The Broun Blog

I'm making this quick entry to note that I plan to fix some problems that come with the normal wear-and-tear of blogging -- i.e., to find out whether Auburn will indeed be showing free movies ever again and perhaps to make a more definitive list of Broun Bloggers and their personal blogs.

I'll use posts like this as a place to report on changes as I make them and to solicit what the software world calls "change requests."

Short of revamping the entire look of the site (which may happen in the near future anyway), what changes should we make? Are there links out of date? Should we switch to Blogger.com's comment system? Anything else?

Thanks.

The oldest rivalry in the Deep South takes center stage this Saturday night (6:45 PM CST, ESPN) as #15 Auburn travels to Athens to face #9 Georgia. Auburn (7-2, 5-1 SEC) needs a win over georgia (7-1, 5-1 SEC) and a loss by LSU to Alabama to stay alive in the SEC West race. This may be a tall order, as Georgia has had two weeks to prepare for this game and stew after their loss to Florida in Jacksonville, and QB DJ Shockley is expected to start in his return from the list of the injured.

Here are the matchups to watch, according to ESPN.

1. Georgia QB D.J. Shockley vs. Auburn FS Will Herring
The biggest story line entering this SEC showdown is the health and effectiveness of Shockley after three weeks off to recover from a hip injury suffered against Arkansas. Prior to the injury, Shockley had emerged as arguably the SEC's most dynamic playmaker at the quarterback position. His outstanding athletic ability gives opposing defenses headaches, and his improved passing skills add an unexpectedly efficient element to Georgia's offense. However, there has to be concern regarding Shockley's confidence, aggressiveness and polish after a long layover, and Herring is just the type of playmaker to expose Shockley if he goes through an adjustment period. Herring, who leads the Tigers with 53 total tackles this season, fills gaps hard and will help seal off Shockley's backside runs. Herring also has impressive range in coverage (he can get hopelessly out of position really, really quickly!), which will make Shockley's life as a passer much more difficult than usual.

2. Auburn LOT Marcus McNeill vs. Georgia RDE Quentin Moses
This should prove to be one of the most competitive individual matchups in the trenches that college football has to offer Saturday. McNeill (6-9, 338) is a fringe first-round NFL draft prospect with terrific size and improving feet. He has a considerable size advantage over Moses (6-5, 248), but Moses has the initial quickness, athletic ability and closing burst to expose McNeill if he does not play with good technique and leverage. If McNeill can keep Moses under wraps in pass protection without needing double-team help, it will serve as a huge advantage for the Auburn offensive line and QB Brandon Cox.

3. Auburn RB Kenny Irons vs. Georgia MLB Tony Taylor
Taylor has had some injury problems that have limited him this season, but he is healthy now and has recently returned to his playmaking ways at middle linebacker. Taylor has a good combination of size, power and athletic ability. However, he is an inexperienced starter who occasionally will take false steps or get caught peeking in the backfield. Irons is a powerful downhill runner with the burst and size to eventually wear Taylor down if given enough carries. Just as importantly, Irons must do a good job of selling fakes in order to freeze Taylor in the play-action passing game. Irons will struggle to maintain his 5.5 yards per carry average this week, but if he can do all the little things well, in terms of catching and blocking, he will give the Tigers a chance to pull off the road upset.

Other items of note:

-In spite of the loss of 3 1st round draft picks from the offensive side of the ball this past offseason, Auburn currently leads the SEC in scoring offense (35.2 points per game) and total offense (435.4 yards).

-Auburn has suspended LB Kevin Sears, who started the last two games in place of fellow LB Antarrious Williams, for the game against Georgia for a violation of team rules.

So, it's Auburn string of rather poor showings on the road this year (1st half Arkansas, LSU game, giving up 27 points at Kentucky) against Georgia's healing QB, DJ Shockley. If Shockley is unable to move out of the pocket effectively, Auburn should have a good shot at controlling Georgia's offense. If Auburn can't put together a complete 4 quarters of executing well on the road, Georgia is far too talented to let Auburn have a chance to win while playing a sloppy game (unless, of course, they are somehow equally sloppy, then it's all about luck and FG kicking). Kenny Irons may be the key to the game, as Georgia is occasionally vulnerable to giving up rushing yards, particularly early in games.

Also, as sick as this sounds, we need to be rooting for Alabama to win tomorrow afternoon against LSU. An Alabama win over LSU, followed by an Auburn win over Alabama in the Iron Bowl, would give Auburn the SEC West title.

Prediction: Auburn 27, Georgia 24

This post goes out to all those Mozilla Firefox users out there.

Remember The Muppet Show? Remember the Swedish Chef? Yeah.

Go to the Bork Text Extension home page and install it... then toggle Bork Text on in the view menu. Now reload the Broun Blog (or whatever) and try reading it... hilarious!