Just one month lies between now and the beginning of Auburn football ‘08, and it’s been a while since I’ve been this excited about a new season.
Don’t get me wrong — I’m always pumped when football finally rolls around, but great things are expected out of the Tigers this year.
At SEC Media Days in Birmingham this past weekend, the league media picked Auburn to win the Western Division with 48 first-place votes, followed by LSU with 21 and Ole Miss with one.
Auburn also had nine players named to the preseason All-SEC team, tops in the conference.
Official rankings, like the Associated Press and USA Today Coaches polls won’t be out until August, but there are plenty of rankings out there that have fans talking.
Rivals.com put Auburn at No. 7 in the country in its preseason rankings. Athlon Sports put the Tigers at No. 8, and Lindy’s Sports ranked them No. 13.
I don’t think there’s been this much buzz about Auburn since 2003, when the team began the season ranked in the top 10 before fumbling its way to an 0-2 start and finishing 8-5.
I’m not saying Auburn’s going to finish 8-5 this year (well, I certainly hope not.) It’s just that I now get a little anxious when the expectations are this high. I’d much rather the Tigers become a surprise than a disappointment.
That being said, I believe the hype, and I’m predicting a 10-2 regular season record this year and a trip to the SEC Championship game.
The new spread offense that offensive coordinator Tony Franklin is implementing has the potential to be explosive — if the players run it correctly. Based on the 423 yards Auburn gained after just 10 days of learning the system, the outlook seems to be good.
Brad Lester and Ben Tate return at running back (booyah) and will compete for playing time again. Mario Fannin has moved to slot receiver in the new offense.
The only question mark that remains on offense is the quarterback position, as sophomore Kodi Burns and junior transfer Chris Todd continue to fight for the starting job.
Tommy Tuberville said at Media Days the team will eventually name a starter for the season, because he believes there needs to be one quarterback to be the leader of the team.
That being the case, I believe the team will still use the two of them frequently.
Burns can run and Todd can throw. They are very different and should keep defenses on their toes.
The defense, which ranked sixth in the country last year, lost Quentin Groves. I’m hoping junior linebacker Tray Blackmon will stay out of trouble, stay healthy and step up this season to become a leader.
Sounds easy, right? Well, this is one of the tougher schedules I can remember, mainly because of non-conference opponent West Virginia, but I think opening the season with Louisiana Monroe is a great way to start. The team can work out the kinks before playing the better teams.
And although it’s not the biggest rivalry, the Auburn-LSU game is the biggest game of the season this year, for both teams. It may very well decide which team wins the division.
This is a young team with a lot of talent. I think the 2008 season could be a stepping stone to a legitimate national championship run in 2009.
Oh, and one more thing — get ready to hold up seven fingers Nov. 29 in Tuscaloosa.
