Having sat and watched the entire UGA-Auburn game, I should have learned my lesson about Auburn. No lead is comfortable in the first half against that offense. A 21 or 17 point deficit for Auburn in the first half - against anyone - is more like a tie. And after Auburn came out in the second half down 24-7 with the prospect of getting the ball first, I was very nervous.
You see, I was pulling for Alabama to win the game because I am an emotional, vindictive UGA fan who was still fuming from the perceived Auburn "antics" at the end of the UGA/Auburn game. And for the first time ever, I was more dedicated to seeing Auburn lose than I was to seeing an SEC team in the national title game. So, though I made the mistake of getting comfortable and excited after seeing Alabama completely destroy Auburn for the first 1.8 quarters of play in Tuscaloosa, I pulled a 180 and was convinced early in the third quarter that this second-half star of a football team in Auburn would find a way to win. Alabama seemed to take the same form as UGA in the second half of the game (granted, UGA took this "form" sooner in the game): Playing not to lose, cruising with a seemingly comfortable lead, not capitalizing on mistakes, and trying to force a possession/field goal battle in what would certainly turn into a touchdown-for-touchdown battle.
And can you really blame UGA or Alabama? Convential coaching wisdom says that you don't risk points when they present themselves in certain situations. But after seeing how Auburn was playing - and how they had played all season - in the second half, I knew when Alabama kicked that FG at 1:25 in the 3rd that Auburn would win the game.
One thing I can credit the Auburn coaches for, besides taking advantage of the Cam Newton "purchase," is having a very well conditioned team. Just like in the Georgia game, Auburn was beating Alabama on both sides of the line easily in the second half, after getting beat early in the game. Auburn kept a solid pace and wore Alabama down. Alabama was able to get into Auburn's offensive backfield easily early in the game, tackling Newton and Dyer for loss play after play. That changed in the second half, as Newton & Co. were seemingly able to lean forward behind that line for at least 5 yards each play. On the flip side, McElroy was able to stand back and pick apart the Auburn secondary behind solid line play in the first half. Meanwhile, in the second half, Auburn's defensive line was able to mash the Bama OL and McElroy. And for the second time in two games, they knocked their opponent's top-flight QB out of the game.
It was deja vu. Don't get me wrong, I'm not saying the Auburn games against UGA and Bama were exactly the same. Alabama is clearly better than Georgia and put up way more of a fight. And they achieved and kept a bigger lead and stayed in the game until the end, unlike UGA. But the pattern was the same. Auburn played flawless in the second half and every little mistake by Alabama turned out to be huge. The team that plays Auburn has to remember that Auburn will play perfectly and score a touchdown at every opportunity in the second half. It is a given. Their defense will be stronger, and the entire team will play mistake-free in the second half. To the extent a team scores or goes up against Auburn in the first half, they have to keep doing it and at the same pace in the second half. No first-half lead is insurmountable when it is pitted against the Auburn offense. This is something South Carolina and Oregon will have to remember.
I predict Auburn will easily beat South Carolina. The Oregon game will be touted as a prime match-up between similar teams: explosive offenses who tend to start slow and finish strong. But if I were Oregon, I'd want to change that first half culture that exists on my team, because Auburn is a second-half juggernaut like no one has seen before. Should be interesting...
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