That was a strange, up and down Auburn team. No one thought they'd do much with their season. They were picked fairly low, even though they'd won the SEC West in 2000.
They started out decent, until they were really smacked around hard by Syracuse, 31-14. Then, they had a big win over Miss State. Then, they beat #1 ranked UF at home in a memorable game. All of the sudden, Auburn's stock was soaring and Tuberville was a genius.
Then, the very next week, they had to go to OT to beat LA Tech 48-41. Then, they were crushed by Arkansas, 42-17, mainly by yielding big plays and having turnovers. Now, Auburn's stock was down.
Next, they went to Athens and beat a good UGA team, 24-17, by stopping Jasper Sanks at the goal line as time ran out. Suddenly, Auburn's stock is back up.
Next came the Iron Bowl. A mediocre Bama team came limping into Jordan-Hare...and destroyed the favored Auburn bunch, 31-7. This began a year-end tailspin. The next week, with the SEC West title on the line, LSU beats Auburn handily 27-14. The game wasn't even that close. Then, in the bowl, Auburn loses to UNC (an 8-5 team) by a final of 16-10. The score was not indicative of how badly UNC dominated Auburn.
So went the 2001 season. Auburn limped into the 2002 year on a losing streak and having been embarassed in their bowl and in their state rival game. Their season had seen the highest highs (UF) and the lowest lows (Iron Bowl). Their coach was now on the hot seat and he was under fire from certain media in Bama.
Then came 2002, and Auburn improved greatly. They ended the year 9-4 and looked like one of the strongest teams in the country.
It's strange how 1 year can make such a difference. Go ask any Auburn fan how they felt at the end of 2001. It probably isn't much different than how we Tech fans feel today.
Just a friendly reminder that things can change quickly in this game. We're down right now because of how our season ended and in general how the team was up and down some in 2002. But this is a new year and things can get better.
They started out decent, until they were really smacked around hard by Syracuse, 31-14. Then, they had a big win over Miss State. Then, they beat #1 ranked UF at home in a memorable game. All of the sudden, Auburn's stock was soaring and Tuberville was a genius.
Then, the very next week, they had to go to OT to beat LA Tech 48-41. Then, they were crushed by Arkansas, 42-17, mainly by yielding big plays and having turnovers. Now, Auburn's stock was down.
Next, they went to Athens and beat a good UGA team, 24-17, by stopping Jasper Sanks at the goal line as time ran out. Suddenly, Auburn's stock is back up.
Next came the Iron Bowl. A mediocre Bama team came limping into Jordan-Hare...and destroyed the favored Auburn bunch, 31-7. This began a year-end tailspin. The next week, with the SEC West title on the line, LSU beats Auburn handily 27-14. The game wasn't even that close. Then, in the bowl, Auburn loses to UNC (an 8-5 team) by a final of 16-10. The score was not indicative of how badly UNC dominated Auburn.
So went the 2001 season. Auburn limped into the 2002 year on a losing streak and having been embarassed in their bowl and in their state rival game. Their season had seen the highest highs (UF) and the lowest lows (Iron Bowl). Their coach was now on the hot seat and he was under fire from certain media in Bama.
Then came 2002, and Auburn improved greatly. They ended the year 9-4 and looked like one of the strongest teams in the country.
It's strange how 1 year can make such a difference. Go ask any Auburn fan how they felt at the end of 2001. It probably isn't much different than how we Tech fans feel today.
Just a friendly reminder that things can change quickly in this game. We're down right now because of how our season ended and in general how the team was up and down some in 2002. But this is a new year and things can get better.
