WOW WOW WOW!

Vandy over Auburn - 14 to 13.

ESPN's college gameday came to Nashville for the 1st time to host the Vandy vs Auburn game. The place was alive today more than ever, Vandy is ranked and leading the SEC. Walking up to the stadium I ran into some tailgaters that are all from Oregon? Yes, it's true but more about that in another post.

I'll admit going into this game I was more than nervous about our chances, last year some friends and I went down to the Vandy VS Auburn game down there and watched Vandy get completely blown out. Vandy is undefeated this year but I really didn't think our O line or our D line could compete with Auburn's.

1st Quarter was pretty ugly, Auburn seemed to gain 12 yards on every single play that took place outside the 5 yardline. Vandy gave the text book definition of bend but don't break on Auburn's 1st drive by holding them on 4 straight plays from the 2 yard line. Ultimately Auburn would get into the end zone twice and completely dominate the 1st quarter. BUT. Big but, Auburn missed an extra point after their 2nd TD and that would prove to be the point that made the difference.

Vandy controlled the rest of the game, it wasn't a dominating performance but it was pretty clear from the start of the 2nd quarter through the end of the game that the momentum was turning and turning for the Dores. They were able to score 1 touchdown at the end of the 2nd Quarter and get 1 more to win the game.

Auburn - OK Auburn fans, you need to blame your coach. Let's walk through some football 101. 1st Quarter, 1st Drive Ben Tate carried the ball 8 times for 48 yards. Auburn drives right up the field using a bunch of power sweeps. Although Vandy scored to close the final 1st half score 13-7 Auburn's run game was still pretty dominant.
3rd quarter drive #1 - 2 incomplete passes and a 2 yard run. (not Tate)
3rd quarter drive #2 - 2 incomplete passes and a -1 yard run. (not Tate)
3rd quarter drive #3 - 3 incomplete passes.
Then, your coach pulled your QB in favor of Kodi Burns.
Now, it doesn't really matter who your QB was, the coach completely abandoned the run. Watching that 2nd half you would have thought Auburn was down by 21 points. It was absolutely ridiculous. Fast forward a bit to the 4th quarter.....
4th QTR drive #1 - Tate carries twice for 7 yards. Penalty and a sack = Punt
4th QTR drive #2 - Tate carries twice for 13 yards, 2 bad pass plays = Punt
Even on the 3rd drive of the 4th quarter Auburn could have stuck with the run, there was over 6 minutes left. Auburn was down by 1 point for most of the 2nd half and played like they were down by 3 touchdowns. For an Auburn fan that had to be tough to watch. As a Vandy fan, I loved it.

Now let's take a look at Vandy. Why are they starting Nixon? I like him as an athlete but when he drops back to pass he looks incredibly jittery to me, his mechanics are off because he's not setting his feet and not following his reads. He's jumpy and makes bad decisions. Adams looked more poised and I loved the teams emotion when he came into the game. Leaving Nixon on the bench would be a waste of a great athlete. I say put him in as the slot back, use him in motion a lot. You could run options from that, reverses, pitch pass, option pass and make a big impact in a not so great run game. The QB's did great running the ball but they use those QB keepers too much. I think Nixon in a slot role will open things up even more and allow Hawkins to gain some tough yards and chew up more of that clock.

Absolutely great football game. This could be Vandy's biggest win ever. They deserve to have their head held high. Enjoy that one fellas, you earned it!