Timing based spread offenses are going to have issues in the championship game unless there is a Tebow or Newton like element – There was some thought that Oregon's offense would be immune to this because it is a run-based, tempo-based offense. Nope. With no big runner a quarterback (Darron Thomas is good, but he's no power runner), the Oregon offense stalled in the redzone. Compounding the issues for Oregon was the unwillingness to sell out entirely for the passing game when the run didn't work. Time after time, Auburn's secondary got roasted (as usual), then a run was mixed in and the drive ended. On the other side, those runs came courtesy of Newton and Michael Dyer allowing Auburn to extend drives.
The field was just awful – From the opening kickoff when Oregon's return man slipped all the way through to the end, players on both teams were slipping and sliding all over the place. The field was new, but played like a skating rink at times. Both teams were affected equally so neither team can complain, but it was annoying to see so many players slipping on the field from both teams when there was no weather factor involved.
Auburn fans should enjoy now, while they can, its going to be a long climb back – Most of the team outside of the running backs graduates or is expected to leave early for the draft. While there is plenty of young talent in the program, next season is going to be very difficult on the Plains. Auburn must play revenge minded Arkansas, LSU, Georgia, South Carolina and Clemson on the road and Alabama at home. They also get a likely rejuvenated Florida on the home schedule to replace Kentucky in the divisional rotation. With all the losses, Auburn could easily lose six games next season (with Mississippi St. on the schedule as well) in part because of the lack of experience on the roster.
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