AJC > Sports > Columnists > Archives > 2008 > January > 01 > Entry
DEL.ICIO.USClemson, Auburn share more than orange
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Mark Bradley
When last Auburn played in this state, the occasion yielded the now-famous Blackout in Athens. Fifty days later, another Auburn visit produced an Orangeout in the Dome. There hasn’t been so much of the garish color on display in Georgia since …
Well, since Jan. 2, 2004, when Clemson and Tennessee met in the Chick-fil-A Bowl and we were offered a study in shadings. (Turned out Clemson had the brighter, prettier orange, while the titular Big Orange was, by way of contrast, washed-out.) This edition produced no such revelation. Indeed, the orange of Auburn and Clemson looked pretty much the same.
Which is pretty much what you’d expect from programs of powerful parallels. Both are nicknamed Tigers. Both sport massive stadiums in the midst of modest burgs. Both sit roughly two hours from Atlanta along I-85. And here they were, meeting under an off-white roof in an arena where the seats and the turf are green, and their collision generated the strangest thing:
Tons of orange in the stands, but not much on the field.
Auburn wore blue jerseys and white pants. Clemson wore white jerseys and purple pants. All their respective backers, however, came clad in you-know-what. (Befitting the New Year’s Eve color scheme, the invocation was given by Jeff Francoeur, who was a Clemson football signee and who played his high school games — wouldn’t you know it? — in a stadium dubbed the Big Orange Jungle.)
Auburn and Clemson had something else in common. Each is coached by a man who flirted with Arkansas and who chose to remain in place. Tommy Bowden even got a four-year extension, which means that his record tenure on the ol’ Hot Seat is now slated to run through 2014. And, proving yet again that it’s a small world after all, the final night of 2007 brought together two coaches who’d rejected the Hogs’ calls, while the man who briefly guided the Falcons under this roof — Bobby somebody — fled for Fayetteville three weeks ago under cover of darkness.
Auburn entered having executed one coaching change: Al Borges resigned as offensive coordinator, presumably after a strong shove from Tommy Tuberville, and the Chick-fil-A Bowl marked the debut of new coordinator Tony Franklin, lately of Troy. In the first half, Auburn looked like a team running the spread offense for the first time, managing just 147 yards and three points. Matters improved thereafter, backup quarterback Kodi Burns becoming increasingly adept in the spread. Auburn scored the tying touchdown with 8 1/2 minutes left in regulation and the winning one on its first series of overtime.
Say this for Auburn, though: It can still chop block with the best (or, more precisely, the worst) of them. An unflagged chop block on LSU’s Glenn Dorsey left Les Miles raging — he called it “immoral” — and induced this declaration from Tuberville: “We will not tolerate it.” Barely seven minutes into the Chick-fil-A Bowl, tackle Ryan Pugh dove into the back of Clemson nose guard Dorell Scott’s knees while Scott was being blocked high by Tyronne Green. This time a flag was thrown, not that it was much consolation to Scott, who had to be helped from the field and who missed the rest of the half. And what was Intolerant Tommy’s immediate response? There was none. Pugh started the next series. The game itself served to illustrate why these teams weren’t playing on New Year’s Day or later. It was close but not especially enthralling. With victory there for the seizing, neither side could move much on the final five series of regulation. The SEC Tigers always seemed the slightly stronger side, and it took more than four quarters but they finally proved it.
“War Eagle and Happy New Year!” said Tuberville, addressing the happier half of the orange-clad patrons after the first overtime game in the 40-year history of the bowl formerly known as the Peach, and his constituency roared its approval. The other folks in orange, already headed for their cars or a downtown bar, were less cheerful. As 2007 became 2008, Clemson fans had to be thinking that 2014 seems awfully far off.
Permalink | Comments (50) | Post your comment | Categories: Mark Bradley
Comments
By TARAQRAQRAQ
January 1, 2008 2:09 AM | Link to this
GO DAWGS!!!
GO SEC!!!
By Mark Arum
January 1, 2008 2:43 AM | Link to this
Yet another useless article from you, Mark. You neither enlighten nor entertain, you are a truly pathetic excuse for a writer. What was the point of your column? Seriously, be a man and get on here and explain what you were trying to achieve? Were you trying to be a Bulldog homer? Trying to take jabs at Clemson and Auburn? Trying to fill space because you had to? PLEASE, jump on here and be a man and humor us.
By Eric1
January 1, 2008 8:33 AM | Link to this
Gawd that was awful. This silly column was like watching some ridiculous fashion story that they try to pass off as news on The Today Show. You’re usually better than that, Marki. I enjoyed the game and thought Auburn provided a nice glimpse of a bright future. Congratulations to both teams. War Eagle!!!
By Athletic Supporter
January 1, 2008 8:57 AM | Link to this
Enjoyed your article, Mark. Regarding the chop blocking: how do you know it should be Tubby and not the offensive line coach that fingers should be pointing at ?
By Mike
January 1, 2008 9:07 AM | Link to this
GO SEC 4-0
Go DAWGS (yes I am a Bulldog fan)
Go Gators
Go Vols
Go Hogs
Go LSU
By Dennis
January 1, 2008 9:35 AM | Link to this
You can tell the AJC needed filler space - virtually no comments about the game, just insults and barbs about the two teams.
War Eagle! 23-30.
By Dennis
January 1, 2008 9:36 AM | Link to this
You can tell the AJC needed filler space - virtually no comments about the game, just insults and barbs about the two teams.
War Eagle! 23-20.
By JL
January 1, 2008 10:32 AM | Link to this
I don’t get the point of this column. No congrats to the winner. No good effort to the loser. Just a milktoast “you can see why they weren’t playing on New Years”. My Lord, this was one of the most entertaining bowls thusfar! I feel like I wasted 90 seconds reading your post. Come on, you’re supposed to be a columnist who makes us think, not a seventh grader turning in his paragraph he forgot to write last night and had to write a quick one on the bus this morning!!
By Gene
January 1, 2008 10:40 AM | Link to this
I don’t I watched the same footbal game as Bradley. What I saw was an exciting game between two teams that were evenly matched. Auburn has some explosive young players coming up, and I think that was the real story. I don’t know if it was the same Auburn player who committed the chop block against LSU. I don’t think it was intentional. One thing about Tubberville is, he does hold players accountable for bad behavior and doesn’t hesitate to sit them on the bench or suspend them. The real story about this bowl game concerns the Cathy family and their committment to helping the less fortunate. This game always turns out to be one of the more exciting and successful bowl games. Both teams should be commended for playing an exciting game that was essentially clean and sportsmanlike.
By Cafuture
January 1, 2008 10:58 AM | Link to this
Mark Bradley, good filler column for sure. Your column could have been much better in saying that you knew why they weren’t in NY Day’s bowls by saying how young both teams are. Both of these teams will be preseason top 14 teams next year for sure. Being a AU fan I am very excited about the new offense and a strong defense again. As far as the chop block, I agree, not something as a AU fan, we want to be associated with. Hopefully, that will be addressed. How about something positive about somebody other than your precious Georgia Bulldogs.
By p
January 1, 2008 11:03 AM | Link to this
Clemson has a good shot at a BCS game next year, and auburn, though very strong, will be one year closer to being dominated by alabama, again.
By Brother
January 1, 2008 11:36 AM | Link to this
I guess this was best article you could come up with on short notice? Nevertheless, a very young Auburn team won. This coming season sure is going to be exciting. There are two football players from Columbus who are going to fit nicely into the new offense (Furr and Fortson). Happy New Year!!
By War Eagle
January 1, 2008 11:42 AM | Link to this
Why waste time ajc((Bradley) writing this article? Its worst of all worst and less respect for Mark Bradley. Why bring a chop block of the past back, never mention new OC, just the fired one.? I am wasting my time responding to this CRAP.I HAVE BEEN ON THESE BLOGS FOR YEARS, THIS IS TRULY THE S*HOUSE OF JOURNALISM since my arrival.
By John In Huntsville
January 1, 2008 12:50 PM | Link to this
Pugh has been called for intentional chop blocks 4 times in the last two seasons. Tubb and Nall coach a very dirty brand of O-line play down on the farm.
By Jeff in H-Town
January 1, 2008 2:16 PM | Link to this
John in Huntsville: How exactly could Ryan Pugh, a TRUE FRESHMAN, be called for 4 chop blocks in the last two seasons? Don’t let facts stand in the way of delusion, Bammer.
Regarding the chop block: Clearly, a missed assignment by Pugh and totally unintentional. Play before he had a false start. He was having some issues with the new offense, but we’ll work that out. This chop block stuff has got to stop, though.
By UGAFan1
January 1, 2008 3:51 PM | Link to this
What does UGA have to do with this game? Fire this useless clown. SEC!
By Joe Mac
January 1, 2008 4:04 PM | Link to this
Bradley’s column was disappointing as it came over as holier-than-thou and demeaning to both schools competing. When you’re a high and mighty writer like Mark, you probably feel slighted having to cover a non-BCS game on New Year’s Eve when you feel like you should be assigned something far greater. I would suspect, due to the late ending, Bradley had to write something fast just to make deadline. I’ll give him that much, but nothing more. Clemson and Auburn have plenty to look forward to in the future. So does Georgia. So does Florida. So does Alabama. Ain’t life great down here?
By mjk
January 1, 2008 5:20 PM | Link to this
You really mailed this one in, Mark. Next time don’t bother if you can’t come up with anything more interesting than the shades of orange.
By Jodie
January 1, 2008 9:28 PM | Link to this
Wow. What an idiot. Is this the same guy that questioned the intelligence of a man worth hundreds of millions of dollars, Arthur Blank?
By PlusSizeModel
January 1, 2008 10:03 PM | Link to this
I think some of you jokers take sports columns way, way too seriously. And most of you are also obviously not very bright. Perhaps this goes hand in hand?
By the way, raise your hand if you’ve ever tried to come up with three sports columns week after week for a couple decades. Think you’d try a different angle every once in a while? Oops, sorry. I probably just made your brains hurt.
By AU Fan
January 1, 2008 10:42 PM | Link to this
War Eagle! I agree, what a wasted space of printed “journalism”. Shame on the AJC for promoting such senseless, pointless writing. This one (like so many of his other columns) deserves to be used as the liner for Nova’s (a.k.a. “Tiger” the eagle) bird cage…
By ladyluck
January 2, 2008 4:10 AM | Link to this
Holy crap that was awful. How does Bradley even have a job? I’ve never read a more scattered column that had no point or meaning.
You summarize the game by stating AU can chop block with the best of them? What a joke.
Bradley, have you ever played a sport? I would hope that you have some sort of expertise since your writing is so bad. Chop blocks are perfectly legal unless the defender is engaged with another blocker. O Linemen miss assignments all the time, that’s why nobody ever grades 100% on a game. Pugh is not a dirty player and I can assure you that coaches do not teach to take other players out of the game.
Pathetic.
By ladyluck
January 2, 2008 4:19 AM | Link to this
“And what was Intolerant Tommy’s immediate response? There was none. Pugh started the next series. The game itself served to illustrate why these teams weren’t playing on New Year’s Day or later.”
Bradley, come on. This article is pathetic. At some point when writing, don’t you have to ask yourself, “where am I going with this?”
Just stick your head back up the Bulldawg Nation’s a* where it belongs and write feel good stories about how UGA should be National Champs.
By Football Fan
January 2, 2008 10:21 AM | Link to this
Way to completely slap everyone in the face who just brought in boatloads of much needed money from tourism. Waking up the next day and reading this sure won’t crack a smile for either team win or lose. Insulting to the fans and the city of Atlanta.
By slitsfan
January 2, 2008 10:41 AM | Link to this
You’re so right. Tuberville and Bowden should do classy things like have their entire team celebrate in the end zone or try to run up the score against Hawaii or not care if their players dance around like thugs to the point that the casual viewer might confuse a game broadcast for Soul Train.
By AU Fan
January 2, 2008 11:01 AM | Link to this
RE: the chop block comments…ENOUGH ALREADY!!! I imagine that even the DAWGS have executed a few (unintentional) themselves.
By cehuff23
January 2, 2008 11:03 AM | Link to this
Speaking of chop blocks. Mark your column sure does chop block with the best of them (or, more precisely, the worst) of them. Your column itself serves to illustrate why you are not writing for the New York Times or the Boston Globe.
By AU Fan
January 2, 2008 11:05 AM | Link to this
Good point, slitsfan. I couldn’t have said it better…
By Bryan
January 2, 2008 11:08 AM | Link to this
I find it interesting that in 9 seasons at Auburn (and 3 at Ole Miss), there has never been some pattern of offensive linemen under CTT playing dirty and making chop blocks as a matter of routine. But have two true freshmen do it twice in 13 games this year and now it’s some kind of coaching thing. Couldn’t be just a player making a boneheaded move and not making sure the defensive guy isn’t being engaged by a fellow offensive lineman, could it?
Whatever.
By AtlFan
January 2, 2008 11:51 AM | Link to this
This isn’t the Birmingham News, Aubies. The AJC doesn’t have to cover Aub like they’re the home team. This was an article by a hometown columnist about the hometown bowl game.
No one watching could tell the fans apart because they did wear the same colors and no one was especially enthralled by the style of play. 2 good, but not great teams, slugging it out.
Bradley hit it on the head- 2 similar schools that wear the same color playing a close, but ugly game.
If you want Auburn homerism, go to AL.com. They will actually act like this game meant something.
By cehuff23
January 2, 2008 11:59 AM | Link to this
Ya know its pretty ironic but if I’m correct aren’t 31 Auburn and Clemson players from Georgia? Guess we should start looking elsewhere for talent maybe is what you are implying?
By UGA2001
January 2, 2008 12:01 PM | Link to this
slitsfan is a typical Auburn hater. How did we run up the score on Hawaii? We didn’t score in the last 14:30! We didn’t score an offensive TD in the last 25 minutes of the game! Ignorance.
Just another UGA hater living in Georgia that cannot understand why everyone walking around is a UGA fan. Poor baby. Please move back to Alabama or somewhere else. It is absolutely amazing to see the attitudes of Auburn people living in GA. Were you expecting to move hear and see more Aub stuff than UGA?
This is why Aub fans are considered some of the most classless and ignorant around.
By JASON
January 2, 2008 12:03 PM | Link to this
Hey Mark,
You are the worst excuse for a writer that I have ever seen. That game was very exciting, and both teams played good ball. The fans of both Auburn and Clemson are very classy, and should band together and come and kick your a** for this article. I truely is demeaning to both schools and their respective fan bases. Go !@#$ yourself you idiot!
By Slitsfan
January 2, 2008 12:06 PM | Link to this
Wouldn’t Auburn fans need to turn to the Montgomery and possibly Huntsville papers for homerism? Birmingham is a Bama town. Always will be.
Speaking of Bama, at least UGA’s win over Hawaii was in a real bowl game.
By Anoneemoose
January 2, 2008 12:14 PM | Link to this
“They will actually act like this game meant something.”
Oh, you mean like Georgia beating an obviously overmatched and overranked Hawaii? Yeah. Beating Hawaii really shows that UGA deserved to be in a title game. Whatever.
By AU Fan
January 2, 2008 12:14 PM | Link to this
Since when did a game between two evenly matched teams become an “ugly” game? That’s what makes it more exciting - could have turned out either way. I was there, and I am glad that it wasn’t a blowout (in either direction). AU was the official underdog, but still won.
By Mark R.
January 2, 2008 12:21 PM | Link to this
Mark, Better use of this space would have been an article to warn bowl fans visiting Atlanta for the game about the panhandlers, crack heads, homeless, and thugs that harass bowl fans that ride the MARTA to/from the game or the traffic congestion on the interstate because of the game.
“modest burg”- ha!, coming from a writer in Atlanta. Wake-up Mark, Atlanta will quickly bypass New Orleans as the arm-pit of the Southeast.
Another better story idea….the great fishing on Lake Lanier.
By AU Fan
January 2, 2008 12:21 PM | Link to this
Dear UGA2001: Last I checked, UGA is located in ATHENS, not ATLANTA. Poor Ga Tech will never get the press (win or lose) here that the Dawgs enjoy, even though they are in ATL. Guess the squeaky wheels do indeed get the grease!
By AUTIGER
January 2, 2008 12:41 PM | Link to this
F YOU Mark Bradley!
By Jaxtiger
January 2, 2008 12:43 PM | Link to this
Dear UGA2001, All we AU fans ask for is decent coverage in the town where the game was played. Even here in Jax, the Gator Bowl had excellent coverage—after all, the game WAS played here. Where was the extensive coverage in ATL?? By the way We AU grads can spell—hear means to hear something, not a place. Speaking of class—I was in AThens for the AU/UGA game—Thug dancing on the sidelines is classy??? Your coach promoting such actions? TAunting was there all day, too. How many arrests in the UGA program since last summer? aat least 9 or 10. Clean up your own backyard before you start throwing stone
By Auburn Fan
January 2, 2008 1:21 PM | Link to this
Interesting that this Atlanta sports “journalist” thinks so little of Atlanta’s Chick Fil A Bowl. Auburn fans thought it was a great bowl game, and that Atlanta was a terrific venue, but what do we know?
By Tiger Fan
January 2, 2008 1:21 PM | Link to this
Mark, an office 40 miles outside of Birmingham offers excellent colonics. You definitely need one. Prefer to send her to you otherwise the mess might reach back to Bham.
By AU Fan
January 2, 2008 1:24 PM | Link to this
Jaxtiger: THANK YOU :)
Agreed, one might have expected the sports writers representing the HOST city’s publications to have more unbiased, flattering things to say about teams playing in his city’s major bowl. The game was did not display offensive fireworks, but it was certainly not boring and it definitely was not “ugly”. Orange shows up better on TV than say, dark blue or dark purple (at Auburn home games fans are encouraged to wear orange for that very reason). Orange is but one of our school colors, and there is no rule I am aware of that says the fans have to wear them same color combinations in the same proportion to match the players’ uniforms??? (Except for all the publicity surrounding UGA’s “famous” black jersey blackout, there was nothing positive about the TV visual that fans, cheerleaders etc, clad in all-black made for visual entertainment or TV coverage. In fact, it’s dull. Maybe that’s why the players feel like they have to dance around the sidelines - to make up for it?)
By jc_atl
January 2, 2008 2:59 PM | Link to this
Do you get paid for writing this drivel? Are you a sportswriter or a social gossip columnist - very hard to tell. You’d think a woman who never watched football had written this column, commenting on the color of the uniforms rather than the dynamics that made the game exciting for the fans of both teams.
By ck_atl
January 2, 2008 3:31 PM | Link to this
Do you know anything about football? The chopblock was incorretly done by the offensive lineman hitting the player high, not the one hitting him low. It is a legal block as long as the player isn’t tied up with another player. It was a missed assignment by the lineman hitting him high. All the morons here yelling about immoral blocks should try either actually playing the game some time or consulting someone who has. That includes the moron who wrote this idiotic article. Send him back to the fashion page.
By GT
January 2, 2008 3:52 PM | Link to this
I think a banana republic writer would find a home or at least food and shelter if he wrote positive stuff for the dictator in charge and I find that same blind loyalty exist in the world of sport’s writing. It isn’t the orange Bradley is denigrating as much as he is once again playing for the home crowd.
By AU Fan
January 2, 2008 4:25 PM | Link to this
GT nailed it…and UGA was the SEC rep in the Chick-fil-A Bowl just last year. I bet he didn’t write about team colors after that one…
By JL
January 2, 2008 5:10 PM | Link to this
Funny the responses on here….”why don’t you go to al.com for hometown news…” yada yada… Actually, many of us turned to ajc.com because it was the HOMETOWN PAPER FOR THE CHICK FIL A BOWL! Maybe to Mark it just looked like a bowl or orange…but I assure you, to Atlanta, it looked GREEN. Maybe Mark just can’t get over the Tennessee orange that kept his favorite team out of the SEC championship game and he can’t get over it. As for me, I’d rather be orange like Clemson…or Tenn…or even Fla…than Red like Bama.
By JL
January 2, 2008 5:10 PM | Link to this
Funny the responses on here….”why don’t you go to al.com for hometown news…” yada yada… Actually, many of us turned to ajc.com because it was the HOMETOWN PAPER FOR THE CHICK FIL A BOWL! Maybe to Mark it just looked like a bowl or orange…but I assure you, to Atlanta, it looked GREEN. Maybe Mark just can’t get over the Tennessee orange that kept his favorite team out of the SEC championship game and he can’t get over it. As for me, I’d rather be orange like Clemson…or Tenn…or even Fla…than Red like Bama.
By ML
January 3, 2008 12:02 AM | Link to this
Why not talk about some interesting points of the game, such as Auburn’s new offense which had been implemented in a mere 9 days of practice?