Well, at least that's the way it works at Auburn. The second-best team in Alabama (This is an insult to Auburn fans. And to UAB, whose offense is better (statistically) than the Tigers) have dropped their offensive coordinator after 7 games. These 7 games include an overtime win against Clemson in the Chick-fil-A Bowl, two losses, and the ugliest win in college football history (yeah, that last one might be an overstatement).
However, let's not throw the (former) coordinator Tony Franklin under the bus just yet. While I think the spread offense is something that is touted far too highly in comparison to the actual results it yields, I also think that this is Auburn's mistake. They chose to hire this man after NOT running a spread. That meant the tools necessary to run a spread offense weren't there, which meant the offense wasn't going to run perfectly this year. (See also: Michigan) They're blaming a man who had no chance of succeeding this year with the corps of players he had. This is like handing someone a hammer and saying: "OK, I need you to change the oil in my car and rotate the tires. I'll be back in 10 minutes. If you're not done you're fired."
By far my favorite quote in the ESPN article on the firing is this gem from Tommy Tuberville (my comments in parenthesis): "This is a good offense. (No it isn't) Our guys like it. (This does not help win games) They understand it. (Uhhhh...) They're getting better at it. (Auburn points per game this season: 34, 27, 3, 21, 14, 14. I'm not sure that's "better")"
The Tuberville quote also makes for some intriguing reading. I mean, the guy is saying "Yes, the spread offense is new. Yes, it's difficult. Yes, we just fired our coordinator who brought it. No, we are not going to stop doing this!"
So Tony Franklin is jobless, and Auburn needs a new offensive coordinator. No one wins in this situation. Well, except for Alabama fans. Perhaps this was part of Nick Saban's deal with the devil: High pay, private jet, top recruits, and chaos at Auburn. All for the price of his soul! Now that's a deal most SEC fans can get behind.
But I digress, Franklin will get re-hired somewhere, and I sincerely hope that his new place gives him the opportunity to get the right group in place before they give him the ax. As for Auburn: It'll be interesting to see former defensive guru Tuberville trying to run a train wreck offense this weekend.
In other news, Arkansas might get that elusive SEC win!
However, let's not throw the (former) coordinator Tony Franklin under the bus just yet. While I think the spread offense is something that is touted far too highly in comparison to the actual results it yields, I also think that this is Auburn's mistake. They chose to hire this man after NOT running a spread. That meant the tools necessary to run a spread offense weren't there, which meant the offense wasn't going to run perfectly this year. (See also: Michigan) They're blaming a man who had no chance of succeeding this year with the corps of players he had. This is like handing someone a hammer and saying: "OK, I need you to change the oil in my car and rotate the tires. I'll be back in 10 minutes. If you're not done you're fired."
By far my favorite quote in the ESPN article on the firing is this gem from Tommy Tuberville (my comments in parenthesis): "This is a good offense. (No it isn't) Our guys like it. (This does not help win games) They understand it. (Uhhhh...) They're getting better at it. (Auburn points per game this season: 34, 27, 3, 21, 14, 14. I'm not sure that's "better")"
The Tuberville quote also makes for some intriguing reading. I mean, the guy is saying "Yes, the spread offense is new. Yes, it's difficult. Yes, we just fired our coordinator who brought it. No, we are not going to stop doing this!"
So Tony Franklin is jobless, and Auburn needs a new offensive coordinator. No one wins in this situation. Well, except for Alabama fans. Perhaps this was part of Nick Saban's deal with the devil: High pay, private jet, top recruits, and chaos at Auburn. All for the price of his soul! Now that's a deal most SEC fans can get behind.
But I digress, Franklin will get re-hired somewhere, and I sincerely hope that his new place gives him the opportunity to get the right group in place before they give him the ax. As for Auburn: It'll be interesting to see former defensive guru Tuberville trying to run a train wreck offense this weekend.
In other news, Arkansas might get that elusive SEC win!
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