SEC notebook: Malzahn vows that Auburn defense will be improved

Auburn owned up to its SEC ninth-ranked defense last year by firing Ellis Johnson and hiring Will Muschamp. Muschamp, a defensive genius but a disaster as a head coach at Florida, figures to significantly improve the Tigers’ defense.

Having one of their best players back should help.

Defensive end Carl Lawson is 100 percent after missing all of last season while recovering from a torn ACL. A freshman All-American in 2013 with 7.5 tackles for loss, Lawson figures to give Auburn an impact where it lacked in 2014.

“Last year, if you really look at our major problems, it was putting pressure on the passer,” coach Gus Malzahn said. “He’s one of those guys that he’s an impact player rushing the passer. To have a great defense, you’ve got to be able to put pressure on a quarterback rushing forward.”

Making an entrance Greg Sankey knows how to make an entrance.

The new SEC commissioner, speaking at his first Media Days, faced a roomful of reporters on Monday and went to the well.

“Come writers and critics who prophesize with your pen,” he said.

The lyric, from Bob Dylan’s “The Times, They Are A-Changin’” came in handy during his speech about evolving landscapes, and Sankey ended with a line from “The Godfather: Part III.”

When pointed out that predecessor Mike Slive routinely quoted historians such as Winston Churchill, Sankey quipped, “I’m better at Google.”

Repeat? Florida’s Oct. 3 game hosting Ole Miss is the first time the two have met since 2008. That game will forever be labeled in each program’s history.

The Rebels, struggling to turn the corner, beat a team that went on to win the national championship.

The Gators, aiming for that national title, were spurred by the loss and “The Promise.”

Quarterback Tim Tebow emotionally pledged that Florida wouldn’t let down its fans again. The speech was so incendiary that Florida cast his words in bronze and placed it on a wall of Ben Hill Griffin Stadium.

Could it happen again? The Gators are expected to struggle, and a win over the Rebels could give them a boost.

“Well, we don’t have Tim Tebow,” cornerback Vernon Hargreaves said.

Mr. Football moves on Jacob Park, the former Stratford High and Georgia quarterback and South Carolina Mr. Football, will play at Navarro (Texas) College this season. The Athens Banner-Herald confirmed the news through Ray Stackley, Park’s coach at Stratford.

Park redshirted last season and decided to transfer after the Bulldogs brought in Virginia transfer Greyson Lambert. Lambert is fighting for playing time with Brice Ramsey and Faton Bauta.

He said it “Their stadium is off the wall.” – Hargreaves’ answer of South Carolina as the toughest place he’s had to play.

This story was originally published July 13, 2015 at 5:08 PM.