​​Lyle's Corner

December 2018

 Saturday, December 29th, 2018

Another Auburn underclassman has decided to skip his senior campaign. Defensive back Jamel Dean announced late last night via Instagram that he will enter the NFL Draft. He played his final college game yesterday afternoon as the Tigers dismantled Purdue 63-14. 

"For me, words cannot even explain how thankful I am to attend and play football for Auburn University," Dean said in his Instagram post. "At one point in time, football was almost taken away from me before I could even play a snap of college football. Thanks to Auburn University, I was given the opportunity to play the game I love. Also, I was able to build relationships with so many people. The bonds and memories I have made with my teammates and coaches will forever be cherished. With that being said, I will be forgoing my senior year and entering the NFL Draft. My family and I feel like this is the best decision for me. Once again, thank you so much Auburn! War Eagle!" 

This season, Dean recorded 30 tackles (including two for loss), one sack and two interceptions. He also made nine pass deflections and recovered a fumble. He nearly made an interception in the Music City Bowl against Purdue. In the latest mock draft released by WalterFootball.com, Dean is projected as a second-round pick for the 2019 NFL Draft. 

Dean originally signed with Ohio State but was declared medically ineligible due to a knee injury he sustained in high school. After being granted a release from Ohio State, he received a second opinion on his injury from Dr. James Andrews, and transferred to Auburn. In his time with the Tigers, Dean started 22 of 26 games. He missed the 2016 season at Auburn after suffering a second knee injury. In 2017, he registered 43 tackles and eight pass deflections for the Tigers. 

In other news...

- Auburn basketball had little trouble in blowing out North Florida 95-49 this afternoon in its final non-conference match. The Tiger defense forced 33 turnovers. That marked Auburn's most takeaways since at least 1991 (and likely the school record). Bryce Brown led the Tigers (11-2) with 18 points, including five 3-pointers, as five Tigers scored in double figures. 

Austin Wiley got 13 points and seven rebounds, Chuma Okeke had 12 points and five rebounds, and Malik Dunbar and Anfernee McLemore each had 11 points. McLemore also snagged a team-best eight rebounds. On a similar note, Jared Harper nearly registered a double-double with nine points and 10 assists. Auburn led 45-23 at halftime. By that point, it had forced 21 turnovers.

The Tigers will now have the pleasure of enjoying an 11-day break before their next game, the SEC opener on the road at Ole Miss on Jan. 9th. The opening tip is set for 6 p.m. CT, and the game will be televised by ESPN2.

That's all for now. Until next time, God Bless, and WAR EAGLE! 


Friday, December 28th, 2018

Yes, I'm still out there. I just needed a break from this blog to enjoy the Christmas season with my family. But now, I'll give my insight on today's Music City Bowl victory over Purdue as bluntly as possible. I was cautiously confident that we could win this one, but who would have ever imagined in their wildest dreams that the game would turn out to be a one-sided demolition? I sure didn't. Man, we beat the Boilermakers' pants off! 

Auburn won the opening toss, received and never yielded in a 63-14 smothering of Purdue. The Tigers scored touchdowns on all seven of their first-half series, blasting out to a 56-7 halftime lead. Before intermission arrived, most Purdue fans had already headed for the exits. Auburn QB Jarrett Stidham closed out his college career in splendid fashion, going 15-of-21 for 373 yards and a career-best five touchdowns (three to Darius Slayton, and one apiece to JaTarvious Whitlow and Ryan Davis). As for Whitlow, he had two rushing scores in addition to his 66-yard TD reception on the game's third snap. By the end of the day, the Tigers had racked up an incredible 586 total yards (378 passing, 208 rushing). That surpassed the team's previous record in a bowl game of 559 in the 1971 Gator Bowl (a 35-28 Auburn win over Ole Miss). 

The defense was just as impressive, allowing Purdue just 263 total yards (including just 79 rushing). The Tigers recorded seven tackles for loss and three QB sacks. Outgoing senior linebacker Deshaun Davis led the way with nine tackles. He had a career-best 116 stops this season, and 266 total for his career. He now stands fourth among Auburn career tacklers since 2000. And we can't forget those two turnovers that Auburn forced, especially ​Big Kat Bryant's 20-yard pick-six that came on a tipped pass by Tyrone Truesdell. 

As for special teams, we didn't need much help from them, but four of Anders Carlson's kickoffs went for touchbacks. Arryn Siposs's lone punt was a 49-yarder. Simply put, Auburn was utterly relentless today. No doubt about it. Gus Malzahn got his second bowl victory as the Tigers' head coach, and his first since the 2015 Birmingham Bowl. 

This was a mighty satisfying conclusion to an up-and-down 8-5 season with highs and lows. On the positive end, there was the thrilling victory in the opener against Washington, and a sound win at Ole Miss. By contrast, there was the meltdown at Mississippi State, the heartbreaking home loss to LSU, and the upset loss to a struggling Tennessee squad. Most people in the media considered this season to be a surprise, but I don't. I saw it coming from last summer, particularly with our young offensive line and young running backs. 

Now, as we head into the offseason, I think the biggest question lies in who will win the race to be our next starting QB. Also, will the offense remain as explosive as it was today with Gus calling the plays? Will the Tigers put the puzzle together to return to championship form? Will Gus be able to save his job? All of the answers will begin to take shape next summer. Until then, see you next year, Tigers! Thanks for another great season. 

In other news...

- The men's basketball team hosts North Florida tomorrow afternoon in Auburn Arena at 4 p.m. CT. The game will be available online at SECN+. This will mark the team's final non-conference match this season. 

- The women's basketball team hosts Alabama State tomorrow at noon CT. That game will also be available online at SECN+. 

That's all for now. Until next time, God Bless, and WAR EAGLE! 



Wednesday, December 19th, 2018

Let me start this post off with a reminder: Auburn basketball plays NC State at Raleigh tonight at 6 p.m. CT on ESPN2. You can also listen to the Auburn Sports Network. 

Now, on to some recruiting news. Early signing period commenced today, and I'll give short and sweet accounts on who has pledged to (or, in one player's case, decommitted from)  the Tigers. First for the bad news. Jamond Gordon, a 3-star defensive end from Meridian (Miss.) who committed to Auburn last June, backed out of his pledge. He announced his decision via Twitter last night. 

This news is not surprising, as Gordon -a former Ole Miss commit - has been wavering for some time and is again flirting with the Rebels. Without Gordon, the No. 19 recruit in the state of Mississippi according to the 247Sports Composite, the Tigers are down to 15 commitments for the Class of '19. Auburn will probably sign about seven or eight more. 

 - Let's move on to the good news. First off, Tyler Fromm, the younger brother of Georgia QB Jake Fromm, signed with Auburn today. The younger Fromm is the nation's No. 16 tight end and the state of Georgia's No. 41 overall prospect according to the 247Sports Composite. He's rated as a 3-star prospect, and has been committed to the Tigers since May 5th of this year. We can now safely say that the Deep South's Oldest Rivalry has just grown a little more intense. 

- Auburn received a National Letter of Intent today from four-star defensive end/Buck linebacker Colby Wooden of Lawrenceville, (Ga.) Archer. Wooden had been committed to Auburn since August 16th, and will arrive on campus in January of 2019. Linebackers coach Travis Williams was his area recruiter, and defensive line coach Rodney Garner also played an active role. 

The 6-feet-4, 230-pound Wooden recorded 11.5 sacks in 2017, although his senior season stats are unknown. Wooden stands as the No. 38 recruit in the state of Georgia in the 247Sports Composite. He is extremely quick and explosive off the ball, and gets into the backfield swiftly. Those skills should serve him well, but he may need to work on his overall strength and body mass. Auburn beat out Clemson to land him. 

- The Tigers also gained a four-star pass rusher in Buck linebacker Derick Hall, who announced his pledge to the Tigers today in a ceremony at his school, Gulfport High, in Gulfport, Miss. Hall is Auburn's 16th commitment in the Class of '19. He ranks as the No. 10 recruit in Mississippi and the No. 181 overall prospect in the nation, according to the 247Sports Composite. 

The 6-feet-3.5, 216-pound Hall chose the Tigers over Mississippi State, Florida State, Ole Miss and Florida. Auburn recruited him extremely hard throughout the 2019 cycle, and Hall made at least four known visits to the Plains. Secondary coach Marcus Woodson was Hall's area recruiter, although defensive line coach Rodney Garner and defensive coordinator Kevin Steele also played major roles. For that matter, so did head coach Gus Malzahn. In fact, Hall told 247Sports multiple times that he was closer to Malzahn than any other head coach recruiting him.

Hall said that he, like Wooden, plans to enroll at Auburn in January and will study engineering. 

That's all for now. Until next time, God Bless, and WAR EAGLE! 



Sunday, December 16th, 2018

I'm in "short and sweet" mode today. Auburn's 75-71 overtime win over UAB at Legacy Arena in Birmingham was wild and thrilling. The game was even closer than that. The crowd of over 15,000 in attendance (which, according to Tigers head coach Bruce Pearl, was the largest to ever watch a basketball game in Birmingham since 1992) more than got their money's worth in this one. 

Jared Harper bailed the Auburn offense out of its struggles, scoring a career-high 31 points, including 21 of the Tigers' final 25 points on the night. Harper canned four straight free throws in the final seconds of overtime to ice the victory. Still, Auburn's offensive performance left much to be desired, especially regarding 3-point shots and second-chance attempts. 

I have a gut instinct that the Tigers got cocky heading into this one, especially since they were reportedly at least a 28-point favorite (if my memory serves me right). We're going to have to really buckle down at practice in the next couple of days if we want to win our next match, a trip to Raleigh to face NC State on Wednesday night at 6 p.m. CT. That game will be televised by ESPN2. 

That's all for now. Until next time, God Bless, and WAR EAGLE! 



Friday, December 14th, 2018

Auburn football got some disappointing news on the injury front yesterday. Head coach Gus Malzahn revealed that redshirt sophomore defensive end Nick Coe, who had dealt with a right hand/wrist injury late this season, recently underwent surgery and is "doubtful" for the Music City Bowl against Purdue. 

Coe is first on the team in sacks (seven) and second in tackles for loss (13.5). He has registered 27 total tackles, three quarterback hurries and two forced fumbles for the 2018 campaign. Despite Coe's injury, Malzahn said that he expects all other players to be ready to go and doesn't anticipate any NFL-bound players skipping the bowl game. 

From my point of view, Coe's absence certainly doesn't bode well for the Tigers against a Purdue team known for its passing attack with QB David Blough. On the other hand, you never know when someone else will step up to disrupt him. Let's try not to write this one down as a loss. Auburn will square off with the Boilermakers on Dec. 28th at 12:30 p.m. CT on ESPN. 

In other news....

- Auburn basketball plays at UAB in Birmingham, tomorrow night at 6:30 p.m. CT. The game will be televised on the CBS Sports Network. 

That's all for today. Until next time, God Bless, and WAR EAGLE! 



Wednesday, December 12th, 2018

Even though Auburn's Music City Bowl showdown with Purdue is still 16 days away, word came out today as to who will call the game on ESPN. However, I'm sure that these names will be just as obscure to you as they are to me. Anish Shroff will handle the play-by-play duties, while Ahmad Brooks will provide the color commentary, and Roddy Jones will be the sideline reporter. 

I'm hopeful that the three will cover this contest in a professional and unbiased fashion. More importantly, I hope that the Tigers can leave Nashville victorious. Gus Malzahn has only won one bowl game in his tenure with Auburn (the 2015 Birmingham Bowl, which was a 31-10 decision over Memphis). 

Auburn and Purdue will square off on Dec. 28th, with kickoff set for 12:30 p.m. CT.

In other news...

- Auburn basketball returns to action on Saturday at UAB in Birmingham, Ala. The game has an opening tip of 6:30 p.m. CT. The game will be televised on the CBS Sports Network. 

That's all for today. Until next time, God Bless, and WAR EAGLE! 

Monday, December 10th, 2018

The search is over. Auburn football has found its next offensive coordinator. Memphis offensive coordinator Kenny Dillingham was hired last night as Auburn's offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach. However, he will not call plays for the Tigers. 

The 28-year-old Dillingham was hired less than a week after Chip Lindsey's departure for Kansas as that team's offensive coordinator. He now stands as the youngest offensive coordinator in the SEC and spent the last five years as one of Mike Norvell's analysts and assistants during tenures at Arizona State and Memphis. 

Auburn head coach Gus Malzahn will re-assume play-calling duties in the upcoming Music City Bowl and the 2019 season, it was reported last night. A source familiar with the negotiations told Auburn Undercover that Dillingham agreed to a two-year deal with the Tigers. Receivers coach Kodi Burns also received a promotion, adding the role of passing game coordinator to his duties. 

"Kenny is one of the rising stars in our profession, coaching two top-10 nationally ranked offenses the last two years," Malzahn said in a statement. "Because of Kenny's energy, intelligence and genuine care for his players, he's been highly successful coaching quarterbacks and is an outstanding recruiter, while working closely with Mike Norvell in developing one of the nation's top offenses." 

Dillingham was previously the tight ends coach at Memphis in 2017 and then offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach this season at Memphis, where Norvell called plays on game days. Memphis ranked fourth nationally in total offense (534.3 ypg), third in rushing offense (285.5 ypg) and seventh in scoring offense (43.6 ppg). Dillingham has two years of expereience as a full-time assistant on the college level, but spent the preious three as a graduate assistant and quality control assistant under Norvell at Arizona State and Memphis. His upcoming stint on the Plains will be the first time he's been away from Norvell since he was a high school offensive coordinator in 2013. 

"He's relentless in everything he does. He puts his heart into it, and he's got a great football mind," Norvell told the Memphis Commercial Appeal before the 2018 season. "We've been together so long (that) he's got a pretty good sense of how I think and what we need to accomplish." Dillingham coached Doak Walker Award finalist Darrell Henderson, who rushed for 1,909 yards and 22 scores for Memphis in 2018 and quarterback Brady White, who threw for 3,125 yards. 

"I'm very excited for the opportunity  to join one of the nation's top football programs and work for Coach Malzahn, who has won a national championship and produced some of the top offenses in Southeastern Conference history," Dillingham said in a statement. "Coach Norvell speaks very highly of Coach Malzahn and the similarities of how both offenses work. Auburn is a great university and community and my wife and I are extremely excited. I can't wait to learn and add to the future successes of the Auburn football program." 

Dillingham worked with quarterbacks in his first season with Memphis in 2016. He was previously a quality control assistant on offense at Arizona Sate in 2014-15. During his time with the Sun Devils, he worked directly with the tight ends and also assisted in recruiting, with his main focus being on the state of Arizona. From 2007-12, he worked in several coaching capacities with Athletes in Training and with the Chaparral High School football program in Scottsdale, Arizona. He was the freshman coach and later the school's offensive coordinator for two seasons from 2013-14. 

He married the former Briana Pimpton in February of this year. Welcome aboard, Kenny. We have great confidence in you to turn the Auburn offense around. 

That's all for now. Until next time, God Bless, and WAR EAGLE! 



Sunday, December 9th, 2018

It got a little shaky at times, but eighth-ranked Auburn (8-1) held off Dayton (5-4) 82-72 in Auburn Arena last night. Bryce Brown played a major role by turning in a career night with 34 points, including six treys. That total not only marked the most points by a Tiger in the Bruce Pearl era, but also the most by an Auburn player in a single game since Toney Douglas registered 38 against Nicholls State on Nov. 24th, 2004. 

"It feels good," Brown lamented. "Just a big shout out to my team and coaches. Jared (Harper) hit me in good spots. Samir (Doughty) hit me in good spots. Chuma (Okeke) hit me in good spots. I just have to give a shout out to my teammates for finding me." The defense was equally effective, as it forced Dayton into 23 turnovers, including a season-high 16 in the first half. It was the third straight match in which the Tigers forced 20 or more, and the fifth time this season Auburn has done so. 

"We just know that when we play defense, we want to create," Jared Harper explained. "We don't just want to lay back and let teams do what they want to do. We always preach about making plays. Any time we're able to make a play defensively to lead to easy baskets for us, we look to do that. We have people at multiple positions that can pressure the ball and get in pass lanes. As long as our defense is on a string, we can turn teams over." In 35 minutes of play, Harper scored 20 points and had a game-high seven assists. 

Samir Doughty tallied eight points with a career-best 10 rebounds. He also made six assists and a game-high four steals. Austin Wiley scored eight points in 4-of-7 shooting off the bench and matched a career-best with five blocks for the second straight game. He also got seven rebounds. "I was really pleased with Samir's six assists and 10 rebounds," Pearl said. "I thought he had a really good floor game. Austin did a nice job for us coming off the bench and made a little bit of a difference for us rebounding." 

With 13:31 left in the game, Auburn was clinging to a slim 58-52 lead. That was when Doughty and Brown canned back-to-back threes to mount the margin to 10. Shortly after that, Harper joined the fun in hitting consecutive treys himself in a span of 30 seconds to increase the lead to 74-56 with 9:50 to go. Auburn allowed the Flyers just one field goal in the last 4:26 en route to the victory. It was the Tigers' 19th straight home win over a non-conference opponent since Jan. 30th, 2016. 

"It was a very good win," Pearl reasoned. "They've been in last-possession games against Virginia, Mississippi State and Oklahoma, and they beat Butler. So we'll take it and move on." The Tigers came out of the gate on fire with a 19-6 run, capped by an alley-oop from Harper to J'Von McCormick, and forced nine Dayton turnovers in the first 13 possessions. The Flyers trimmed the lead to 23-19 with 7:17 left in the first half, but a steal by Doughty and a dunk by Brown ignited a 28-13 Auburn run that gave the Tigers a 51-32 cushion at halftime. During that stretch, Brown nailed four treys in the final 2:29 of the half. It was the fourth half this season Auburn broke the 50-point mark and just the second time that Dayton has allowed 50 in a half in two seasons under head coach Anthony Grant.  

Brown got 19 of his 22 first-half points in the last 6:41. He was 6-of-7 from the floor, including 4-of-5 from beyond the arc. Auburn's starting backcourt combined for 36 points in the first half and outscored the Flyers by four at halftime. The Tigers will continue non-conference play next Saturday when they travel to Birmingham to take on UAB at Legacy Arena as a part of the Mike Slive Invitational. Tipoff is set for 6:30 p.m. CT on the CBS Sports Network. "We'll be getting ready next week for UAB, NC State and Murray State," Pearl mentioned. "It'll be a good and tough week for us." 

Well said, Bruce.

That's all for now. Until next time, God Bless, and WAR EAGLE! 

Saturday, December 8th, 2018

As Auburn football's Music City Bowl match with Purdue draws closer, a running back is transferring from the team. Asa Martin is leaving the program after less than one year on the Plains. The backup running back, who was expected to vie for a starting job this past spring, announced his decision via Twitter this afternoon. 

"I would like to take the time out to thank Auburn University for giving myself, a young man from Courtland, Alabama, the opportunity for a lifetime. However, I have made the decision to transfer," he wrote. "I appreciate all the love and support. War Eagle Always." Asa Martin's family thinks that the coaching staff was unaware that Martin had played in a fifth game, effectively nullifying his redshirt status for this season. As a result, they supposedly botched his redshirt. The NCAA allows players to play in up to four games and maintain redshirt status.

Martin's fifth contest came in a 23-9 loss at Mississippi State. His family apparently alerted the coaches that he was in jeopardy of burning his redshirt. "After the Mississippi State game is when another assistant coach said that he wanted to redshirt Asa," Asa Martin's mother, Sharay Harris, told AL.com earlier this week. "At this point, he had played five games." 

"...I'm just blown away, because Asa and I and his dad already knew that Asa's redshirt had already been burned in the Mississippi State game." Coaches then kept Martin on the sideline for more than a month before he returned to action in mop-up duty against Liberty on Nov. 17th. The family began wondering about the coaching staff's interests and intentions, and if they were even aware of their mistake. 

"That made me realize that they didn't have his best interest at heart," Harris told AL.com. "That's what it made me realize because there's no way, again, at a D1 college that every stat, every play for play, every time you even take a snap that it's not recorded." Earlier this week, Martin's mother told AL.com that her son was not exploring a transfer option. Two days later, though, Asa Martin left the program. According to the 247Sports Composite, Martin was rated a 4-star prospect and the ninth-best back in the nation in the Class of 2018. 

I'm sure all of you are wondering whether or not Asa will play in the Music City Bowl. My personal conclusion from this story is no. We'll find out for sure. As a closing note, don't forget to tune in to the SEC Network tonight at 7:30 p.m. CT when Auburn basketball hosts Dayton.

That's all for now. Until next time, God Bless, and WAR EAGLE! 




Wednesday, December 5th, 2018

Defense was the story in Auburn basketball's 67-41 victory over UNC-Asheville last night at Auburn Arena. The eighth-ranked Tigers blocked 12 shots, made 13 steals and forced 25 turnovers. "Defense travels," Auburn head coach Bruce Pearl said. "While we struggled a little bit offensively, the defense remained pretty consistent." 

Austin Wiley led the Tigers with 14 points, adding five blocks and four rebounds. He was 5-of-7 from the field and 4-of-5 from the foul line. Samir Doughty registered 13 points and snatched six rebounds. "I'm really proud of how we played defense tonight," Wiley stated. "I try my best to be on the help side. I just tried to do my part." 

Auburn went on a 15-0 run to get a 30-point second-half advantage. Horace Spencer ran the floor on consecutive possessions, first on a Jared Harper alley-oop, then on a fast-break layup after Spencer's steal. Harper set up another alley-oop by Malik Dunbar on a slam dunk that put the Tigers up 54-24. Harper finished the night with nine points and five assists. Dunbar and Chuma Okeke snagged seven rebounds apiece. Dunbar also made a team-high five steals while Okeke tied Harper for the team lead in assists with five. 

"We stayed with our defensive principles," Dunbbar noted. "I think we're a lot better (on defense) because we've been emphasizing it a lot more in practice. We've got a better understanding, and we've got the same guys, returners came back." Dunbar paced the Tigers with a pair of treys assisted by Spencer during a 12-0 Auburn run. Harper's 4-point play put the Tigers up 25-13. At halftime, Auburn had a 33-18 lead, by which point it had blocked eight shots, made five steals and forced 12 turnovers. 

Bryce Brown also helped out, recording seven points, four assists and two steals while holding UNC-Asheville's leading scorer to four points on 2-of-10 shooting while committing nine turnovers. Pearl praised Brown's performance. "Bryce never stopped guarding," he said. "Even when he wasn't stuffing the stat sheet offensively, he kept guarding, and that's a mature player. That's a good, solid leader to be able to keep giving that effort." 

The Tigers will host Dayton on Saturday night at 7:30 p.m. CT on the SEC Network. Pearl knows that his team's offensive struggles must be rectified in a hurry if they want to come out on top then. "We're going to have to play much tougher against our next opponent. This team has been very businesslike, and they clearly understand the business that's in front of us. I know that they'll continue to improve as we get challenged more and more. And we're going to get challenged on Saturday. There are still tickets available for that game on Saturday against Dayton. I hope that thing gets sold out before we tip." 

That's all for now. Until next time, God Bless, and WAR EAGLE! 




Tuesday, December 4th, 2018

Today, I have two departures to cover. One is a player, while the other is a coach. 

The first was inevitable in the eyes of most Auburn fans. News broke this morning that quarterback Jarrett Stidham has opted to leave the Tigers after this season to prepare for the 2019 NFL Draft. Stidham's production clearly dipped this season under head coach Gus Malzahn and offensive coordinator Chip Lindsey. The Tigers finished the regular season 7-5, struggling majorly with offensive troubles. Stidham completed just 60.1 percent of his passes for 2,421 yards with 13 TDs and five picks. This was quite the contrary to last season, when he had a 66.5 completion percentage, throwing for 3,158 yards with 18 scores and six interceptions in leading Auburn to a 10-3 regular season and an SEC West title. 

Now, the big question: Will Stidham be available for Auburn's upcoming trip to Nashville to play Purdue in the Music City Bowl? It's becoming more common for NFL prospects to skip their team's bowl game. It's currently unclear whether or not Stidham will play against the Boilermakers. 

However, Stidham is not the only Tiger about to move on. Word came out yesterday that offensive coordinator Chip Lindsey is parting ways with Auburn after two years with the program, and has accepted the same position at Kansas, joining Les Miles's staff. Auburn's offense ranked 94th nationally this season, averaging 373.6 yards per game and was 71st in scoring offense (28.3 points a game). 

Lindsey and Malzahn fought over control of the offense during the season, with Malzahn having final say on all of the plays. After a 30-24 upset loss to Tennessee, Malzahn was asked if he would take over play calling from Lindsey. "No," Malzahn responded. "Chip's going to call plays and I think Chip's done a solid job for the most part. I've got confidence in him. I think for the most part, a lot of our plans have been good. We just haven't, for whatever reason, been able to execute, especially in certain situations. We've got to do a better job in that." 

During Lindsey's first season at the helm in 2017, Auburn's offense ranked in the top 30 nationally in total offense, rushing offense and scoring offense. Malzahn largely relinquished control of the offense after a loss to LSU midway through the season, sources told Auburn Undercover. The Tigers averaged 37.1 points per game against SEC teams last season to lead the conference. 

According to documents provided to Auburn Undercover, Lindsey's contract runs through Jan. 31st, 2020. He is paid a base salary of $700,000 per year. He will owe Auburn more than $800,000 for money remaining in his contract, though a "mutual terminator" clause in his contract could be exercised by both Auburn and Lindsey's parties, leaving the coach off the hook for payment. Auburn has not made its coordinators available to the media since Oct. 7th, the day after a 23-9 loss at Mississippi State. 

Given the departures I've written about, it's clear that Gus has plenty of rebuilding ahead of him in the offseason. One last note: The men's basketball team hosts UNC-Asheville tonight at 7 p.m. CT in Auburn Arena. The game will be televised by the SEC Network. 

That's all for today. Until next time, God Bless, and WAR EAGLE! 




Sunday, December 2nd, 2018

Auburn's bowl destination is now written in stone. The Tigers are set to meet Purdue in the Music City Bowl in Nashville at Nissan Stadium, home of the NFL's Tennessee Titans. The game will be played on Dec. 28th, with kickoff set for 12:30 p.m. CT on ESPN. 

This will be the first meeting between Auburn and Purdue on the football field. Also, this will mark the Tigers' first trip to the Music City Bowl since 2003. The Tigers defeated Wisconsin in that contest, 28-14. The victory came after the infamous "Jetgate" scandal, a humiliating attempt to oust then-coach Tommy Tuberville. Tuberville survived the offseason, and led the Tigers to an undefeated 13-0 record the following season. 

This year, Auburn has had an up-and-down 7-5 season, whiole the Boilermakers have gone 6-6 in very similar fashion. Their biggest hurrah was upsetting then-No. 2 Ohio State in runaway fashion. I've already read a little bit about their team, and there are two key players for whom our Tigers have to be prepared. The first is senior quarterback David Blough. He has completed 66.6 percent of his passes this year, throwing for 3,521 yards, 25 touchdowns and eight interceptions.

The other is junior linebacker Markus Bailey. He has made over 100 tackles this season, including eight for loss, and five QB sacks. He registered a season-high 15 tackles in the upset of Ohio State. Auburn head coach Gus Malzahn is 1-4 in bowl games in his tenure with the Tigers,, his lone victory coming in the 2015 Birmingham Bowl, a 31-10 rout of Memphis. 

In other news....

- The women's basketball team beat Oklahoma this afternoon by a score of 95-79. They will return to action on Thursday in a trip to Philadelphia to battle Saint Joseph's. Tipoff is set for 6 p.m. CT, with the game available online at ESPN+.

- The men's basketball team returns to action on Tuesday when it hosts UNC-Asheville in Auburn Arena. The game is set for 7 p.m. CT, and it will be televised by the SEC Network. 

That's all for today. Until next time, God Bless, and WAR EAGLE! 

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