AUBURN CRUSHES WASHINGTON STATE 40 - 14

RATING THE TIGERS
BOX SCORE

Overall Grade: A

Offense:  B+
Auburn provided a small glimpse of its stable of great running backs for the 2006 season.  Kenny Irons rushed for 183 yards (on 21 attempts) and 1 touchdown, while Brad Lester added 72 yards (on 6 attempts) and 2 touchdowns.  Irons had 223 total yards.  Carl Stewart also added a rushing touchdown.  Brandon Cox looked a little off target, and seemed to be forcing some of his passes - but he made the passes when they counted.  The offensive line blocked well, but gave up four sacks.

Overall, the offense did what it had to do, while playing a very "vanilla" game plan.  Auburn out gained Washington State 484-274, gaining 293 yards on the ground without a turnover.  It is hard to argue with 40 points!

Defense: B+
The Tiger defense started quickly, and showed promises of  greatness.  The defensive secondary gave up some yards, but a the two Washington State scoring drives, but otherwise held the Cougars in check.  Will Herring and Karibe Dede looked comfortable at the linebacker position; Herring added an interception and a 16 yard return.  The front four harassed the Cougar quarterbacks all night, and the defensive ends were constantly in the backfield.  This would have been a solid A effort without the few break-downs in coverage, which will improve with experience.

Overall, the defense looked fast and physical.  We predict a several shut-outs this season.

Special Teams: A
John Vaughn was on target making 4 out of 5 field goals, with a career long of 52 yards.  Tristan Davis was awesome on kick-off returns, with runs of 33.5 and 36 yards. An area to be improved on was the punt return scheme.  Robert Dunn never had a chance to show his break-away speed on punt returns, as most of his time was spent going "east and west".  Matt Clark was exceptional on his kick-offs, putting all of his kicks into the end zone.  This is even more impressive when considering he was kicking off the new NCAA mandated 1" tee designed to prevent long kick-offs and touchbacks.

Auburn also faked a punt to the up-back, Will Herring, who rambled for 42 yards and a big first down.

Coaching: A
A good game plan and a disciplined approach.  Auburn put up a conservative offense, and mixed it up with misdirection's and reverses.  The defensive schemes kept the Cougar offense guessing the entire game.  The defense came out fast and furious, and set the tone for the game in the first five minutes of play.  We definitely have one of the best coached teams in the nation!

Let's see more of:
Tristan Davis touching the ball.  Davis looks to have picked up where he left off last year with explosive speed and hard play.  He will be a force to be reckoned with both on offense and defense.

Of course, these are just our opinions ... please add your own contributions to our message boards!

More to come ....  WAR EAGLE!