Historical Auburn offense started with right hire

[Saniflush]

Gus Malzahn was given complete control of Auburn's offense and it's paying off.

Gene Chizik has done many things to get Auburn to 9-0. None was more important than hiring Gus Malzahn and leaving him alone.

Two years removed from a putrid offense that was unbearable to watch, Auburn finds itself with a historically great offense. Not simply great by Auburn standards. Great by SEC standards.

We started the year in this state wondering where Alabama's offense would rank historically. We're ending it blown away by the efficiency and versatility of Auburn's offense.

The Tigers average 40 points per game. Know how many SEC teams have done that in the past 37 years? Seven. They were all coached by Urban Meyer, Steve Spurrier or David Cutcliffe.

Not bad company for Malzahn, a former high school coach dumped on by Houston Nutt. It's easy to forget now, but Malzahn spent a lot of his introductory news conference in December 2008 trying to convince Auburn fans, yes, he was going to play smashmouth, downhill-running football.

After Tommy Tuberville's disastrous experiment with Tony Franklin, the word "spread" carried a negative connotation at Auburn. Images of Auburn 3, Mississippi State 2 were hard to erase simply by hiring a coordinator from Tulsa.

There was one major difference. Franklin could never run his system; Malzhan has free rein.

Chizik showed he was smart enough to trust Malzahn's unorthodox system. Chizik showed he had a small enough ego to let Malzahn hire his own assistants.

There's no need today convincing anyone the Tigers play smashmouth football. Their opponents have the bumps and bruises to show for it.

Auburn averages 307.7 rushing yards per game and has five straight 300-yard rushing games against SEC opponents, the longest streak in school history. Only one SEC team has averaged 300 rushing yards in the past 30 years: Auburn in 1985.

Those Tigers weren't too shabby. Some guys named Tommie Agee, Brent Fullwood and Bo Jackson, who won the Heisman Trophy in ¤'85.

At this rate, Auburn's 2010 rushing average would be the fifth-best in SEC history. The only ones better: Alabama 1973 (366.1), Alabama 1979 (344.7), Alabama 1971 (324.1) and Auburn 1985 (312.5).

You expect to see regular 300-yard rushing games from the service academies, not in the SEC. Florida won the national title in 2008 averaging 231.1 rushing yards a game. Even the Darren McFadden/Felix Jones combo for Arkansas in 2007 averaged "only" 286.5 yards.

Auburn's 496.2 total yards per game figures to be the SEC's highest since Spurrier's last year at Florida, when Rex Grossman and Co. averaged 527.5 in 2001. Only three other SEC teams have averaged 500 total yards: Kentucky in 1998 with Hal Mumme and Tim Couch, and Spurrier's 1995 and ¤'96 teams that went 23-1 combined while winning one national title and playing for another.

It can't be overstated enough Cam Newton's value, but he's not alone.

Darvin Adams is arguably the best under-utilized wide receiver in the country. All he does is move the chains when called upon.

All Onterio McCalebb does is burn defenses who focus too closely on Newton on read-option runs.

All Michael Dyer has done is produce two straight 100-yard rushing games as a freshman. His workload will only increase in November.

Then there's Lee Ziemba, Ryan Pugh, Mike Berry, Byron Isom and Brandon Mosley. You know them as one of the most dominating offensive lines in the country.

Chizik called them out prior to South Carolina. The linemen initially responded slowly as Auburn fell behind 20-7 to the Gamecocks.

Since that 13-point deficit on Sept. 25, Auburn's offense has scored on 41 of 65 possessions (63 percent). That's a mind-boggling number. Prior to that, the Tigers were scoring a touchdown or field goal on 36 percent of their drives.

From miserable to great. From putrid to historic.

It started with the right hire and has plowed downhill ever since.

[djsimp]

I think I got a woody.

[JR4AU]

In case you haven't heard the word:  Malzahn is the real brains behind this whole operation.  (You see, a successful offense means you're running the program, making ALL the game day decisions, directing the entire game plan,directing recruiting, and Chizik just watches)  Chizik can't win without him or without good assistants (by contrast Nicky coaches the whole criminal tide and the asst. coaches just watch), and Malzahn can't produce without Cam, he'll be back to a gimmicky HS coach as soon as Cam is gone, but right now he's a genius headed for a big time job.  Remember, the moronic bammers that are now telling us Cam will go to the NFL, and Malzahn is a Nutt reject that runs a gimmicky HS offense, are now the same ones claiming he's the genius behind Auburn's success, and will be being courted by many BCS programs next year, and Auburn will fall back to a .500 team (like we've always been according to them), and Chizik will prove he really sucks, and there are no other offensive coordinators out there, and if there are, they don't run the same system so it will be years lauguishing in transition, just like it has been with Chiz and Malz, and our recruiting hasn't really happened the last 2 years either. 

Fuckin' moron bammers....I mean if you're going to run a line of smack talk, either pick one that's just fucking smack or one that makes sense...quit trying to pass of the moronic shit like it's intelligent.