The Auburn All-Tuberville Team
by Acid Reign on Dec 7, 2008 2:33 PM CST
22 comments
(from al.com)
Today, we take a break from our coaching troubles, to look back and reflect on the fine players that Tommy Tuberville coached in his ten years at Auburn. As I looked back, there were a LOT of great young men who sweated, toiled, and worked, to give us 85 wins in ten years. I HOPE I haven't left any obvious candidates out. I went strictly on opinion, and there's no real scientific formula used to select this list. I tried to put weight on players that had made All-SEC, or All-American. In a few cases, it came down to just deciding who I'd pick if I was putting a team together.
It is kind of telling that there are very few players on the list since the magical 2004 season. Receivers were VERY tough to pick out the reserves. There are some good ones, like Tim Carter, Anthony Mix, and Rod Smith, who were left out. Cooper Wallace and Cole Benett were not on the list, either. I felt like Diamond was more consistent, and didn't drop as many balls. At quarterback, I went back and forth between Brandon Cox and Ben Leard. Cox is 3-0 against Bama, and that made it tough. Ultimately, I went with the All-SEC guy. Who would you pick, if you were putting a team together?
This is the best way I could think of, to celebrate ten years of Tommy Tuberville. War Eagle, Coach! We'll miss you!
Defensive Tackles
Tommy Jackson, Demarco McNeil.
Backups: SenDerrick Marks, Jimmy Brumbaugh
Defensive Ends
Reggie Torbor, Marquies Gunn.
Backups: Quentin Groves, Stanley McClover
Linebackers
Karlos Dansby, Travis Williams, Dontarrious Thomas.
Backups: Mark Brown, Alex Lincoln, Tavarious Pounds
Cornerbacks
Carlos Rogers, David Irons
Backups: Larry Casher, Rodney Crayton
Safeties
Junior Rosegreen, Tavarious Robinson
Backups: Will Herring, Rob Pate
Punters
Kody Bliss
Backup: Damon Duval
Punt Returners
Carnell Williams
Backup: Roderick Hood
Kick Returners
Tristan Davis, Tim Carter
Backups: Carnell Williams, Devin Aromashodu
Place Kickers
Damon Duval
Backup: John Vaughn
Centers
Ben Nowland
Backup: Cole Cubelic
Guards
Monreko Crittendon, Ben Grubbs
Backups: Danny Lindsey, Tim Duckworth
Offensive Tackles
Marcus McNeil, Kendall Simmons
Backups: Jeno James, Troy Reddick
Tight Ends
Robert Johnson
Backup: Lorenzo Diamond
Wide Receiver
Ronney Daniels, Courtney Taylor
Backups: Ben Obomanu, Devin Aromashodu
Fullbacks
Ronnie Brown
Backup: Heath Evans
Tailbacks
Carnell Williams
Backup: Rudi Johnson
Quarterback
Jason Campbell
Backup: Ben Leard
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Good Post
That was fun… We had some studs throughout the Tuberville years
If you are a War Damn Eagle, you can War Damn anything.
Herring?
I can understand the rest except Two Step Will; he was always two steps behind the other team’s wideouts. I cannot disagree with him on here more. Furthermore, John Vaughn? Are you serious? I realize he’s a backup, having said that, still a terrible choice. I will never let the LSU game go. He forever etched his named in choking after missing five…five field goals in one game!!!
You're right
John Vaughn shouldn’t be the backup.
He should be the starter. Everyone seems to remember the 2005 LSU game, which was definitely bad, but aside from that, he was a solid kicker for four years for Auburn. Best Tuberville’s had, IMO.
War Damn Eagle!
by PowerOfDixieland on Dec 7, 2008 4:13 PM CST up reply actions
Two step Will as you call him......
was a strong safety not a corner…….what Safety has AU everhad that could matchup with a fast reciever. All Will Herring did was his job and very well at that…..no one and I mean no one wanted to catch a high ball with him bearing down on them……almost inhumane the pounding he could dish out. and then add in starting games for 4 years…..the dude was a beast we could use more like him. And I agree with POD on this one John Vaughn was excellent and one game doesnt make you……or is Wes Byrum the best placekicker for the UF game last year. Do you know what Vaughn did as soon as he got back to Auburn after that game? He on his own went to the stadium and practiced FG’s until he had made 10 each from 20, 30, 40, and 50. He stayed on and practiced late after regular practices and kicked all summer……he ended up having one of the best senior seasons of any AU kicker.
I would have gone to bammer if my grades hadn't been good enough to go to AU
Rosegreen.
…..Rosegreen was a good cover guy, former corner, and he was a ball-hawk. Ainge and Schaeffer found that out, as Rosegreen kept picking both of them off! Wow, those were the days! Rosegreen’s Sugar Bowl pick set up a field goal. And of course, Rosegreen could HIT, too. Reggie Brown found that out. You’ll note that Rosegreen is among my starters…
Rosegreen may have been faster than Herring.....
but he was anything but a burner…….the hit on Reggie Brown was brutal and it still gets a dawg to start whimpering and whining even today……..
I would have gone to bammer if my grades hadn't been good enough to go to AU
Well glad to see you’re at least half right. He shouldn’t be the back up, nor the starter for that matter. After that game, he was never the same again either. And, I’ll never forget.
He's went 50-69 in his career. That's a 72% accuracy!
Also, take out that 2005 LSU game where he went 1-6, and he’s 49-63, a 78% accuracy! Besides, the only other two real kickers from the Tuberville era were one season of Rob Bironas (who is awesome now, but judging his time at Auburn alone, it shouldn’t count) and two seasons of Wes Byrum. So which of those takes Vaughn’s place?
War Damn Eagle!
by PowerOfDixieland on Dec 7, 2008 4:48 PM CST up reply actions
Ah!
……I expected criticism. Fact is, in ten years of Tuberville, we’ve had a number of four-year starters. When you pick a team like this, you DO have to pick SOMEBODY… OK, where to start?
…..Herring. Oh, I cussed him up and down, from time to time. Solid run-support guy, TERRIBLE, in man coverage against fast slot guys. Biggest goat moment? Giving up the 80-yard bomb in the 2005 Sugar Bowl. Ooops. Bit on a pump fake in a prevent defense. Gack! Well, um, who HAVE Auburn free safeties been, over the past ten years? Walk on Adlai Trone. Butchered by Mississippi State in an 18- point fourth quarter to wipe out a 16-0 lead. Nope. Stanford Simmons. Athletic, but never prescient. Benched in favor of Donnay Young. Aaron Savage? Promising freshman season, burned some, too. Injured mostly, the last two years. Nope. Eric Brock, last year? Torched a few times. Remember South Florida’s TD in overtime? Brock. This year, Mike McNeil. There’s Rashaud Walker, solid, unspectacular. Steve Gandy, Kevin Hobbs, Tristan Davis?
…..Herring wins. Who else has done it for us, at safety? C’mon, man! (as they say on that NFL pregame show.) Who are you going to pick?
……Kickers. Weeeellllll… We really have had only 3 place kickers in Tuberville history. Duval, Vaughn, and Byrum. Yeah, we had moonlighting on kickoffs by Phillip Yost, Matt Clark, and Morgan Hull, but… Let’s see. Byrum: good, clutch freshman season. Off the wall sophomore season. Vaughn… solid, missed five FGs at LSU. Duval cost us in the Ole Miss game, 1999, but he basically won the 2001 Vandy, MSU, and Florida games, by himself. Melt-down in 2002, yes I know. But Vaughn didn’t make first team All-SEC. Duval was an All-American. Duval starts, Vaughn backs up, Byrum is scout team. That’s how I see that one.
One other thing of note....
…..Terry Bowden, who basically got run off over recruiting, got us exactly one third of those folks…
Bowden got run off.....
for not being a yes man for Lowder and for stifling the $100 handshakes.
I would have gone to bammer if my grades hadn't been good enough to go to AU
I dont remember
how good Ben Leard was at QB I would have thought Cox was Better then Leard
Gotta Love those "classy" Tide Detergent Box Hats
If you had 'em both playing darts...
…..Yeah, Cox would probably win. Leard really came in at a bad time. He was tall, had good accuracy, and a decent arm. Not Elway strength, but good enough to make most of the throws. When Leard got the start as a sophomore in 1998, the starting center quit a week before the season began. The backup center broke his foot that week, too. The third team guy was trying to rehab a separated shoulder. The 4th team guy was a converted guard, and broke his foot on the first series of the season opener against Virginia. The 3rd team guy (Carl Lavine) didi come in and try to play, but didn’t last with the shoulder. So, we went down to a true freshman, Ben Nowland, who got one start, then promptly broke his foot. After that, we went down to number five, Colin Sears, who was a converted tackle with a rebuilt bionic knee. While the center fiasco was going on, right guard Demarcus Curry was overweight, and had trouble pass blocking. Left guard Kendall Simmons was hobbling around on TWO bad ankles.
…..Leard had no mobility, and wasn’t good at collapsing and absorbing kinetic energy, and got banged up by the 4th game, against Tennessee, in 1999. It wasn’t really Leard’s fault. He didn’t have much help. So, in 1999, Leard basically rose up off of life-support, and won the job back with a 300+ yard effort against LSU. Then they had him running the option against Ole Miss (WTF?), and he separated his shoulder. He FINALLY got back to full health against Georgia in 1999, and only set the Auburn single game passing record, with 416 against the Dawgs.
…..In 2000, Leard led us to Atlanta, and finished as the first team All-SEC quarterback.
…..Leard, when healthy, prospered while we were in a rebuilding mode under Tuberville. Meanwhile, Cox had several NFL lineman paving the way, Jake Slaughter and Carl Stewart blocking, electrifying backs like Kenny Irons, and receivers like Mix/Obomanu/Aromashodu/Taylor around.
…..If I’m picking players for my video football team, I take Leard every time.
I am starting to think
that Acid should be our next Head Coach :)
by Tiger on the mountain on Dec 8, 2008 9:35 AM CST reply actions
Hows your recruiting there acid...?
I mean if your gonna interview for the job then we might as well test you first.
Unfortunately,
…..I’m better at getting rid of folks, than bringing ‘em in! Maybe I could get Jacobs’ termination form through H. R?
If you can do that....
you get my vote….
I would have gone to bammer if my grades hadn't been good enough to go to AU
I nominate Jay Ratliff at DE
He’s tearing up the NFL. Might not have been super impactful at Auburn, but certainly has proven that he’s a stud.
Ratliff's an interesting case.
……He played tight end as a freshman in 2001, and got a lot of playing time when Robert Johnson was banged up. He moved to DE in 2002 and 2003, but didn’t play all that much. It was Bret Eddins and Reggie Torbor’s show. He moved to tackle for his senior season, alongside Tommy Jackson. Ratliff was not really a line-crusher, pocket-buster, but he had quick feet, and could slide pretty well and fill holes.
……I can’t bump any of the guys ahead of Ratliff, at DE, or at tackle.
…..It’s kind of startling to look at him now, with the Cowboys. Ratliff was always pretty trim, at Auburn. With the Cowboys, he’s gotten really thick around the middle…
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