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SEC notes: Heat rises on Tuberville
Written by SETH EMERSON
semerson@thestate.com
Posted on 11.06.08
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Three things we've learned
1. It will be Florida vs. Alabama. And a spot in the BCS championship probably will be on the line in the SEC title game. Florida will clinch its spot by beating Vanderbilt on Saturday. Alabama can do the same by beating LSU. The only question is whether the SEC champion will be pushed out of the BCS title game by an unbeaten Penn State, a one-loss Southern Cal or the Big 12 winner.
2. Tim Tebow is again the league’s top Heisman candidate. That might not be saying much, because many voters will be reluctant to crown a repeat winner. The state of Texas appears to have the edge, with Texas Tech quarterback Graham Harrell and receiver Michael Crabtree and Texas quarterback Colt McCoy. In the SEC, Georgia running back Knowshon Moreno is running out of time.
3. Greg Hardy is an enigma. The Mississippi defensive end, who could be an NFL first-round pick, led the SEC with 10 sacks last season. But he has been dogged by injuries and attitude problems this year. The latter was on display Saturday, when he jogged off the field while his teammates celebrated a 17-7 win. In four games, Hardy has three sacks.
— Seth Emerson
Let’s forget about Phillip Fulmer for now and look for the next victim in line in what has become a season full of big-name coaches getting the boot.
Tommy Tuberville, step right up.
At first blush, it seems unlikely that Auburn would get rid of a guy who went undefeated four seasons ago and has records of 84-38 (overall) and 51-27 (SEC) on the Plains.
But in a season when Tommy Bowden, Tyrone Willingham and now Fulmer have been pushed along, hardly any coach not named Saban, Spurrier or Carroll seems untouchable.
After being picked in the preseason to win the SEC West, Auburn (4-5) will have to beat Georgia or Alabama to become bowl-eligible. That’s assuming the Tigers muster up enough offense Saturday to beat Tennessee-Martin.
The Mobile Press-Register called 13 Auburn trustees on Monday to gauge Tuberville’s popularity. Most declined to comment or didn’t return calls, and only one expressed support for Tuberville beyond this season.
It fell to Mississippi coach Houston Nutt to make a forceful defense of Tuberville after Nutt’s team defeated Auburn on Saturday.
“It’s unbelievable to me that anybody would even consider getting rid of Tommy after all he’s done there,” Nutt said. “I’ve been through what he’s going through now, so I know a little bit about how he feels. All I can say is just look at his record.
“Come on, he’s beaten Alabama six straight times. To me, the idea of him being fired is unthinkable.”
Nutt is half right: It might not happen, but clearly it’s not unthinkable.
Who needs money? Mississippi State, located in what the U.S. Census Bureau reported last year to be the poorest state in the country, debuted a $6.1 million football scoreboard last week.
The board is 152 feet wide by 135.5 feet high. It is the second-largest scoreboard in college football, behind the one at Texas. It has four screens, with a sound system that consists of 23 speakers and four sub-woofers.
Saban’s return, Part II. Much is being made of coach Nick Saban’s return to LSU with No. 1-ranked Alabama. But talk of animosity between Saban and his former employer misses the mark.
Saban left LSU on good terms and was cheered in 2005 when he brought the Miami Dolphins into Tiger Stadium to face the New Orleans Saints, a game that was moved from the Superdome because of Hurricane Katrina.
It was only when Saban returned to college football, with division rival Alabama, that Tiger fans turned on him.
Lee’s struggles. LSU will enter its the Alabama game with quarterback issues. Redshirt freshman Jarrett Lee was booed Saturday against Tulane when he returned to the field after throwing an interception that was returned for a touchdown.
In five starts, Lee has thrown 10 interceptions — five of which have been returned for touchdowns, a school record.
“Incompletions are preferred,” coach Les Miles said.
Reach Emerson at (803) 771-8676.
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