re: If Auburn destroys playoff hopes for UGA and UA in the coming weeks

Split Amen Corner and win a bowl and we are averaging over 9 wins a year over the last 3. Heck yeah brother

That’s going to be one helluva banner.

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1 name just one

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These clowns already have a 200 response thread clamoring for Bill Clark. That should tell you where some of these folks are mentally.

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These clowns

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don't matter

There'll be a committee to blast no matter the decision.

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10 wins would be a pleasant surprise given our schedule, deficiencies, and the tendency for 8-5, and Auburn wouldn’t fire him for that ever. Personally, I’ve moved past all the one year auditions, and magic numbers.

But, my opinion is mine; Nobody has to share it.

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We actually have the same opinion on this, I just think you guard giving yours because you don't want it to be construed as Gus support

10 wins, regular season or with the bowl, is a good season. It's a good season for all but the most elite teams in a given year or the top 5 or so teams all time.

Whether or not 10 wins this year is a true feather in CGM's cap or not, it's a good year, and we all know that on a practical level it insulates Gus from pressure. It doesn't change my opinion that it's probably a short term band aid for long term flaws. But I'll also admit that it's entirely possible that one of these days Gus will actually change his mindset and begin to grow as a coach. I'm not predicting that, but I'll admit I don't know whether 10 wins this season would be an aberration or a sign of growth/success. Only time will tell.

Even though I suspect that Gus is still a flawed coach if we win out, I wouldn't pull the plug on him even if I had that power. I doubt you would either. Partly because of the chance, perhaps slim, that it's a sign of growth. But also because it would be a stain on the university to do so, and frankly, poor stewardship of funds.

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In my opinion (I know no one asked), it's a little embarrassing for a state university running low on funding with the rising cost of tuition to spend $40M to replace a football coaching staff.

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If we cannot afford to fire Gus even when his retention is unnecessary from an athletic standpoint, so be it. Maybe we cannot. Maybe we will be financially prudent and allow Gus another year even if he doesn’t deserve it. I don’t know. It’s just silly to try to convince me that there isn’t anyone out there that might be better than 8-5.

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Even though I suspect that Gus is still a flawed coach if we win out, I wouldn't pull the plug on him even if I had that power. I doubt you would either. Partly because of the chance, perhaps slim, that it's a sign of growth.

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I agree. I also agree that Auburn would never do that. This is a “Gus has bet on himself” season and his team will do well to end up with 10+ wins

Personally, I would appreciate the wins, and be grateful for the brief flashes of Auburn playing to their potential against elite teams, but at the same time, I wouldn’t feel any differently about him as our coach for the future. Those wins still don’t reconcile his shortcomings on the road against our rivals, and those wins don’t suggest we will have a better team next year. They are just tantalizing brief periods of time that make you wonder why the hell are we not playing like this more often. If the answer is simply homestands as they fall during the 2 year cycle (2017, 2019), then yeah it’s time to go.

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But I'll also admit that it's entirely possible that one of these days Gus will actually change his mindset and begin to grow as a coach.

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I always wonder about the limits to where Gus can actually grow to as a HC, but he’s been here nearly 7 years now. Can’t really afford to wait it out linger. Our rivals have already gained in H2H series leads since he’s been HC. I used to be so proud of our lead over Georgia. We are going to have to get that lead back.

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Even though I suspect that Gus is still a flawed coach if we win out, I wouldn't pull the plug on him even if I had that power. I doubt you would either. Partly because of the chance, perhaps slim, that it's a sign of growth. But also because it would be a stain on the university to do so, and frankly, poor stewardship of funds.

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Growth? Exactly what growth have we seen from Gus now that he has taken over the play calling?

All i see, although somewhat clouded w/ a FR QB, is that he still calls head-scratching play, and still has not consistently developed a passing game that other teams will struggle defending.

So, he is in his 7th year, and he should not be still trying to 'grow' as a coach in the area that we thought back in 2013 was his greatest strength at that time.

P.J. Fleck is this year's name. We've watched guys like this do well and then fade. Tom Herman, Scott Frost, etc.

Lightning in a bottle is tough to catch more than once. Ask Gus.

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I don't put too much hope that Gus is going to grow a lot, at least without facing a job change, but I could see the benefits for him as a coach to watch how building year to year and focusing on continuity can pay off for his offense. One thing I'm very confident of is that Gus relying on new guys to run his offense is going to miss more than it hits. You need the exact right guy for what Gus wants to do (and often, what Gus wants to do isn't clear). Gus is so finicky on trusting players and what not that I think having a guy like Nix over several years could force Gus into doing things he otherwise might not do (like adapt to the skillset of a central player on the team).

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Force Gus into doing things he otherwise might not do? We've already tried that with Lindsey and Gus moving aside some.

Gus' lack of adjusting his offense to flow better w/ a passing game will not change just b/c we have Nix for 2 more years. We had Stidham for 2 and we got worse on offense...