Coach Alex Golesh continued his tradition of taking full ownership of an Auburn loss after a 45-15 defeat to Ole Miss on Saturday.
To Golesh, the pre-snap penalties were a direct reflection of his coaching staff's inability to have the team prepared against the Rebels. On the opening drive alone, multiple pre-snap penalties stalled the Tigers' momentum.
For the game, AU had eight penalties and cost themselves 67 yards on them.
"That's inexcusable. That's coaching in every way... You can live with hard-playing penalties. When it's pre-snap on us, that's the stuff that kills you," Golesh said to the media during the postgame press conference.
Golesh then shared a troubling fact about Auburn's loss at Vaught-Hemingway Stadium in Week 9: it was the first game all season where the Tigers didn't finish strong.
"Lack of finish, and that was the first time I've seen that out of this team this year. That's as disappointing as anything, and I've got to figure that out. That's making me as sick as anything," Golesh said.
Auburn made a 44-39 loss to Florida at Jordan-Hare Stadium look a lot closer than it should've been with a 15-point fourth quarter. AU then held LSU to just seven points in the second half during a rough loss last week.
This weekend, it looked like Auburn lacked the same fight on both sides of the ball, even allowing Deuce Knight to score a 17-yard rushing touchdown after replacing Trinidad Chambliss behind center. Besides an interception, Chambliss had his way with the Tigers' defense.
Alex Golesh cannot lose the locker room in year one at Auburn
Let's hope that Golesh pointing out the team's lack of energy down the stretch was a sign that he won't let that happen again. With Arkansas, Mississippi State, and Samford next on the schedule, there's a good chance of not being down at all in the fourth quarter before the Iron Bowl.
Even so, this team cannot become an inconsistent second-half team. That's not sustainable, especially on the Plains, where that's been the norm for the last five years.
Golesh calling out his coaching staff works in year one. He inherited DJ Durkin as defensive coordinator, and he brought over many of his USF staffers for convenience to maintain offensive continuity.
At some point, though, if it's constantly the coaching staff's fault, the powers that be will start wondering about the guy in charge.
Right now, that's extremely early. Golesh has done a fantastic job this season, even after two brutal losses in a row. After the Georgia upset, Golesh told everyone to remain patient. He knew his team wasn't there yet.
Patience will run out eventually, though, if the results don't improve. Let's hope Golesh figures out how to get this team right before he loses their trust.
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