No.10 Auburn Roars Into Bayou Country To Take On Rejuvenated LSU

There is still a lot of football left to be played this season, but this week certainly feels like a "prove it" week in the SEC, certainly as far as Auburn and LSU are concerned.

Auburn has won five in a row, against somewhat suspect competition, after losing its opener to Clemson, and has ascended to 10th in the national rankings. LSU won a huge game last weekend against Florida, erasing the sting of a home loss to Troy two weekends ago but still with some struggles.

Both teams are still in the hunt in the SEC West, but the loser this weekend could face a real uphill battle.

Auburn (5-1, 3-0) is one of a number of SEC teams living on defense, allowing more than 14 points just once this season, giving up 23 to Ole Miss, though two scores came in the fourth quarter well after the outcome was decided. Auburn ranks sixth in the country in scoring defense and among the top 25 against both the pass and the run.

Auburn's Kerryon Johnson leads the nation with 12 touchdowns (SEC Country)

LSU (4-2, 1-1) righted the ship -- at least temporarily -- with a gritty 17-16 victory at Florida last Saturday,  and should be getting back some key players for this game, including defensive end Frank Herron. Fellow end Rashard Lawrence has not been 100 percent, nor have running backs Derrius Guice and Darrel Williams.

Auburn coach Gus Malzahn knows that LSU will be brimming with confidence, so his team will need to stay on task if it wants to continue on its quest for an SEC West title.

"Our message has been each week to get better, and the last three weeks I feel like we’ve done that," Malzahn said. "We are going to have to continue to do that on the road at LSU.”

Malzahn wants to keep LSU off balance, and unlike Florida has the parts to do it.

Jarrett Stidham has steadily improved at quarterback, ranking among the nation's top 10 in passing efficiency and completing over 71 percent of his passes. Stidham has gone three straight games without an interception, and continued strong play from him will keep the Tigers offense humming.

“He’s getting better," Malzahn said. "You can tell he’s getting more comfortable and more confidence and he’s playing at a high level and we’ve just got to keep building upon that.”

Kerryon Johnson isn't typically talked about as one of the best running backs in the SEC, but with a nation's best 12 touchdowns and a nearly six yards per carry average, maybe he should be. Johnson hasn't been healthy for much of the season, but Malzahn has seen signs that he's almost all the way back.

“If you look at the last three weeks, you could tell he hasn’t been 100 percent," the coach said. "At Missouri, he had a couple chances to hit some seams and turn on the gas. He didn’t want to re-pull his hamstring, so he geared it down. Against Mississippi State, you saw him break and he geared it down. Last week when he broke, he was able to turn it loose. You can see that he is getting healthier. Last week he wasn’t quite 100 percent, but he was close. Our goal this week is to have him 100 percent. We will be very smart with him in practice. He is playing at a very high level and when he is on the field, he can do a lot of different things.”

LSU didn't dazzle offensively against the Gators, but showed signs of improvement by converting nearly 50 percent on third down, not turning the ball over and rushing for over 200 yards with banged up running backs, against one of the best front sevens in the conference.

The Tigers found a way to get it done, and there is an overwhelming belief that all of the turmoil surrounding the program may have just brought the team closer together.

"It was every ounce of energy, every person in the building gave it," LSU coach Ed Orgeron said. "And that's what it takes. And our mindset was of that. And we finally galvanized as a team. I don't think before we were playing as a team. I think we galvanized as a staff. I think that was important.

"We had better practices. And, again, it came down to one point. Let's face it. The kicker missed an extra point. You know what I'm saying? That's what happened. We're in the SEC. It's very physical. When we were up 17-3, I wish we could have kept that lead and kept sustaining. But we let them get back in with some drives, stopped ourselves with some drives. But I believe that every game is going to have to be: We win as a football team, not one unit or the other."

Guice has not rushed for over 100 yards since early September but showed moments last week where he had that familiar explosion through the hole. He and Williams will need to play well if LSU is to dictate to Auburn, because LSU ranks below 40th nationally in most important offensive categories.

Defense has long been LSU's calling card, and this year is no different. The Tigers are seventh nationally in sacks, an area where Auburn has been weak, ranking 122nd in protecting the quarterback.

LSU's Arden Key will be a focal point for the Tigers D (Associated Press)

That means Herron and Lawrence and Arden Key, who has yet to really get it going this season, could be ready to wreak havoc.

Auburn begins a tricky part of its schedule, with this being the first of three straight road games. The Tigers won't play at home again until Nov. 11, when Georgia comes to town.

"The meat of our schedule is coming up," Malzahn said.

He hopes that his team will continue to worry about its own business, and pay no attention to what's going on outside of the program.

“Whether it is four weeks ago or whether it is today, our team stays pretty insulated," Malzahn said. "We don’t worry about anyone else’s expectations or what they think outside. It is just about us getting better. We are playing better. I told our team we have not arrived and that I will let them know when we arrive." 

It is a rare 3:30 p.m. kickoff at Tiger Stadium and will change the routine for LSU, which is more accustomed to nighttime kickoffs. A night game in Baton Rouge is unlike anything else in the country, but Orgeron is imploring fans to bring that after dark mindset to the afternoon.

"We're going to need them," Orgeron said. "And there's a lot of things that we don't like that we have to do in life. So hopefully they can get up a little earlier, put a little something in their coffee, to make them come up and let's go."

Orgeron noticed growth from his team in the days leading up to the Florida contest. In previous games, there was finger pointing and hanging teammates out to dry, including members of the coaching staff.

With the season threatening to spiral out of control, LSU banded together.

"It's a testament that we believed in each other last week," Oregeron explained. "Nobody blinked. I think the staff came together more last week than any week. The team came together. The leadership evolved. Through adversity, we became stronger. We felt that going into the game. Our guys say: We are not getting on this plane unless we win the game. That was new. That was a great mindset. The meetings, the intensity, the detail all week, when your back's against the wall, the way our guys responded.

"I need to lead this team better. And although we had success, we have to deal with this thing, and we have to put it to bed coming on 5:00, because we've got a very tough opponent coming. So we have another challenge ahead."

The visitor in this series has lost 15 of the last 17 contests, with LSU winning the last two in Baton Rouge by double digits.

Monday Musings -- Oct. 2

 One was a coach few wanted, while the other seemed to be a very popular choice with the locals.

 Both are now suddenly feeling heat, because, in the case of one, the program has failed to reached expected heights and, in the case of the other, there have been two bad losses already this season, including one at home to a Sun Belt Conference team.

 Butch Jones and Ed Orgeron may not be linked by geography or coaching style or demeanor, but they are linked by the disdain their fanbases have for them at the moment.

Butch Jones (Rocky Top Talk)

 Jones, hired just after the end of the 2012 season to replace the failed Derek Dooley, was never really embraced by Rocky Top, as he wasn't seen as a big enough name. Now, forgive Tennessee fans for having delusions of grandeur -- the Vols ain't Alabama or USC or Ohio State or Texas, and can't just have anyone they want.

 They should, however, be able to do better than someone who came from a non-Power 5 school, as Jones did from Cincinnati. They got "no" responses from Mike Gundy, Larry Fedora, Charlie Strong and Jon Gruden, and reportedly looked into Butch Davis, Jim Mora, Kirby Smart, Bobby Petrino -- and the guy they fired because they felt he didn't win enough, Phil Fulmer. He only took Tennessee to a national title, and was consistently among the best in the SEC. But fans are a fickle bunch, and they must have grown tired of double digit wins.

 Tennessee got Jones, despite protestations from Peyton Manning, who attempted to lure him to Colorado despite being a Tennessee alum. Jones went 9-4 the last two seasons, calling them two of the "best seasons" in school annals -- never mind the aforementioned national championship and double digit winning campaigns. But in four seasons under Jones, Tennessee has never won the SEC East, and it won't again this year.

 Jones became upset with the media earlier last week, apparently believing the media should be a cheerleader for his program. And then his team goes out and lays a colossal egg, getting shut out by Georgia 41-0, the team's first shutout at home since 1994 and worst shutout loss since 1905.

 Jones' teams often looked unorganized, unprepared, and the coaching staff does not seem to know how to utilize its talent.

 There are huge questions at quarterback, and recruiting has slipped to the point that there are no real emerging stars at receiver. Running back John Kelly is a good one, but he can't do it by himself, even though he tries.

 The defense looked like it quit against Georgia, and if that's true then it could just be a matter of time for Jones.

 "We will dissect everything. Everything will be looked at, from A to Z. we have to work to get better.

 "Everyone should hurt. If it doesn't hurt, then that shows you are not heavily invested. if that's not motivation, then I don't know what is. There is a tradition of excellence here that we demand."

Ed Orgeron (The Advocate)

Orgeron was widely hailed as a stable, if not flashy, choice for the LSU gig after Jimbo Fisher and Tom Herman turned it down. Unlike Tennessee, LSU can -- and should -- shoot for the moon, so settling for Orgeron -- wildly likable and entertaining, but ultimately an average coach -- was a bit of a letdown.

 But at least he was one of them, a Louisiana native, so the Geaux Tigers crowd gave him a chance. He went 6-2 after taking over for Les Miles last season, but the two were against Florida and Alabama, LSU's biggest rivals. There was talk that the offense was getting an overhaul this season, and dynamic coordinator Matt Canada arrived from Pittsburgh, the only team in America to score at least 40 points in every game in 2016. Coupled with holdover defensive coordinator Dave Aranda, the Tigers were going to be something.

 They were, albeit against lesser competition, and then they weren't, absorbing a 37-7 body blow from Mississippi State before being knocked out at home by Troy, an upper level Group of Five team that is nowhere near as talented as the Tigers yet outplayed, outcoached and outhustled them on every level, leaving with a 24-21 victory. LSU is 67th in total offense and 83rd in scoring offense, and the defense is also an issue, allowing 87 points in the last three games. Very un-LSU.

 When interviewed for the job, Orgeron brought with him a binder, showing what he would do in every conceivable situation. So it was funny that he and his team looked so lost from the outset against Troy -- to the point that he didn't even know what play was being run. Third team back Nick Brossette got the opening carry, gained five yards and then fumbled.

 "I was not aware we were going to do that," Orgeron said. "I wish I could have that first play back. I wanted Darrel Williams to get the ball. Our third string back got the ball. I should have done a better job of game-planning. I think, that's not the way we ought to start the game."

 Orgeron presented himself as a CEO, who would know every aspect of the program yet would give his coaches freedom to do their jobs. So when he doesn't know what's going on, especially in this day and age of scripted offenses, that's a real red flag.

 LSU fans appear to be stuck with him, as the powers that be put in a $12 million buyout were he to somehow be fired this season. If the unthinkable happened and LSU let him go, it would be paying him, Miles and whomever it hired as the new coach.

"It's not about Troy, it's about us," Orgeron said. "Its a disappointing performance. We were outcoached and outplayed. It seems like we got outphysicaled by Troy tonight, which is not Tiger football."

 Truth be told, LSU hasn't played Tiger football for some time, and may not as long as Oregeron is around. Florida and Alabama are still on the schedule, so it might get worse before it gets better.

 This should be a lesson to fans, to be careful what you wish for -- you just might get it.
  
Barrett Becomes Top Buckeye -- So Why Do So Many Want Him Replaced?

 In all of my years covering the Ohio State football beat, one record I was sure was safe -- Art Schlichter's passing mark of 7,547 yards. The Buckeyes would never find someone to start for four years, or throw the ball enough to really challenge the mark.

 So imagine my surprise when J.T. Barrett broke it on Saturday in the Buckeyes 56-0 romp over Rutgers. He already held most of the school records, including most wins as a starter and most touchdowns responsible for, so checking all of the boxes with the yardage figure seemed only right.

 Amazing that a guy who many in Buckeye Nation believe can't play -- or, more succinctly, can't throw -- could achieve so much.

 Barrett has more wins than anyone in school annals, yet fans say he hasn't won a championship of any kind, and that he wilts in big games. Never mind that in 11 games against ranked teams, Barrett has gone 8-3, and the Buckeyes have averaged 33 points in those games. His 2014 campaign was the best in OSU history, with over 2,800 yards, 34 touchdown passes (and another 10 running) and the highest passer rating in school history (169.8).

JT Barrett (The Lantern)

Detractors point to his lackluster showing in last year's national semifinal against Clemson (a 31-0 loss) and this year's home loss to Oklahoma (31-16) as evidence Barrett can't get it done when the stakes are high. Never mind that in the Clemson loss, the Buckeyes line couldn't block anyone, and that OSU's defense was woefully prepared to stop Baker Mayfield and company this season. Sure, Barrett bares some of the blame, but it's a team effort -- the receivers have been underwhelming, the offensive line play has been spotty, and the coaching dynamic, with new coordinator Kevin Wilson, has been spotty.

 Barrett has improved the last few weeks after the offense was tweaked to feature more quick decisions and quick throws, and utilize more bubble and tunnel screens -- though detractors will say that the improvement came against Army, UNLV and Rutgers, not exactly a Murderers Row of defenses. And there is some legitimacy to that.

 But there are a couple of things to remember here -- first, OSU is not a passing team. Sure, it needs to be able to pass enough to keep defenses from stacking the box against its power running spread, but if the Buckeyes are throwing the ball more than 25 times a game consistently, it's probably not a good sign. OSU should lean on running backs J.K. Dobbins and Mike Weber, and rely on Barrett's savvy to handle the RPO Urban Meyer's offense demands.

 Which brings us to point two -- Barrett is a perfect fit for this offense. He will never be mistaken for a gunslinger, but Meyer has never had a truly prolific passer. He's always favored quarterbacks as part of the run game, with shorter passes to the perimeter that could utilize playmakers in space. He did it with Percy Harvin at Florida and with Curtis Samuel last year at OSU.

 Fans who clamor for Dwayne Haskins or Joe Burrow see the precise passing, but what they don't realize is that neither is ready to really take over an offense that is pretty complex, even though its based on simple concepts. Meyer has often cited Barrett's toughness and leadership as two reasons he loves him, and those aren't going to change anytime soon.

 You know what is changing? OSU's offense, and with it Barrett's efficiency.

 In the last three games, Barrett has moved from the 40s in ESPN's QBR metric to 17th, tops in the B1G and one of just two league quarterbacks in the top 20. Barrett has even hit a few deep balls, which was the biggest complaint from OSU fans -- who fail to realize that the Buckeyes aren't the 1970s Oakland Raiders, taking shots downfield every other throw.

 If the receivers continue to progress -- Parris Campbell is the closest thing Ohio State has to a Harvin or Samuel, and Bin Victor showed some fight and determination in going up for a 50-50 ball against Rutgers -- Barrett should continue to improve. Many say this kind of offense won't work against better defenses, and they may be right. But it has worked in the past, including in the 2014 national championship campaign, so I am giving Meyer the benefit of the doubt.

 Of course, fans won't be happy until or unless the Buckeyes knock off Penn State on Oct. 28th. I am sure that if OSU wins, but Barrett plays average or worse, fans will find a way to be upset.

 After all, going back as far as Woody Hayes, many OSU fans are more concerned with HOW the Buckeyes win rather than THAT they win.

 Barrett is a winner, and while he will never be mistaken for Schlichter in a passing sense, he does have him beaten in most important measurables.

 Should the Buckeyes run the table and win the B1G title game, it will be in the discussion for the College Football Playoff, at which point Barrett will have a chance to prove his doubters wrong.

Thanks For Playing

 While their coaches will say there is still plenty to play for, a handful of teams saw their seasons, for all intents and purposes, end on Saturday. No longer part of the chase for the College Football Playoff, these teams are more than welcome to pick up their lovely parting gifts on the way out:

Iowa -- The Hawkeyes were never serious players, though their defense is good enough to cause problems for teams that don't come to play. The offense is archaic, and there is little semblance of a passing game. But Kirk Ferentz will still get his millions -- it must be nice to not have expectations, Iowa.

Northwestern -- The Wildcats were seen by many (including the person typing these words) as a darkhorse pick to win the Big Ten West division. Um, about that ... who knew the ground game would be so poor, that the defense would regress back to 2014 and 2015 levels, and that, for one of the few times in Pat Fitzgerald's tenure, the team wouldn't play hard all the time.

Ole Miss -- You weren't really allowed to play, anyway, so we aren't going to waste a lot of space.

Vanderbilt -- Solid defense, anemic offense, and no one to open holes for Ralph Webb at running back, which is a shame because he's been one of the more unheralded backs in the land for a couple of seasons now. There just isn't enough offense in Music City for the Commodores to truly compete, though Kyle Shurmur may have a football job beyond college.

LSU -- See above. The less (Miles) said about the Tigers, the better. Florida and Alabama are still on the schedule, so at least the Bayou Bengals aren't harboring any false hopes about being any good.

Indiana -- If it was basketball, we could talk. As it is, the Hoosiers were pretty much fools gold this year

South Carolina -- The effort is there, the talent is not, at least not yet. The Gamecocks had Texas A&M on the ropes but couldn't finish the job, so now it can build for the future.

Colorado -- While last year's resurgence wasn't a complete fluke, the Buffs are still a year or so away from being a consistent contender in the Pac-12. There just isn't enough firepower in the passing game, and too many issues in the secondary.

Cal -- Another team taking positive steps forward, it's just too young to really be a factor this year. Justin Wilcox will get it going because he's an excellent coach, but the early season optimism probably was a bit much for a team that came into the year as one of the least experienced in America.

 The number of unbeatens has fallen to 17, while the winless has dwindled to seven -- though one, UTEP, saw its head coach, Sean Kugler, step down after an 0-5 start.