from Chadd Scott...
"From here on out, when Johnson’s next huge gaffe comes – and it will come – the gaffe belongs to Malzahn and Lashlee, not Johnson. If you had a teenage son who’d wrecked three Mustangs and you give him another one, that fourth wreck is yours, not his."
Malzahn must bench Jeremy Johnson, for Johnson’s sake
By Chadd Scott on September 22, 2015
Gus Malzahn needs to bench Jeremy Johnson for the sake of Jeremy Johnson. I fear a nightmare season for Johnson being made worse trotting off Pat Dye Field to a shower of boos following another interception this Saturday against Mississippi State.
Gus Malzahn must protect Johnson from that eventuality and the only way to do it is by taking him off the field. Not for the rest of the season, not for the whole game, just long enough to wipe his slate clean.
By all accounts, Johnson is a great young man and I’m sure he’s trying his best. For whatever reason, he’s lost. He’s been lost for three games. It’s not getting better. He’s continually making the same mistakes, and what’s worse, those mistakes can’t be coached away.
I thought these tweets by college football analyst, and Auburn graduate, Chuck Oliver during the Auburn-LSU game were profound.
Chuch Oliver: "Through three games, Johnson has repeatedly thrown the ball to wide open defenders."
Chuck Oliver: "As a coach, what could you possibly tell him? “Don’t throw the ball to the defense?”"
He has routinely missed wide open receivers by 10 yards. This weekend, he added to his lowlight reel throwing the ball backwards to himself.
Again, what’s the coaching point?
“Make sure the ball goes forward Jeremy.”
That’s where Johnson is right now and after three games of watching this I have no reason to believe the light will magically switch on for him Saturday. What’s that definition of insanity we all love so much: “doing the same thing and expecting a different result.”
While Malzahn and offensive coordinator Rhett Lashlee have cooled on their support of Johnson as the team’s starter, they continue to stand by their man.
Big mistake.
From here on out, when Johnson’s next huge gaffe comes – and it will come – the gaffe belongs to Malzahn and Lashlee, not Johnson. If you had a teenage son who’d wrecked three Mustangs and you give him another one, that fourth wreck is yours, not his.
The backup option, redshirt freshman Sean White, isn’t a great one, but how much worse could it be.
Malzahn is the offensive wizard; it’s his job to whip up a potion this week that combines the ingredients he has and surprises Mississippi State. Going back to the drawing board after three games can’t be what he had in mind for this season and that’s where Auburn stands.
I thought Gary Danielson on the CBS broadcast of the LSU game brought up a good idea of trying a Wildcat package. Be it White, Wildcat or the wishbone, Auburn has to do something, change something, add something to its offense to put this season back on the rails. Lord knows the defense can’t help and that’s another set of problems.
More than football, though, I ask this for Jeremy Johnson the young man. Jeremy Johnson the student-athlete. Jeremy Johnson the member of the Auburn Family.
I worry about him hearing boos at Jordan-Hare. I worry about what that would do to his heart and how that would reflect upon Auburn fans.
I think Auburn fans are the best in the world and I think they’d have a right to boo him after another terrible performance. And by booing him, they’re not booing a young man, they’re venting frustration at a season of promise blowing up in their face. They’re booing their genius head coach who has no Plan B and their highest paid coordinator in college athletics who hasn’t made a damn bit of difference.
They’re booing being laughed at in the office after talking up their team all offseason.
Jeremy Johnson has played terribly this season. He doesn’t deserve to be humiliated on his home field for it. The only way to prevent that, however, is to take him off the field and only Gus Malzahn can do that.
Please Gus Malzahn, do that.
"From here on out, when Johnson’s next huge gaffe comes – and it will come – the gaffe belongs to Malzahn and Lashlee, not Johnson. If you had a teenage son who’d wrecked three Mustangs and you give him another one, that fourth wreck is yours, not his."
Malzahn must bench Jeremy Johnson, for Johnson’s sake
By Chadd Scott on September 22, 2015
Gus Malzahn needs to bench Jeremy Johnson for the sake of Jeremy Johnson. I fear a nightmare season for Johnson being made worse trotting off Pat Dye Field to a shower of boos following another interception this Saturday against Mississippi State.
Gus Malzahn must protect Johnson from that eventuality and the only way to do it is by taking him off the field. Not for the rest of the season, not for the whole game, just long enough to wipe his slate clean.
By all accounts, Johnson is a great young man and I’m sure he’s trying his best. For whatever reason, he’s lost. He’s been lost for three games. It’s not getting better. He’s continually making the same mistakes, and what’s worse, those mistakes can’t be coached away.
I thought these tweets by college football analyst, and Auburn graduate, Chuck Oliver during the Auburn-LSU game were profound.
Chuch Oliver: "Through three games, Johnson has repeatedly thrown the ball to wide open defenders."
Chuck Oliver: "As a coach, what could you possibly tell him? “Don’t throw the ball to the defense?”"
He has routinely missed wide open receivers by 10 yards. This weekend, he added to his lowlight reel throwing the ball backwards to himself.
Again, what’s the coaching point?
“Make sure the ball goes forward Jeremy.”
That’s where Johnson is right now and after three games of watching this I have no reason to believe the light will magically switch on for him Saturday. What’s that definition of insanity we all love so much: “doing the same thing and expecting a different result.”
While Malzahn and offensive coordinator Rhett Lashlee have cooled on their support of Johnson as the team’s starter, they continue to stand by their man.
Big mistake.
From here on out, when Johnson’s next huge gaffe comes – and it will come – the gaffe belongs to Malzahn and Lashlee, not Johnson. If you had a teenage son who’d wrecked three Mustangs and you give him another one, that fourth wreck is yours, not his.
The backup option, redshirt freshman Sean White, isn’t a great one, but how much worse could it be.
Malzahn is the offensive wizard; it’s his job to whip up a potion this week that combines the ingredients he has and surprises Mississippi State. Going back to the drawing board after three games can’t be what he had in mind for this season and that’s where Auburn stands.
I thought Gary Danielson on the CBS broadcast of the LSU game brought up a good idea of trying a Wildcat package. Be it White, Wildcat or the wishbone, Auburn has to do something, change something, add something to its offense to put this season back on the rails. Lord knows the defense can’t help and that’s another set of problems.
More than football, though, I ask this for Jeremy Johnson the young man. Jeremy Johnson the student-athlete. Jeremy Johnson the member of the Auburn Family.
I worry about him hearing boos at Jordan-Hare. I worry about what that would do to his heart and how that would reflect upon Auburn fans.
I think Auburn fans are the best in the world and I think they’d have a right to boo him after another terrible performance. And by booing him, they’re not booing a young man, they’re venting frustration at a season of promise blowing up in their face. They’re booing their genius head coach who has no Plan B and their highest paid coordinator in college athletics who hasn’t made a damn bit of difference.
They’re booing being laughed at in the office after talking up their team all offseason.
Jeremy Johnson has played terribly this season. He doesn’t deserve to be humiliated on his home field for it. The only way to prevent that, however, is to take him off the field and only Gus Malzahn can do that.
Please Gus Malzahn, do that.
