Auburn's Bye Week Is About More Than Preparing for Georgia
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Alex Golesh has plenty to address during the Auburn Tigers bye week, and I think these might be the most important two weeks of his young tenure on the Plains.
Auburn enters its matchup against Georgia with a 3-2 record following a disappointing 24-14 loss to Tennessee, and while the Tigers have shown flashes of being a competitive football team, the same problems continue to show up.
And quite frankly, Auburn isn't talented enough right now to keep overcoming its own mistakes.
That's what concerns me heading into Athens the most. Against Tennessee, Auburn committed five false starts, opened the game with four consecutive three-and-outs, and made a questionable fourth-down decision that ultimately helped the Volunteers put the game away.
Those are mistakes Auburn simply can't afford against quality SEC opponents, especially the best team in the country.
And it's not like the problems are limited to the offense as defensively, Auburn has struggled to consistently stop the run, with Florida and Tennessee both finding ways to exploit weaknesses in the Tigers defensive front.
Special teams and field position have also been concerns, especially when Auburn's offense is already struggling to sustain drives.
When you put all those things together, you're asking a football team with obvious personnel limitations to overcome even more obstacles.
That has shown quickly this season that it is not sustainable.
Now, I don't expect Golesh to completely fix Auburn's offensive line during the bye week, this is something that is likely not able to fix until the offseason. That's a problem that has been developing for years, and it's going to take multiple recruiting classes to address.
But I do expect improvement in areas that don't necessarily require better players. Penalties, communication, tackling, and offensive preparation should all be priorities.
The same applies to the play-calling.
Auburn has to find ways to make life easier for Byrum Brown instead of constantly depending on its quarterback to create something when the offense isn't working.
And defensively, DJ Durkin needs to figure out why opposing offenses are having success attacking Auburn on the ground, particularly when they begin adjusting their approach throughout games.
Georgia isn't going to suddenly become an easier opponent because Auburn had an extra week to prepare. In fact, Georgia might be playing their best football right now after a close win over Alabama this past weekend.
The Bulldogs have the talent to take advantage of every mistake Auburn makes, and if the Tigers continue putting themselves behind schedule offensively, it's going to be another difficult afternoon.
I don't necessarily need to see Auburn beat Georgia to believe progress is being made, although it would be nice, it just can't be the expectation.
However, I do need to see a football team that looks more prepared, more disciplined, and capable of making adjustments when things aren't working.
Golesh was hired to change the direction of Auburn's football program.
And while that process is going to take time, the Tigers can't keep using the rebuilding process as an explanation for mistakes that should already be getting corrected.
The bye week gives Golesh an opportunity to show that Auburn is actually learning from its losses.
Now it's time to see those lessons translate onto the field.
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