My Two Cents-Will Auburn play in the SEC Championship game?

Auburn hopes to have the scoreboard read in their favor come Nov. 26th.

Yes, I feel they have the best shot coming out of the SEC West. Auburn QB Cam Newton is just phenomenal. He broke the record for the most rushing yards(in history) of SEC quarterbacks in a single season at 1, 077 yards on the ground, and he has four regular season games left. Before the season started I actually thought that that Arkansas QB Ryan Mallett would make people forget about Tim Tebow but boy I was wrong. I do not think anyone knew how dynamic Newton would be and how much he means to his team. He is clearly the Heisman front runner and if it was up to me, I would give him the trophy now.

Everyone knows that the defense is the biggest problem on this team. They actually gave up only 17 points in this game compared to 43 points (against Arkansas) and 34 (against Kentucky). There are improvements on defense, even though it might be minimal. The cornerbacks need to track and play the ball, how many times have we seen them with their backs turned to the ball allowing wide receivers to make big catches?

The annual Iron Bowl will take place on Nov. 26^th and this will be another game, if Auburn wins, that will define their impressive season thus far. Alabama leads the rivalry with a 40-33-1 record, but I feel this year the Tigers will cause the tide to shift in their favor for the next couple of years. Last season they lost a close game to the Crimson Tide that came back to pull out the win, 26-21; however, Newton was not the quarterback and this brings a very interesting element to this game.

Nick Saban and Kirby Smart will have to dial up inventive defensive schemes to confuse and shutdown the running lanes, so Newton will be forced to pass. We thought, last week, that LSU was going to be that team that took away the holes in the defense for Newton but that did not happen. And that is why I strongly believe that he will continue to have success against Alabama.

The problem with ‘Bama is that this team is better suited when playing with a lead as opposed to being down. For evidence, check out the South Carolina game,  knowing that Auburn will put up points, what will happen if Alabama finds themselves down by 14 points or more? We know Auburn will not let up on the gas pedal once they have a lead so it could get ugly and embarrassing for the Crimson Tide, if they do not keep this game close. I can certainly see the Tigers coming out like gangbusters and then Saban corralling his troops, at halftime, and have them ready for the second half.

I strongly believe that this year belongs to Newton and he will give his all in the Iron Bowl, so there will be no shortage of effort on both teams. But Auburn will make a big splash with a win over Saban’s team and ride into the SEC Championship game on a high, where they could possibly face the Gamecocks again. Momentum is on the side of the Tigers this year with the SEC having a down year, so if Newton does not capture the SEC Championship this year then it will have to be the following year. One must realize that Newton will capture the conference championship before all is said and done for him at Auburn.

Alabama shows why they are the No.1 team in the nation, pushing past Arkansas, 24-20

Alabama is a great team -the best team in the nation- and they showed it Saturday in Fayetteville. In the opening moments, the entire Arkansas team was fired up to be at home and get the chance to knock off the No. 1 team. If there are still any doubts about Ryan Mallett, please put them to rest. He threw for 250 yards in the first half, and finished the day with 357 yards through the air. You have to be special to do this against an Alabama defense, albeit a young and inexperienced unit. But I tip my hat to Mallett because he is the real deal. The Razorbacks picked on cornerback Dre Kirkpatrick all game long and exploited his inexperience for a few big plays by Arkansas wideout Jarius Wright (6 catches, 131 yards). In the first half, the upset alert was going off as the wheels were falling off of the Crimson Tide. Greg McElroy was not his steady self in the first half and that had to do with a couple of bad passes and a fired up Razorback team. The second half was when Alabama stuck to their bread and butter: the running game with Mark Ingram (157 yards and 2 TDs) and Trent Richardson (85 yards, no rushing TDs, 1 REC TD), perfect strategy to keep the potent Arkansas offense off the field and wear away at the Razorback defense. Nick Saban’s boys showed resolve and true grit in the face of adversity. McElroy orchestrated drives that put his team in position to win; there was a sense of been-here-done-that attitude by the Crimson Tide. There was no point where I saw this team panic being down for the majority of the game, taking the lead with 3:18 left in the game. Three interceptions by the ‘Bama defense was the key factor to thwarting the Razorbacks. Robert Lester had two interceptions on the day, one very important one, setting up Alabama to take the lead; and cornerback Dre Kirkpatrick picked off the last interception to seal the game and put an end to any chances for an Arkansas comeback. I feel in my gut that the Crimson Tide faced their biggest and stiffest test they will see all season. This team will be undefeated and have a chance to be back-to-back national champions. I really believe it and you should too. Greg McElroy will continue to improve, and he’s no longer a game-manager, maybe last year he was but not anymore; he comfortable with the offense and the playmakers around him. McElroy will end up being the most efficient passer in the SEC, or out of the BCS conferences. Arkansas really needs to work on establishing a running game to become more balanced with the passing attack. It’s a lot for Mallett to carry the offense with his arm for four quarters. But this team might just get the majority of their wins in shootouts; and the defense needs to improve as well. There are still signature wins to be had against Auburn, South Carolina, and LSU. And how Mallett performs in these games will put him right in the thick of the Heisman race, but no better win would have been bigger than downing Alabama.