Sports Editor

I talked about this in my column for Friday’s edition of the Opelika-Auburn News, but I think it’s important for everyone to understand that question marks are rampant on every college football team across the country.
That’s why it’s preaseason. If there were nothing to second guess, they wouldn’t have to practice. Everyone would just show up on Saturday’s and the games would be played.
You wouldn’t have to go through the two-a-days, the heat, the sunburn, the monotony or the pain of practice. To take a page from the Herm Edwards’ playbook ... “You practice to get better. You don’t practice just to practice. You practice to get better.” You also practice to make sure you know who can play and who can’t.
Auburn’s no different from any other team. However, Auburn does have some pretty heavy questions still lingering out there. Can a true freshman really play right tackle in this offense? Can the young receivers handle the pressure? Can Brandon Cox stay healthy? Can Quentin Groves dominate a game now that every defensive coordinator in the country knows who he is? Can the Tigers’ kicking game hold its own with new, unproven feet? Can Auburn survive its road schedule?
All legit questions that, right now, there aren’t any answers for. Why?
Because the 2007 version of the Auburn Tigers haven’t played a game yet. And until they do, no one, not even us the media who loves to second, third and quadruple guess, can know what’s going to happen.
That’s the beauty of football. It’s played on the field. All the answers will come out between the lines. There’s no hiding. There’s no running. There’s no fooling. If you are a bad team, you will get exposed on the gridiron. If you can’t play, everyone will know ... individually and as a team. Until then, it’s all a guessing game. Not a football game.
But we’ll find out soon enough.
We’ll all know the kind of team Auburn is once the Tigers play their first game on Pat Dye Field at Jordan-Hare Stadium on Sept. 1 against Kansas State. That’s when the answers will come.
So get your questions ready.

Sports Editor

I was out at practice Wednesday afternoon and realized how much I love watching the linemen go at it. As a former lineman, I can’t get enough of watching pass-protection and run-blocking drills where two guys just get after each other.
It’s mostly all I watch at practice. First, because it’s familiar to me and 2) because the O-line and D-line coaches are always good for a laugh. And they can motivate. Plus, you can only watch so much 7-on-7 to where you need to see some hitting.

Freshman Lee Ziemba got the nod for starting right tackle prior to Wednesday’s practice. Ziemba, as a freshman, has the size. He’s 6-8, 297. But he’s still young. I don’t have anything against a freshman playing right away, but you’ve got to remember, the right tackle spot protects Brandon Cox’s blind side.
I don’t care if the guys a senior or a freshman, he’d better be good. That position is the most important on the field when you have a left-handed quarterback. Ziemba seemed to hold his own Wednesday when I saw him. But as offensive line coach Hugh Nall said, the freshman from Rogers, Ark., has a long way to go in catching up to the speed of the game.
However, he does have one thing going for him. If he can go against Quentin Groves everyday in practice for the next three weeks, by kickoff Sept. 1 against Kansas State, Ziemba should be ready to go.
But it starts now. If it’s Ziemba at right tackle, he needs to practice with the Ones every day. As a unit, the offensive line needs to play together (with the same people at the same position) for as long as possible.
Sure, it’s still early, and Nall is still trying to get the best players in the best position, but time’s running out. The first game is coming faster than Groves is off the edge.

Sports Editor

Today, Tommy Tuberville addressed the media in his first “formal” press conference since SEC Media Days in late July. Tubs even wore a tie ... and a Salmon-colored shirt.

The 30-minute presser was filled with interesting tidbits, and you can watch the entire conference on AuburnVersus.com. Just click the “video” link when you get there. It should be up later this afternoon.

For me, there were two things that stuck out. First, Tuberville dropped the “technique” word about 57 times. Well, maybe not that many, but he was trying to prove a point. After every position or individual player he was asked about, he made sure to talk about how important technique was to every player and every position.
It’s something the AU coaches are focusing on. A lot.
“(We’re) trying to teach fundamentals to all the guys. From Quentin Groves on down,” Tuberville said.

The second thing that stuck out, speaking of Quentin Groves, was this ...

“Right tackle is going to be interesting,” Tuberville said. “I think that it’s going to be right tackle by committee for the next couple weeks.
“Quentin Groves is a guy we’re putting over the left side of the defense, the right side of the offensive line. We want to find out one that can compete against him. If you can block Quentin coming off the corner, you’re going to have a pretty good offensive lineman.
We’re giving Quentin full responsibility for training that right offensive tackle. And he’s a pretty good job of schooling early.”

In my experience, if you want to make someone better, you’ve got to let him get beat up by the best guy on your team. Time will tell if Coach Groves gets his point across.