This past weekend provided tons of laughs, insight and Auburn athletics as Andrew and I descended upon the Loveliest Village for a couple of days. Below are some of the anecdotes taken from the sporting events:
1.) Auburn's baseball team should win 35 games. We have more pitching than we've had in the Slater era, and I think that if the bullpen can keep up the entire schedule, 38-40 wins is not out of the question. That being said, there were still fundamental mishaps galore at the Saturday game. Seriously, two catcher interference calls in one game?
2.) Hunter Morris looks like a first baseman in the field. The kid is enormous. If he would widen his stance at the plate and change his number to 44, we'd have the second coming of Andres Gallaraga on our hands. You could tell that ETSU's coaching staff wasn't afraid of a true freshman by the fact that Mike Bianucci saw so few pitches. To stay in the 4 hole of the lineup, Morris is going to have to produce and big. Today, he had his first collegiate home run. I think that's the first of many. He has a better body build than former UF standout Matt LaPorta, and anyone who follows college baseball knows how much he loved playing at AU's Plainsman Park.
3.) While I still am completely on the Luke Greinke bandwagon, my favorite newcomer to the AU club is definitely second baseman Justin Hargett. We had the pleasure of sitting next to his cheering section for Saturday's game as well as a couple of innings of Sunday's contest. No one on the team has a more vocal mother. Super Justin - that's what we've decided to dub you after you continued to mash the ball despite counts, situations or pitchers - I wish you all the luck in the world and keep up the good work, kid. I tip my cap to your performance in your debut series.
4.) We posthumously awarded the Auburn Mitch moniker to the gentleman seated behind us at the AU-UAT basketball game Sunday. I don't think I can count the number of times we heard, "BOX OUT!" and "IT (the basketball) AIN'T A SNAKE! GRAB IT!" The best part? He was teaching his grandson how to be annoying and "That Guy" young. Oh, the future bodes well for the Auburn fan base with knuckleheads like Mitch passing on their habits.
5.) Speaking of the basketball game, Jeff Lebo is quite possibly the best coach on Auburn's campus right now. The guy is a phenomenal motivator. I just hate that we've suffered so much bad luck during his tenure. Sure, he could have a couple more athletes, but how easy do you think it is to sell Auburn's lack of fan support plus the facility we currently have? Luckily for us, the BOT has decided to do something about this with the new arena, but in the meantime, Lebo is doing more with less than anyone else in the SEC. One more player, and we're right in the middle of the fight for the SEC West with Mississippi State.
6.) Cool Hand Luke showed out, and I don't think he hit a bigger shot than his three with the shot clock expiring right in front of Rico Pickett in the second half. The kid played with a passion that matched his confidence for the first time that I've seen him in person. Also, someone apparently challenged Quan Prowell's manhood prior to the game because the guy was a beast underneath the basket. There's no excuse for Mark Gottfried to allow our team to outscore them in the paint, and Prowell lit up Hendrix - causing the big man to miss several easy layups and Bama to shoot up three after three after three.
7.) Much to my personal delight, I have now seen our team win two-straight games with me in attendance. This hasn't happened since early in Lebo's first season - against doormats. These have been against Ole Miss and Alabama - two games I like for us to win above all others in hoops. They have also put us in a position to wrap up third place in the West with a little help and two more wins in our last four. This streak will most likely come to an end on Wednesday when I travel down to Starkville, but it's nice seeing them be able to celebrate with one another after having not witnessed this since 2005.
8.) After basketball, we meandered over to football for a little while. Count me amongst the folks on the DeRon Furr bandwagon. Sure, it became different when there were defenders and I'm not sure he's game-ready when Chris Todd and Kodi Burns have both been in the fires. However, the guy has the physical tools to be one of the best QBs in Auburn history, and I think he has a supporting cast around him that no one prior to Furr has had. The kid can throw a post better than anyone else I've seen. He's going to end up being the best QB we have sooner than I thought.
9.) In an earlier post, I said that the item atop my Bucket List is to attend one of Tony Franklin's offensive camps. Sunday just reinforced that desire. Practice is so much more fun to watch than it was when I was in school - and this includes the 2004 season. The way Franklin coaches the wide receivers and quarterbacks is incredible compared to what it was like just three years ago under Al Borges. The drills are fast, methodical and fun. The guys seem to enjoy them a lot as well. I didn't stick around for the team drills, but the passing sets were very entertaining.
10.) We're going to be very, very, very, very good this year. "This team is starting to gel into something special," was Tuberville's quote following practice that stood out to me most. The boring games are still going to be very entertaining because of Franklin and his attack. The offensive line is as cohesive a unit I've seen under Tuberville and Hugh Nall. Those guys genuinely care about each other, and I think this will pay dividends in addition to the fast pace we're going to show in games this fall.
11.) We found Auburn's next mic man in the stands at the basketball game. I don't think that there is a single person in the Auburn family circle that can compare to his spirit. He may not know the words to the cheers, but he knows how to taunt and move around with the body God gave him. My dad in his All Auburn, All Orange attire could help out with the cheers. It is said, now let it be done.
12.) Thanks to Andrew for convincing me to come down and more importantly to Taylor, his lovely bride, for allowing us to stay at her grandparents' house as well as for the awesome robe. You know, I honestly feel like everyone who owns a house should also have a robe. I now can go on with my life completely ready for all the tricks of the mortgage trade.
(Editor's note: I did not spend any time watching the defense, but all accounts from Rhoads' quotes in articles are that they're feeling challenged by our offense and are eager to prove that they're still the stars of this team. What's the thing they say about competition breeding success?)
All in all, it was a fantastic weekend. I'll even sneak in a quote for you faithful reader(s) out there: "He was always a crazy bird, and I don't even call people birds."
Take it easy and keep living for The Weekend. War Eagle.
-6-
Monday, February 25, 2008
Thursday, February 14, 2008
2008 AU Baseball Preview
Maybe I'm not the right person to be writing this. According to Andrew, I'm just too pessimistic about the abilities of this year's Tigers on the diamond to accurately predict how they will fare. Much of this comes from my lack of faith in the fundamentals the team has shown during conference seasons of years past in the Tom Slater Era. Maybe, this team will turn the corner this season. I certainly hope so as I would love to get back to Hoover and watch a team I care about playing again.
If you haven't read this article by Jay G. Tate, I strongly recommend it. Copy and paste the following link into your browser's address bar and take a few moments to read. Even if you don't like baseball, I promise it will touch your heart. http://www.montgomeryadvertiser.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080213/NEWS/802130342/1001/rss01
It was after reading the above article that my opinion changed on the possibilities of this season. These are great guys on the team, and they've come through for their teammates time and time again. I have to give Slater immense credit for being able to convince some of these guys to bypass millions straight out of high school to don the orange and blue for three seasons. Hopefully, some of that coercing can equate to more victories in Southeastern Conference play, which will and should ultimately decide Slates' future at AU.
Luke Greinke is a name to watch for in box scores and SEBaseball.com recaps throughout the entire season. This kid is special, and I think he has much more upside than his brother who is currently working towards locking down the closer job for the Kansas City Royals. There's a reason that one of my fantasy baseball team names is L. Greinke 4 Heisman. He can hit, play defense at multiple positions and is one of the strongest pitchers on the team. He'll be the starter on the mound when the Tigers debut against East Tennessee State to show off the fruits of a tremendous offseason that included garnering the MVP awards in the prestigious Cape Cod summer league.
Hunter Morris is another name that I'm pumped about. One area the Tigers really never have been lacking under Slater is the ability to score runs, and he has Morris penciled in the 4 hole...as a true freshman. He was recently named on of Rivals.com's top 10 freshmen to watch this season, coming into school as a second-round draft pick of the Red Sox. We have ourselves the next Pedro Alvarez (see SEC Offensive Player of the Year in 2007 at Vanderbilt), and, assuring that he can hit the curve better than Josh Bell, the Grissom High standout will provide protection from slugger Mike Bianucci. Toss in a year of experience from Joseph Sanders and a slugger who tore up AU and Ole Miss pitching last year at Arizona State in Matt Hall, and you have a potentially deadly lineup between the 2 and 6 spots.
Anchored by Greinke and solid experience at the back of the bullpen in Evan Crawford and Bryan Woodall, the pitching staff looks to be the most experienced of the Slater era. An area that will be often overlooked is the importance of Scott Sullivan's role as a mentor to these hurlers. Upgrades were made at almost every position of the rotation, and I think it will pay dividends for the younger guys to know that they have upperclassmen such as Crawdaddy and Woody backing them up in the later innings.
All in all, it could be a very special year. Baseball America seems to think so, pegging AU to finish second in the West. The schedule matches the need for improved concentration from February to June as it seems to get tougher week in and week out. I love how Slates set up to have 20 of the first 22 games at home, including all the four-game series early on to save on pitching depth in April and May. I don't think a lot of people realize how hard it is to schedule in college baseball, not to mention it just got much harder to recruit with new restrictions passed over the past two seasons. One thing about Slater, every class is better than the one before - a tremendous improvement over Steve Renfroe.
So tip your caps, Tiger fans, because it's almost here. Soon, the pop of the catcher's mitt and ding of the aluminum bats will be filling the air at America's No. 1 college baseball stadium, and I for one cannot wait. The team chemistry is there, and I'll root these guys on and support them as much as I can from afar. I just hope that there's a better start than 0-8 in SEC play on the horizon.
War Eagle, and Luke Greinke for Heisman.
If you haven't read this article by Jay G. Tate, I strongly recommend it. Copy and paste the following link into your browser's address bar and take a few moments to read. Even if you don't like baseball, I promise it will touch your heart. http://www.montgomeryadvertiser.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080213/NEWS/802130342/1001/rss01
It was after reading the above article that my opinion changed on the possibilities of this season. These are great guys on the team, and they've come through for their teammates time and time again. I have to give Slater immense credit for being able to convince some of these guys to bypass millions straight out of high school to don the orange and blue for three seasons. Hopefully, some of that coercing can equate to more victories in Southeastern Conference play, which will and should ultimately decide Slates' future at AU.
Luke Greinke is a name to watch for in box scores and SEBaseball.com recaps throughout the entire season. This kid is special, and I think he has much more upside than his brother who is currently working towards locking down the closer job for the Kansas City Royals. There's a reason that one of my fantasy baseball team names is L. Greinke 4 Heisman. He can hit, play defense at multiple positions and is one of the strongest pitchers on the team. He'll be the starter on the mound when the Tigers debut against East Tennessee State to show off the fruits of a tremendous offseason that included garnering the MVP awards in the prestigious Cape Cod summer league.
Hunter Morris is another name that I'm pumped about. One area the Tigers really never have been lacking under Slater is the ability to score runs, and he has Morris penciled in the 4 hole...as a true freshman. He was recently named on of Rivals.com's top 10 freshmen to watch this season, coming into school as a second-round draft pick of the Red Sox. We have ourselves the next Pedro Alvarez (see SEC Offensive Player of the Year in 2007 at Vanderbilt), and, assuring that he can hit the curve better than Josh Bell, the Grissom High standout will provide protection from slugger Mike Bianucci. Toss in a year of experience from Joseph Sanders and a slugger who tore up AU and Ole Miss pitching last year at Arizona State in Matt Hall, and you have a potentially deadly lineup between the 2 and 6 spots.
Anchored by Greinke and solid experience at the back of the bullpen in Evan Crawford and Bryan Woodall, the pitching staff looks to be the most experienced of the Slater era. An area that will be often overlooked is the importance of Scott Sullivan's role as a mentor to these hurlers. Upgrades were made at almost every position of the rotation, and I think it will pay dividends for the younger guys to know that they have upperclassmen such as Crawdaddy and Woody backing them up in the later innings.
All in all, it could be a very special year. Baseball America seems to think so, pegging AU to finish second in the West. The schedule matches the need for improved concentration from February to June as it seems to get tougher week in and week out. I love how Slates set up to have 20 of the first 22 games at home, including all the four-game series early on to save on pitching depth in April and May. I don't think a lot of people realize how hard it is to schedule in college baseball, not to mention it just got much harder to recruit with new restrictions passed over the past two seasons. One thing about Slater, every class is better than the one before - a tremendous improvement over Steve Renfroe.
So tip your caps, Tiger fans, because it's almost here. Soon, the pop of the catcher's mitt and ding of the aluminum bats will be filling the air at America's No. 1 college baseball stadium, and I for one cannot wait. The team chemistry is there, and I'll root these guys on and support them as much as I can from afar. I just hope that there's a better start than 0-8 in SEC play on the horizon.
War Eagle, and Luke Greinke for Heisman.
Wednesday, February 6, 2008
A Recap of the 2008 Auburn Signing Class
Well, another Signing Day has come and past. This year, it was a little different since we didn't get that "Signing Day Surprise" that Tommy Tuberville has been notorious for providing in each of his first nine signing classes at Auburn. Guys like Devin Aromashadu, Stanley McClover, Carlton Thomas, Karlos Dansby and Demarco McNeil have all come via this route.
To sum it up, comparatively speaking, we got taken to the woodshed by Alabama. Everyone we went head-to-head with them for either went to another school or signed up for four years of verbal abuse and (hopefully) a little more mediocrity from Nick Saban. I have to tip my hat to them, though. They did sign a hell of a class, much deserving of the No. 1 national ranking and praise being stowed upon them. For the first time, Saban delivered something besides hype since he's been sitting atop the altar at the C(r)apstone.
This class that we signed, though, is one that has a lot of bright spots. We brought in a ton of defensive backs, a ton of wide receivers and a ton of defensive linemen. These are three areas we had been focusing upon to build depth, and I think we will have contributors (based on the merit of them making their grades and/or returning to us after their stops at prep school and junior colleges) in all 28 signatures landed today.
Have I mentioned the speed acquired today? With the exception of Borat (AKA Derek Winter), we have speedsters in all of the wide receivers. Phillip Pierre-Louis is going to be a playmaker sooner rather than later. He's the steal of the class, in my opinion.
So what does this mean? Do we get taken to the woodshed every year because we can't compete with Saban and his gang? I don't think so. This could just be hopeful thinking, but they caught Auburn in the midst of a perfect storm. They also had a lot more to offer in terms of numbers and playing time. We ran into a perfect storm there as well.
This wasn't the greatest signing day, to tell you the truth, most of it was pretty awful for things beyond the scholarships being awarded today. We'll move on.
War Eagle, and I guess the sun comes up tomorrow.
To sum it up, comparatively speaking, we got taken to the woodshed by Alabama. Everyone we went head-to-head with them for either went to another school or signed up for four years of verbal abuse and (hopefully) a little more mediocrity from Nick Saban. I have to tip my hat to them, though. They did sign a hell of a class, much deserving of the No. 1 national ranking and praise being stowed upon them. For the first time, Saban delivered something besides hype since he's been sitting atop the altar at the C(r)apstone.
This class that we signed, though, is one that has a lot of bright spots. We brought in a ton of defensive backs, a ton of wide receivers and a ton of defensive linemen. These are three areas we had been focusing upon to build depth, and I think we will have contributors (based on the merit of them making their grades and/or returning to us after their stops at prep school and junior colleges) in all 28 signatures landed today.
Have I mentioned the speed acquired today? With the exception of Borat (AKA Derek Winter), we have speedsters in all of the wide receivers. Phillip Pierre-Louis is going to be a playmaker sooner rather than later. He's the steal of the class, in my opinion.
So what does this mean? Do we get taken to the woodshed every year because we can't compete with Saban and his gang? I don't think so. This could just be hopeful thinking, but they caught Auburn in the midst of a perfect storm. They also had a lot more to offer in terms of numbers and playing time. We ran into a perfect storm there as well.
This wasn't the greatest signing day, to tell you the truth, most of it was pretty awful for things beyond the scholarships being awarded today. We'll move on.
War Eagle, and I guess the sun comes up tomorrow.
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