Since I continue to be behind on everything, you may have heard by now that Jeremy Johnson is out as Auburn’s starting quarterback. Yesterday, Gus Malzahn announced that Chris Todd was returning for his 12th year of eligibility and would take over against Mississi- wait….I’m being told that information is incorrect. It would actually be Chris Todd’s 19th year of eligibility, but he declined the starting job, citing “I’m 57 damn years old”.
Instead of Todd’s return, Auburn will turn to Sean White, a redshirt freshman whose only experience in college football is watching from the sideline (and possibly holding up one of those play signal boards). The timing is somewhat interesting because, while Auburn isn’t going to win 10 or 11 games, there is still time to pull this thing out of the raging inferno and possibly win seven to eight games.
By abandoning Johnson and starting White in the fourth game of the year, Malzahn has decided that this is the make or total destruction break point of the year. If Johnson were to repeat his LSU performance against Mississippi State, Auburn would have confirmation that its season is done. White at least provides a glimmer of hope of an Outback Bowl or something not in Shreveport or Memphis.
However, if White is as equally poor as Johnson was against LSU, then the whole thing blows up, and Auburn spends the rest of the year trying to get to six wins. Malzahn clearly has seen enough of Johnson to think that LSU Jeremy Johnson will be Conference Play Jeremy Johnson, and that White and his experience of none is worth the gamble.
To continue reading this article by Gray at The Belly of the Beast, click here.
