Fall of the Auburn Empire

Recently, telltale signs by Tommy Tuberville and the Auburn Family (staff, boosters, alumni, and fan base) clearly indicate that Nick Saban is beginning to crack their foundation. The most recent smear campaign, done to capitalize on Alabama’s very public disciplinary issues, perfectly illustrates Auburn’s desperation to overcome Saban’s overwhelming recruiting style.

By appealing to the balance-and-fairness policies of certain media outlets, who lavished praise on Nick during his great recruiting run and left Tommy’s Tigers on the sidelines, Auburn people have gotten certain members of the media to help their cause by claiming that the simple misdemeanor arrest of a few Bama players will damage the dynamic recruiting wave Saban has created.

The envy and jealousy, based on the fact that this year alone, Tubby lost head-to-head battles on 15 or 16 great players to Saban, has driven the Auburn faithful over the top. Meanwhile, Tommy is left inventing new ways to make needs and two-star ratings (not five stars) sound like they are key to winning SEC championships. In fact, his most recent rambling diatribe in front of the press about his recruiting results made any of Nick’s meltdowns look mild.

Another sign of the times occurred when former star quarterback Jason Campbell appeared on the Finebaum Radio Network. The host pitched Campbell a series of softball questions designed to allow Jason to paint a pretty picture concerning Tubby’s tough, zero-tolerance policy on team discipline. He said Tuberville barely gave players even one chance to break rules before dismissing them from the team. Apparently Jason hasn’t followed the escapades of Tray Blackmon, a three-time offender.

The truth about why Auburn lost the recruiting war this year is much simpler and easier to explain than Tommy Tuberville or those that manage Auburn’s program would have you believe. They have no one to blame but themselves.

First and foremost, Saban is relentless, and outworked Tommy, as the Tide assistants ran circles around Tubby’s duck hunting pals. The contest was over before it started. Auburn’s top dog believed he could sit behind a desk and call in the recruits like cattle. Meanwhile, Saban and his men were out rounding up the best of the best with personal visits and constant contact.

Potential players can see the problems that currently exist between Tommy and the men who sign his paycheck. They and their parents can sense that this is a bad marriage between the two. In fact Tuberville spent most of the late recruiting season this year letting his fan base and the money men down by flirting with other schools and focusing on his personal needs.

Tuberville’s disloyalty to others is never more evident than when he fires another coordinator or throws several players under the bus after a loss. Tuberville originated the art of blaming everybody but himself for a loss, but the truth is, he can’t blame any but himself for this year’s dismal performance in recruiting.

How can Auburn fans really expect smart players – or their parents – to buy what Tubby is selling? They are informed enough by the highly publicized infighting down on the plains to know that Tuberville’s time is short. He is bound to leave or get the axe sooner rather than later. Was he lying to his latest signing class when he was hunting a job while telling the class that he would be a lifer at Auburn?

All the pundits have predicted Saban will have great success and win a championship within four years. That type of forecast – coupled with the nation’s number one recruiting class in his first full year on the job – is evidently starting to confirm Tuberville and Auburn’s greatest fears: that the experts could be right.