Week 9- Lutzenkirchen!!!!

Auburn

• Philip Lutzenkirchen is phenomenal. That's all there is to it. Not only was he an absolute asset in both the run and pass blocking games, but he made perhaps the play of the year with his one-handed catch, transfer, and dive for the pylon. Clint Moseley seems to have a pretty good rapport with Lutz (who had 2 TD's on the day), so I would look for a slight role increase as the Tigers get into Amen Corner. 
• Clint Moseley's arm strength is a key that the Auburn offense didn't have during the first half of the season. Long passes to Quindarius Carr and Emory Blake showed what had been missing from Gus Malzahn's attack. The long pass opens up the run game, and vice versa, but when the passing threat isn't there, teams can stack the box and make Mike Dyer a non-factor. This is a big step forward for this offense. Great performance for Moseley, albeit against poor competition.
• Give Ted Roof and company credit for the second half adjustments in the run game. Ole Miss dominated on the ground during the first half, but Auburn made adjustments, put more men in the box and made Randall Mackey throw the ball. The result, Mackey proceeded to overthrow receivers by an average of 10 yards per attempt. Good decision Roof.
• At the risk of sounding like a broken record, Eltoro Freeman has taken his game to a new level. We all knew that The Bull had this in him, but we hadn't seen it with any consistency during his time on the Plains. This makes 3 weeks in a row where Freeman has played at an elite level and is a big reason why the Auburn defense is so improved. 
• Neiko Thorpe played one of the worst games I have ever seen from a senior with 4 years of playing experience. Thorpe single-handedly gave up a touchdown by whiffing on tackles on two Brandon Bolden runs, including a 38-yarder and the touchdown run. Thorpe tackled with his head down, not even looking at the ball carrier and payed the price. If he doesn't improve during practice, expect to see more and more Erique Florence as the season goes on. Florence is the future, and already does a lot of things better than Thorpe (like turn and play the ball in the air). 
• The offensive line looked at least somewhat improved this week. AJ Greene still missed to many assignments, but Auburn honestly doesn't have any other options at tackle other than pulling Greg Robinson's redshirt, which won't happen. Chad Slade looked better, and Brandon Moseley and John Sullen looked solid. Georgia will be a big test in two weeks, but the Tigers have two weeks to continue to gel, so I expect a solid performance.
• Yesterday was an excellent example of why Jay Wisner is on the field so frequently. While his physical attributes and raw skills are nothing to write home about, Wisner is the Kodi Burns type, doing the dirty work when it comes to blocking for teammates. He laid several big blocks to spring Mike Dyer and a couple receivers. Trooper Taylor has always said that the guys who get on the field are the ones who learn to block. Take note DeAngelo Benton.
• It was painfully evident how important Emory Blake is to this Auburn offense. After watching a team that couldn't do a thing during the passing game for the last three weeks, Blake came in and immediately made plays. Five catches for 71 yards doesn't really jump out at you, but the element that he brings to the vertical game is irreplaceable.
• This team is young, but the future is bright. At the end of the season, Auburn's only contributors who will leave due to graduation are Freeman, Brandon Moseley, Greene, Thorpe, and Carr. The entire defensive line and backfield will return, and injured freshmen Kris Frost, Sammie Coates, and Chris Landrum should help bolster a group that has already seen 4 true freshmen start this season. If currently redshirting Greg Robinson, Christian Westerman, and JUCO commit Will Latu can successfully integrate into the line, this team has a potential to be very good next season.

SEC

• Vanderbilt will be a team to be reckoned with as long as James Franklin is the coach. For the 2nd week in a row, the Dores took a Top 25 SEC team to the wire. If not for a red zone fumble that was returned for a touchdown or a missed field goal at the end of regulation, the Dores would have knocked off Arkansas. This team doesn't have the talent level of many other SEC teams, but Franklin has inspired a confidence and grit that will keep Vandy from being the SEC dore mat (you see what I did there? huh?).
• Mark Richt has saved his job. After Georgia's victory in the Grande Sized Drinking Festival in Jacksonville, the Dogs are in position to make an appearance in Atlanta. Granted, they will get destroyed by either Alabama or LSU, but it is definite progress for a Georgia team that had seemed to be trending downward for several years. 
• Georgia doesn't control their own destiny, but with South Carolina playing without Marcus Lattimore for the rest of the season, they might as well. The Cocks barely beat a bad Tennessee team, and Alshon Jeffery only touched the ball only three times. That is not a recipe for success, and I don't expect South Carolina to be able to beat both Arkansas and Florida. 
• Mississippi State beat Kentucky for their first SEC victory of the season. I doubt anyone cares other than Dan Mullen.
• In case you have missed the entire season, Alabama and LSU play next week in a game that has the potential to be one of the most epic in recent college football history. 

Nation

• We knew it was only a matter of time before Clemson blew it. It should come to no one's surprise that Georgia Tech was the team to wreck the dream. Tech runs an offense that you won't see anywhere outside of Navy, and is unpredictable week to week. Add in a Tajh Boyd off week, and you have a recipe for disaster. The Tigers should still be able to get to the ACC Championship and thus a BCS bowl, but this is a huge disappointment for Dabo Swinney's team and the ACC as a whole.
• Stanford almost joined the Tigers in Upsetville, needing a triple overtime touchdown to down USC. As you may recall, I have been a bit skeptical of this Cardinal team all season, and this shows why. The Cardinal don't face a very tough schedule, but a matchup with Oregon in a couple weeks looks like trouble to me.
• Goodbye Wisconsin, thank you for playing.
• Big East football makes me puke in my mouth a little.
• Want to know why Houston is undefeated and still only ranked #14? Because they play in a conference where you can put up 73 points on a conference opponent, have a quarterback throw for 9 touchdowns in a game, and have a receiver gain over 300 yards in a game. Add in non-conference games against UCLA, North Texas, Georgia State, and Louisiana Tech, and you see why folks are unimpressed with Case Keenum and the Cougars.
• Nebraska is quietly playing some pretty nice football. The Huskers knocked off Michigan State, and out-defensed the country's 7th best D. Penn State and Michigan still loom, but Nebraska looks to be in pretty good shape in their first year in the Big Ten.
• Kansas State, welcome to big-time football. The next month will be rough for the Wildcats. Oklahoma started what could be 4 straight losses as the Cats actually play competitive teams. Oklahoma State looms next week, and the Cowboys don't look ready to back down any time soon. 

That's all for this week. Try to stay on task this week as visions of Purple and Crimson sugar plums dance in your head.