare Stadium in Auburn, Ala. Much was made of Auburn’s switch to the spread. And, while the Tigers did put up over 400 yards of total offense in a 34-0 win over the ULM Warhawks, only 85 of those yards were through the air. QB’s Chris Todd and Kodi Burns split time taking snaps before Burns left with a gash on his leg. Neither threw the ball well, and neither threw the ball downfield, except for one bomb down the left sideline from Burns that was dropped by WR Chris Slaughter. Auburn fans left the Plains disappointed, flashing back to an anemic offense that ranked 97th in total offense in 2007. However, there’s no need to panic, this offense is a work in progress, and will be fine.
Rome wasn’t built in a day. This takes time. As Nick Saban would say (at great length), it’s a “process.” Tony Franklin will have his offense churning, and it will happen soon. Franklin alternated QB’s every series prior to Burns’ injury. After the game, he admitted that alternating the signal callers hurt the offense, and didn’t allow either of them to get in a rhythm. From my view in section 8, that was VERY apparent.
This Saturday vs. Southern Miss, Auburn will start Chris Todd, regardless of the health status of Kodi Burns, who was listed as “questionable” on Tuesday. This was the plan prior to the season, to start Burns in game one and Todd in game two. However, Franklin has said that he will not alternate them every series and, if one of them gets the hot hand, he will continue to take snaps. These two QB’s both handled the offense very well in the pre-season, good enough for the coaching staff to continue the evaluation process into the first two games of the season. One will take the helm, and one will be the “starter” when SEC play starts next weekend.
Franklin has said that the foundation of the offense was to spread the defense out, get the ball into the hands of playmakers, and take what the defense gives you. While the passing numbers weren’t spectacular by any stretch of the imagination, the Auburn of old was ever-present, racking up 321 yards on the ground, including 115 from Ben Tate, 69 from Burns, 67 from freshman Eric Smith and 52 from Brad Lester. That, Auburn Family, is “taking what the defense gives you.”
Easing the QB’s into the system is essential, and relying on the running game is the best way to do it. Think back to the 2005 opener, when Brandon Cox was thrust into the fire against a Georgia Tech defense led by John Tenuta. Cox threw 44 passes, four interceptions, and then-offensive coordinator Al Borges totally abandoned the run, rushing only 23 times in the game. The same mistake didn’t need to be made again. It’s a work in progress, and getting too upset over a 34-0 shutout in the first game of the season is beyond absurd.
And, while we are generating the 1.21 jigawatts necessary to activate the flux capacitor and go “Back To The Future,” let’s travel back to 2004, when Auburn won the SEC and was robbed of the National Championship. Auburn won the season-opener, at home, in a shutout, against ULM, with a new offensive coordinator. Sound familiar?
Story Archive:
No Need To Panic, Auburn Fans – September 2, 2008
SEC and ESPN Reach Mega Deal – August 25, 2008
What Will Happen In The SEC – August 18, 2008
Bama Is Not Back – August 5, 2008
SEC Under-The-Radar Games – July 26, 2008
Enough With The Buckeyes – July 16, 2008
SEC Coaches: How Many Is Too Many? - July 8, 2008
New Coordinators No Problem For Auburn - July 1, 2008
Comments? Care to yell at me and call me an idiot? Barrett Sallee