2024 College Football Season – Page 2

LSU vs Texas A&M at Kyle Field headlines Week 9 in the SEC

It could get ugly for a couple of teams in the SEC. Check out our best games on the Week 9 slate.

Despite the Georgia Bulldogs taking the week off, there are still plenty of massive matchups in the SEC. The week will be headlined by the top 15 matchup between the LSU Tigers and Texas A&M Aggies.

The Alabama Crimson Tide and Texas Longhorns are both looking to get back into the swing of things in Week 9. Alabama has a Missouri Tigers squad that is coming off an emotional comeback against the Tide’s in-state rivals. Texas has to play a red-hot team that is playing with house money at this point. A team picked to finish last in the SEC is a win away from bowl eligibility.

What about the Ole Miss Rebels? They have dropped two of their last three games and don’t look like the team many expected to be at the top of the SEC along with the likes of Georgia, Texas, and Alabama. They will host another struggling team, the Oklahoma Sooners.

Who has this edge in these four SEC showdowns in Week 9?

LSU Tigers vs Texas A&M Aggies

No offense to Indiana, but the LSU Tigers vs Texas A&M Aggies should have earned a visit from ESPN’s College Gameday crew. Not only are they the last remaining undefeated teams in SEC play but we get Brian Kelly facing his former assistant Mike Elko. What a difference a year makes after firing Jimbo Fisher and bringing Elko back to College Station. LSU has been a problem for every team since the opening weekend loss to USC. Keep your eyes on Garrett Nussmeier and this attacking defense.

Mike Elko is on the verge of doing something that Jimbo Fisher never did, well two things actually. After starting 6-1, the Aggies could win 10 games in a year for the first time since 2012. Ironically that was the season Texas A&M first joined the SEC. Elko also has this team believing in College Football Playoff aspirations. This will be a major test for the Aggies. As long as Conner Weigman stays healthy, they are a problem for a lot of teams.

Prediction: I will go with the visitors, just like the way the defense has played since Harold Perkins went down.

Texas Longhorns vs Vanderbilt Commodores

If you had told me that the Texas-Vanderbilt game would be one of the ranked matchups in Week 9, I would have sent you to be drug tested. But here we are and the Longhorns need to get back on track this week. The good news is that they won’t face the Georgia front that made Kelvin Banks Jr look like a walk-on. The bad news is that Vanderbilt is a tough matchup this season. Texas just needs to get back to what they were doing the first six weeks of the season.

No one has meant more to their team than Vanderbilt quarterback Diego Pavia. Based on what he has done for the program and college football, he should be one of the favorites to win the Heisman. It will be another major test this week at home against the Longhorns. The big question is which Commodores team shows up, the one who lost to Georgia State or the one that punched Alabama in the mouth for 60 minutes?

Prediction: Texas prevents Vanderbilt from becoming bowl-eligible for another week, Longhorns win by 14.

Missouri Tigers vs Alabama Crimson Tide

Syndication: The Knoxville News-Sentinel

One week after the epic second-half comeback against the Auburn Tigers, Mizzou gets to go for the Alabama state title against the Crimson Tide in Tuscaloosa. Despite the shortcomings this season for Bama, winning at Bryant-Denny Stadium is no easy task. However, this might be Missouri’s best chance to do so. They just need to avoid falling behind early as Alabama is a lot better defensively than Auburn by a long way. The Tigers haven’t bested the Tide since Aug. 8, 1975.

It hasn’t looked like Alabama football as of late. Following the emotional win over the Georgia Bulldogs on Sept. 28, it has been rough going for the Tide. They have lost to Vanderbilt and Tennessee and narrowly escaped with a two-point win over South Carolina. Kalen DeBoer needs to get things right this weekend against Missouri and work on the kinks in the open week before they travel to Death Valley.

Prediction: Alabama gets a critical win to keep their fading playoff dreams alive, but it will be a close game.

Oklahoma Sooners vs Ole Miss Rebels

It will be “put up or shut up” for Billy Bowman and the Oklahoma Sooners on Saturday in the Sip. Bowman is no stranger to the microphone and even took to social media to rip on Ole Miss quarterback Jaxson Dart during the offseason. If he isn’t careful he might have to eat his words once again. But if the Rebels win, he can always claim they “didn’t earn” the win as he did with Texas right?

As Dart said in his response to Bowman back in June, “Yeah okay buddy we gone see.” We might need to see some life from the Ole Miss Rebels this weekend after suffering losses in two of the last three games. They fell to Kentucky in the last home game, 20-17. Fortunately for the Rebels, the OU offense has posed much of a threat in recent weeks with a combined 12 points in the last two losses.

Prediction: Ole Miss handles an overmatched Oklahoma team by 17, 31-14

Pair of Big 12 teams in latest CFP projection, BYU not among them

Despite perfect record, BYU not among CFP projections.

The Big 12’s college football regular season is roughly halfway through with each team having played four conference matchups. With five conference games left on each team’s remaining slate, there is still plenty to be determined with the Iowa State Cyclones and BYU Cougars leading the way. Iowa State is the highest-ranked team in the latest US LBM Coaches Poll checking in at No. 10 overall, BYU is on their heels at No. 12.

Beyond the top two teams in the conference, it is crowded at the top with six teams separated by just a game. One of those teams is the Colorado Buffaloes, who just keep winning football games in an impressive turnaround from Year 1 of the Deion Sanders era. The start of the season was a bit rough but Shedeur Sanders and Travis Hunter have this team humming along. This week the Buffs take on Cincinnati at home.

Before we dive into Week 9 action, Erick Smith of USA TODAY Sports released his weekly bowl projections. There are two teams from the conference projected to make the College Football Playoffs and one of them is not BYU.

College Football Playoff Projections

Chris Day/The Commercial Appeal / USA TODAY NETWORK

Despite a close call the last time out against the UCF Knights, who have been hot and cold, the Iowa State Cyclones are very much in the thick of the CFP chase. They land at No. 11 overall in Smith’s projections and would face the Oregon Ducks in Eugene in the opening round. That is a tough matchup but perhaps they beat the Ducks in a bowl game again, just as they did in the 2020-21 Playstation Fiesta Bowl?

As for the second team in the projections who hails from the Big 12 we have the Kansas State Wildcats. It might surprise some to see BYU get overlooked but the Wildcats are a proven commodity. They get the nod and based on the projection are viewed as the favorite to win the conference. The only argument and a valid one is BYU’s 38-9 win over Kansas State in Provo, Utah, on Sept. 21.

Iowa State vs Oregon (Campus site CFP first-round matchup)
Kansas State vs Texas (Fiesta Bowl, CFP quarterfinal matchup)

Big 12 Bowl Projections

Of the 16 teams in the conference, 11 are going bowling according to the latest projections.

Oklahoma State vs Maryland (Guaranteed Rate Bowl)
Cincinnati vs Vanderbilt (Liberty Bowl)
Utah vs Missouri (Las Vegas Bowl)
Colorado vs Duke (Holiday Bowl)
Texas Tech vs Pittsburgh (Pop-Tarts Bowl)
BYU vs Washington State (Alamo Bowl)
Arizona State vs Tulane (Independence Bowl)
TCU vs South Carolina (Texas Bowl)
West Virginia vs Marshall (First Responders Bowl)

Who gets left out of the postseason

The teams that are left out of the postseason projection all share an identical 1-3 conference record. The only team with one conference win that is projected to make the postseason is the Utah Utes, who are currently 4-3 overall. The Oklahoma State Cowboys are the only team in the Big 12 with a conference win at 0-4, were included in the postseason bowl projections. That’s a bold move Cotton, let’s see if it works out for them.

Houston (2-5, 1-3)
Baylor (3-4, 1-3)
Kansas (2-5, 1-3)
UCF (3-4, 1-3)
Arizona (3-4, 1-3)

Big 12 standings after Week 8

Updated Standings as of Oct. 23:

Team	Conference Record	Overall Record
BYU Cougars	4-0	7-0
Iowa State Cyclones	4-0	7-0
Kansas State Wildcats	3-1	6-1
Texas Tech Red Raiders	3-1	5-2
Cincinnati Bearcats	3-1	5-2
Colorado Buffaloes	3-1	5-2
Arizona State Sun Devils	2-2	5-2
TCU Horned Frogs	2-2	4-3
West Virginia Mountaineers	2-2	3-4
Arizona Wildcats	1-3	3-4
UCF Knights	1-3	3-4
Kansas Jayhawks	1-3	2-5
Utah Utes	1-3	4-3
Baylor Bears	1-3	3-4
Houston Cougars	1-3	2-5
Oklahoma State Cowboys	0-4	3-4

What did we learn from Auburn’s loss to Missouri?

We learned plenty from Auburn’s most recent loss to Missouri.

The Auburn Tigers came off of their bye week with high expectations of improvement, heading into the back half of their schedule with a losing record and many sour tastes of defeat.

That luck did not change, however, as the Tigers saw yet another second half lead slip away late in the game in Saturday’s 21-17 loss to Missouri on Faurot Field. The loss dropped [autotag]Hugh Freeze[/autotag]’s squad to 2-5 on the season and 0-4 in SEC play.

The trend of this game was the same as that of many others, where the defense gave the team a chance to win all day, but the offense could not execute when it mattered most.

Here is what we learned about Auburn after the loss.

One thing is for sure, the ball needs to get out of hands quarterback [autotag]Payton Thorne[/autotag] a lot sooner and more often than it has been.

Thorne went 17 for 29, passing for just 179 yards and one touchdown in Columbia, with that score coming on a 47-yard deep ball to [autotag]Cam Coleman[/autotag]. Thorne did take three sacks though, not being able to get the ball out in time when under pressure.

His other issue: he committed a turnover for the first time in a while. On a quarterback scramble in the second quarter, Thorne was gaining good yardage before taking contact and fumbling the ball, something that was crucial as the offense was driving down the field. He must protect the ball and give his offense more of a chance as it begins to move the ball.

The rushing game also lacked, only putting up 110 yards on the day as Missouri’s defense came on strong against Auburn’s offensive line throughout the entire game. This has been a struggle at times during the year, but Saturday was one of the more severe instances.

On the receiving end, this team needs to get Coleman the ball when it can, as he is not being targeted very often. In fact, his touchdown catch was his only reception of the day, signifying his lack of production.

It is also no secret that [autotag]Robert Lewis[/autotag]’ dropped touchdown pass in the third quarter was detrimental to the team, as it ultimately led to another missed field goal by [autotag]Towns McGough[/autotag] and gave the Missouri offense momentum.

The defense played solid for much of the game, racking up five sacks on the day and finding itself in Missouri’s backfield on a consistent basis. One 78-yard pass from Brady Cook was all Missouri needed though, proving to be a large turning point in the game and one that Auburn could have easily prevented on a late-down situation.

The special teams woes continue for McGough as well, as the young freshman kicker missed a field goal in the third quarter from 30 yards out and moved to 5 for 10 on the season.

The Tigers take the road for the final time in the month of October this week with a trip to Lexington and a date with the Kentucky Wildcats. Kickoff is set for 6:45 p.m. CST and the game will be broadcast on the SEC Network.

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Who is leading in the Power Four conference title pictures after Week 8

Who has the best path to a conference title in 2024? Check out how the title pictures look in the Power Four.

It is time to separate the contenders from the pretenders. Teams that were in the top 10 in preseason are still hanging around for the most part except for teams like the Florida State Seminoles, who are sitting at 1-6 with five games left on the schedule. Likewise the defending champion Michigan Wolverines were viewed as a preseason contender and after Saturday’s loss are very much out of the Big Ten title picture.

There are roughly 23 teams that are vying for their respective conference title, more could still be in the picture if chaos ensues over the next six weeks. For now the focus will be on these teams.

Here is how the title pictures are shaping up in each of the Power Four conferences after Week 8:

ACC Title Picture

It’s just the Clemson Tigers’ world and we are all just living in it. After watching the Florida State Seminoles take over the ACC last season, the Tigers have reclaimed the throne this season so to speak. The Miami Hurricanes will clearly have something to say about who wins it all, but all signs point to a Clemson-Miami showdown in Charlotte, North Carolina. However, don’t forget about the SMU Mustangs and Pitt Panthers, who are still very much in this race.

ACC Picture:

Team	ACC Record	Overall Record
Clemson	5-0	6-1
Miami (FL)	3-0	7-0
SMU	3-0	6-1
Pittsburgh	2-0	6-0

Big 12 Title Picture

Despite both of the remaining undefeated teams in the Big 12 facing scares in Week 8, BYU and Iowa State remain at the top of the pecking order. Given that they won’t face each other in the regular season the Cougars and Cyclones could be on a collision course in Arlington, Texas, for the Big 12 championship. The only problem is that there are four more teams only one game out. Of the four chasing only Texas Tech lost in Week 8. This race could be a tight one down the stretch.

Big 12 Picture:

Team	Big 12 Record	Overall Record
BYU	4-0	7-0
Iowa State	4-0	7-0
Kansas State	3-1	6-1
Texas Tech	3-1	5-2
Cincinnati	3-1	5-2
Colorado	3-1	5-2

Big Ten Title Picture

Please stand up if you had both the Oregon Ducks and Indiana Hoosiers at the top two in the new-look Big Ten. That is exactly what we have at the moment and potentially that could be the title game matchup. Especially since neither team faces each other in the regular season. Behind the top teams we still have the Penn State Nittany Lions, Illinois Fighting Illini, Wisconsin Badgers, and Ohio State Buckeyes lurking behind them.

Big Ten Picture:

Team	Big Ten Record	Overall Record
Indiana	4-0	7-0
Oregon	4-0	7-0
Penn State	3-0	6-0
Illinois	3-1	6-1
Wisconsin	3-1	5-2
Ohio State	2-1	5-1

SEC Title Picture

The Georgia Bulldogs had the biggest win of the week but it is the Texas A&M Aggies and LSU Tigers who are at the top of the standings, for now. LSU and Texas A&M will face off at Kyle Field in Week 9 to determine the top spot in the SEC. Much like the Big 12 and Big Ten, the SEC is quite crowded at the top with three others joining Georgia, LSU, and Texas A&M at the top. The most unlikely contender is Vanderbilt at 2-1 in the conference with wins over Alabama and Kentucky. They now face Texas in Week 9.

SEC Picture:

Team	SEC Record	Overall Record
Texas A&M	4-0	6-1
LSU	3-0	6-1
Georgia	4-1	6-1
Tennessee	3-1	6-1
Missouri	2-1	6-1
Texas	2-1	6-1
Vanderbilt	2-1	5-2

There is still plenty of action to unfold as we march to the first-ever 12-team playoff field.

Omarion Hampton a shocking omission from which Midseason All-America team

The CBS Sports Midseason All-American team made a shocking omission…

It’s easy for a great player on a good team, such as Clemson running back Phil Mafah, to get overlooked amongst his talented teammates.

When there’s a great player on a bad team, such as Omarion Hampton on the North Carolina Tar Heels, that talent is easier to be recognized.

Hampton rose to prominence for UNC last season, recording 1,504 rushing yards to finish fifth nationally amongst FBS running backs. Hampton is already on track to surpass that production through just seven games this year, sitting third amongst FBS running backs with 901 rushing yards, second to Iowa‘s Kaleb Johnson and Boise State breakout star Ashton Jeanty.

With Hampton clearly being the best player on a bad North Carolina squad, it was surprising to see him left off the CBS Sports Midseason All-America team.

The team only had two running back slots, though, with both Johnson and Jeanty taking them. Johnson and Jeanty are both outperforming Hampton, though, so they deserve the two slots.

I know this isn’t fantasy football, but if there were a flex spot, Hampton would be on the All-American list. Hampton has five consecutive 100-yard games, including his second career 200-yard outing in the Tar Heels’ 45-10 domination of NC Central (also their last win), plus seven touchdowns.

UNC still has five more regular-season games left in 2024 – and Hampton still has plenty of gas left in the tank. Hampton needs 819 more rushing yards to set North Carolina’s single-season record, which Don McCauley did in 1970.

It’s disappointing to not see Hampton on CBS Sports’ Midseason All-America team, but he’s focused on helping the Tar Heels turn their season around, as they’re in great danger of missing a bowl game for the first time since 2018.

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Where does Omarion Hampton rank amongst ESPN’s Top 25 college football players?

There’s a lot of good college football players, including UNC running back Omarion Hampton. Where does he rank on ESPN’s Top 25 players list?

There’s a simple offensive formula for the North Carolina Tar Heels’ football program: as Omarion Hampton goes, so does the whole team.

You would think that because of Hampton having the third-highest yardage total amongst FBS backs this season (901), UNC would be cruising through its season.

Sadly, such isn’t the case. Hampton has five-consecutive 100-yard outings, including a 210-yard, 3-touchdown performance in the blowout win over NC Central Week 3, but North Carolina is tied with NC State and California for the ACC’s worst record at 0-3. The Tar Heels are 3-4, but should really be 4-3 after blowing a golden chance to beat Georgia Tech last weekend.

You would also think that Hampton is amongst the best players in college football, but not according to ESPN, who made the shocking decision to leave Hampton off its midseason Top 25 players list.

I’m not saying that Hampton is THE best player in college football, but especially given that Hampton’s the best player on a bad UNC team, he should be on the list. It’s easier for people to pick out stars on a bad team, given they’re typically the only ones performing, but North Carolina doesn’t have a bad offense.

Hampton is already having a better 2024 than last year, as he could very well break the 1,000-yard mark next weekend at Virginia. If Hampton hits 1,000 yards, he’d be the first Tar Heels to do so in consecutive seasons since Michael Carter, who achieved the feat in 2019 and 2020.

Hampton not making ESPN’s Top 25 midseason list isn’t the end of the world, but it’s just shocking to virtually anyone who watches UNC football.

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Which Big 12 head football coaches are vastly overpaid? Here are three to consider

The stats are out, and we can see how much money Big 12 football coaches are making and can see how they rank compared to their peers. But who’s the most overpaid in the conference?

On Wednesday USA TODAY Sports released its most up-to-date list of college football coach salaries. Some of the numbers are shocking. Mike Gundy of the Oklahoma State Cowboys is the highest earner in the Big 12 Conference. Deion Sanders, aka Coach Prime, brings all of his pomp and circumstance to the Colorado Buffaloes and is the fourth-highest-paid coach in the Big 12.

Fanbases across college football want to know where their coach ranked. In all actuality, they want to know if their head coach is overpaid. Fans scoured the list, found their favorite program’s coach, and looked above and below to see what “class” they were in. Three fanbases in the Big 12 might be disappointed to see where their head coach ranks among the most overpaid in college football, or at least among their peers. Who are the three most overpaid head coaches in the Big 12?

Dave Aranda, Baylor Bears

2024 Salary: $4.54 Million

Dave Aranda is 25-29 in his time at Baylor and has seen the program fall from 12-2 his second year to 3-9 last year and 2-4 this year. But what has to sting the folks in Waco? Jeff Traylor, head coach of the UTSA Road Runners, is making just over half of that. While Traylor has coached in Conference USA and the American Athletic Conference, he’s 41-18 in his career.

In the Power Four, former Baylor assistant Joey McGuire is the head coach of the Texas Tech Red Raiders making $250,000 less annually than Aranda. McGuire is 20-12 in his three years at Tech and is 3-0 in the Big 12 this year. And if Baylor wanted to pony up a little more? For $5.25 Million the Kansas State Wildcats have Chris Klieman, who’s built one of the Big 12’s best programs.

Mike Gundy, Oklahoma State Cowboys

2024 Salary: $7.75 Million

It’s not that Mike Gundy has never been a good coach. Just last season, the Cowboys were 10-4 and in a Big 12 title game. It’s that the roller coaster seems to be ending, and the 2023 season feels like it’s going to be more of an outlier. After three straight 10-win seasons from 2015-2017, OSU has just two 10-win seasons since.

Admittedly, part of what works against Gundy is that his high price tag is, bluntly, that of a top-tier coach. Mario Cristobal, current head coach of the Miami Hurricanes, has revamped their entire program and has them as a favorite in the ACC in just his third year for just $33,000 more. At Oregon, he took the program to the College Football Playoff as well. What’s most impressive about Cristobal has been his work within the transfer portal and NIL spaces. Cristobal is a coach for the future of college football, where Gundy feels like its past.

Sonny Dykes, TCU Horned Frogs

2024 Salary: $5 Million

Dykes was just in a National Title game, where he and a large number of players he inherited from the previous regime lost in historic fashion. Since then, Dykes’ Horned Frogs are 8-10, with some embarrassing losses. Dykes makes just $250,000 less than Klieman, but it gets worse when you see his losses. Of his eight Big 12 Conference losses, five are to programs paying their head coach less money. It’s not that Kirby Smart, Georgia Bulldog head coach, is undefeated as the highest-paid coach in the sport. But Georgia has lost just 3 games in four years, and trends like that do tend to have people connecting the dots between paychecks and winning.

Tar Heels drop into bottom half of FBS teams in USA Today’s re-rank

There’s 134 FBS teams. Where the UNC football team lands, in the latest USA Today re-rank, might surprise you.

We don’t need to tell you how much the North Carolina Tar Heels are underperforming on the gridiron.

Even with a team that includes stars like running back Omarion Hampton, Kaimon Rucker, Alijah Huzzie and Bryson Nesbit, UNC sits a meager 3-4 and winless in the ACC, tied for last with fellow in-state rival NC State.

North Carolina nearly upset Georgia Tech in Kenan Stadium last weekend, but as you might be able to guess, the defense was a massive letdown again. The Tar Heels allowed 70 to James Madison, a 20-point comeback against Duke and lost to a ranked Pitt team, which may have been their only good loss.

There are 134 FBS teams – and UNC is in the bottom half.

In USA Today’s latest re-rank, North Carolina fell 12 spots to 79th out of 134 teams, sandwiched between Northwestern and Maryland.

The Tar Heels weren’t expected to have a great season, as they lost Drake Maye, Devontez Walker and Cedric Gray to the NFL, but they weren’t expected to drop the ball like they are currently. UNC had an easier schedule on paper this year, highlighted by playing three non-Power 5 schools at home, but the ACC is surprisingly a better overall conference.

North Carolina needs three more wins to reach a bowl game, which doesn’t seem very doable at this point. The Tar Heels are off this coming week, then head to Virginia on Saturday, Oct. 26. UNC has a surprisingly winnable game at Florida State, is off again, returns to Kenan on Nov. 16 to play Wake Forest, heads to Boston College on Nov. 23, then ends the year at home against NC State.

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Game time announced for Auburn’s showdown with Kentucky

Game time, broadcast details have been released for Auburn’s trip to Kentucky to close out its October slate.

Auburn football is in the middle of a month-long road stretch in its schedule, taking all of October for games away from Jordan-Hare Stadium. As it starts the back half of the schedule, it needs to perform well in order to have momentum and to have a chance at making a bowl game.

Following its showdown with the Missouri Tigers, the Tigers from the Plains make a trip to Lexington, Kentucky, to take on the Kentucky Wildcats at Kroger Field. As that game gets closer and closer, we now know more specifics, including kickoff time for the game on Oct. 26.

Auburn and Kentucky will officially face off at 6:45 p.m. CST, and the game will air live on the SEC Network. The Tigers and Wildcats have played each other a total of 34 times in the history of the series, which Auburn leads 27-6-1.

The two teams have not played since 2020, when they opened the shortened COVID season up at Jordan-Hare Stadium. That win is part of three-game win streak in this series, which Auburn hopes to extend.

Heading into this week, the Tigers are 2-4 overall and winless in the SEC, while Kentucky is 3-3 on the year and 1-3 in the conference, with its lone conference win being on the road at Ole Miss.

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What does Auburn need to put its focus on in the bye week?

The second half of Auburn football’s schedule features several challenging opponents. Hugh Freeze has an idea on how to help his team perform at a high level.

Heading into its first bye week of the regular season, Auburn football is not sitting in a comfortable spot, ending the first half of its season with a 2-4 overall record and 0-3 conference showing. Now in the midst of a massive road slate, the Tigers are in need of both rest and a change of focus.

During the weekly SEC coaches media teleconference on Wednesday, head coach [autotag]Hugh Freeze[/autotag], answered questions on how his squad is spending the open week, trying to give an idea as to what the focus is and how they can bounced back.

The biggest thing that Freeze has noticed through the first six weeks of the season is that the team needs to be able to execute a lot more and more consistently than it has been.

Freeze knows that his team is young, but also admits that Auburn is at the point in the season where it should be running a very smooth operation on both sides of the ball.

“You know, we can talk about how young we are and all of that. We’re six games in. But it’s our job to make sure our kids are consistent in whatever the execution of the calls are,” Freeze said. “I think it comes back to us being able to execute the given calls. And sometimes the other team wins because they have good athletes and good coaches also. But when you look at it, and we feel like the failure is because we’re not executing enough calls properly, then we’ve got to correct that somehow.”

On the other side of his team being young, a large question has resided with how the secondary is playing.

Freeze has made a point to get his young guys some time in game action to help them mature and feels optimistic about where the defense will go in the future.

“They’re really talented kids and we’re looking forward to the future with them. But we still make some freshman mistakes, for sure. But the experience they’re getting right now is invaluable,” Freeze said.

As far as what he saw from last week’s loss to Georgia, Freeze believes that the Tigers had the plan necessary to perform well, but lacked clear execution, something he is frustrated with.

“I thought our effort was good. I thought we had a good plan. I thought — we’ve got to be better coaches in demanding the execution of what we expect to use in the game plan to win the game,” Freeze said. “We can keep talking about how young we are and all of that. But at some point, we’ve got to look at ourselves and make sure we’re getting taught the exact way that it’s going to get executed. And you can show it on film that we’ve done it properly.”

Auburn looks to capitalize on the execution of its game plan over the course of this open weekend, but will need it when it takes the field next Saturday against Missouri.

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