No matter how many recruits Auburn signs in Mobile, Alabama will win the Mobile area. Saban has so totally dominated in-state recruiting, that he is now able to take only the cream of the crop, while Auburn must find quantity instead of quality.

From today’s Mobile Press-Register Mike Herndon column:

“Nick was new and everybody wanted to jump on that bandwagon,” said Vigor coach Kerry Stevenson, whose all-purpose star, Burton Scott, signed with the Tide in February. “He’s hand-picking what he wants now.”

Indeed, even with an increased presence from Auburn, Alabama still landed commitments from the two most coveted prospects in southwest Alabama this year — Foley defensive tackle D.J. Fluker and St. Paul’s quarterback AJ McCarron.

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Hand-picking.

While Auburn is trying to find the undiscovered gems (you know, the ones that Southern Miss and La. Tech and not the SEC have offered), Alabama and Georgia and Florida are taking the best.

And the trend is showing in the Mobile area.

Could Auburn win the Mobile-area recruiting battles this year? With Fluker and McCarron going to Alabama, that’d be a stretch regardless of how the numbers come out. But no matter what happens the rest of the way, the Tigers have already done better here than they did last year.

When all is said and done, Auburn’s class will be mediocre in the SEC. It will once again finish below Georgia, Florida, Alabama, Tennessee and LSU. Can you win titles when you consistently finish below the top SEC programs in recruiting?

That is highly doubtful. Just ask Steve Spurrier how important athletes are. He had them at Florida, but is having a tougher time at South Carolina. And Spurrier is a much better coach than Tuberville. Though to be fair, Spurrier may be even lazier than Tuberville.

30 thoughts on “Saban will win Mobile”

  1. Right now Auburn fans think you have lost your mind.
    you couldnt have said it better.
    In a conference full of defenders in the 220-250 lb range who are running in the 4.4—4.7 range. It is going to be hard to compete with what with a team full of undersized Oompa Loompas.
    Wake up Aubbos. Didnt Lester Miles teach you that a loaded elephant gun is deadly even if Elmer Fudd is the hunter?
    This is totally unrelated and one of the funniest things I have seen in a long time.

  2. Nice to see Bama scoring another victory…….which happens to not mean a damn thing regarding results. You have a salesman for a coach. The off season is when he shines best. Tubbs and the rest of the gameday coaches, which include using X’s and O’s, will see you on Saturdays. Oh wait……Bama focuses on basketball now when the football season is midway. My fault. Great victory guys!

  3. You’re right tmc…undersized receivers have absolutely no chance of being successful in the SEC with these big ‘ol defenders. Gee, haven’t seen many paintings from Daniel Moore lately. Who’s the last Bama “legend” he found worthy of a painting? Oh yeah, it was some 5’8″” guy named Prothro. (No tmc, Prothro’s ankle injury had nothing to do with his size. He simply came down on the ankle at a freakish angle.) Well, Prothro was an exception…there’s no other undersized receiver that has been successful in the SEC lately..oh damn, I forgot about 08 Heisman contender Percy Harvin.

    It’s absolutely hilarious how defensive you Bama fans are getting simply because AU is getting a little press for early commitments. What each of you refuse to admit is that you’re scared because you know Tubs is one of the best evaluators of talent in the country, and that he wouldn’t be offering scholarships to these recruits this early if he wasn’t confident that they would be successful. Keep up the nervous laughter, Bama fans. These “oompa loompas” are the one’s you’ll be throwing Miluakee’s Best cans at on the tv screen and shooting your kids over as they’re running into the end zone and extending the streak in 09, 10, & 11.

  4. Julio,

    Nice comment on the Beast. I am a
    Milwakee Lite fan myself, but that is just me!

    How did Tubberville all of the sudden get the reputation as the greatest evaluator of talent? Auburn fans act like they have never done good at recruiting before. The new myth is that all Auburn does is find diamonds in the rough. The fact is Auburn has done a great job of recruiting over the last seven years. The only two exceptions were the year after jet gate and last year. Guess what changed last year?

    The fact is despite what the fan bases want to believe (both Auburn and Alabama), neither one is going to drop off the face of the planet. The main change of course is that Alabama will start competing at more consistent level. If you want to keep hanging your hat on the streak, than so be it. It just makes everything easier once the streak stops.

  5. Question: When bama loses again this year at Tuberville-Denny Stadium will the support for “The Process” be as strong as it is now?

    Question: If Shorty sabin wins nine or ten games a year through 2010 but loses to AUBURN, will the LOVE still be on this blog?

    This is if he loses, don’t reply that he will win. You will only embarrass yourself.

  6. Question: If a tree falls in a forest does it make a sound?

    Question: If Kodi Burns runs a 4.4 40 how long will it take him to get to Chicago on a Sunday?

    Question: If you cut off the ears what would Tubberville be known as?

    See, I can makeup irrelevant questions based on hypotheticals too.

  7. Kenny, your post is largely correct. (I’m agreeing with a Bama fan…Israel and Palestine have come together!) However, Tubs didn’t suddenly get a reputation as a great evaluator of talent. I don’t think his “recruiting rankings” have ever been top 5, but they have usually been solid. His reputation as an evaluator has come from guys like Dontarrius Thomas, Senderrick Marks, Roderick Hood, Courtney Taylor, etc. These are guys nobody wanted, but Tubs saw the talent in.

    As to last year, I still don’t think the problem is as much that AU had a horrible year as it was than Bama had an outstanding year. Let me be the first to admit it…Tubs got smoked in recruiting compared to Bama. Now let’s see how it pans out, because the reality is this: Everyting that you, I, tmc, NYC, iceboy shane, and any other hacker says is irrelevant bullsh#@. The only test that matters happens on the Saturday after Thanksgiving. For the last 6 years, Tubs has passed the test and Bama has failed.

  8. The fact is all bammers have is recruiting. They suck at football and they can down CTT and talk about his recruiting style and taking “gems” or whatever this article is trying to say but the bottom line is that you haven’t won a head to head football game against Auburn in over 6 YEARS!!! Talk recruiting and how Saban hand picks who he wants.. HA HA HA HA HA believe that the process will work. HA HA HA. Until you win a game against Auburn. SHUT UP

  9. I think, unlike most fans, I just do not see Auburn going into obscurity. It seems like that is the mantra of both fans, as if it would be impossible to have two solid programs.

    You make a good point about Auburn finding players and getting them better, relative to what they were ranked. It should be noted that Alabama has had some of those same players as well (Demeco Ryans, Javier Arenas, Tyrone Protho, Rashad Johnson, etc…), who exceeded their ranking. Are we going to go back and be revisionist and talk about how good Shula was at finding diamonds in the rough? No, I think not.

    There is some validity to the fact Auburn has out performed their win/loss record relative to their recruiting ranking. It just should be pointed out that it was not like those classes were garbage coming in. The fact is Auburn was getting plenty of elite prospects, including ones from Alabama. I think Auburn will recruit on a better level this year, but I think they are going to have to get at least a few of the elite players from the state if they are going to continue to compete at such a high level.

    I do applaud at least your somewhat homerism objective view. I guess that is kind of backhanded compliment, huh? It is also a little of an oxymoron too.

  10. Redneck,

    Thank you for upholding the stereotype of Auburn fans. Julio was making me think there were too many sane Auburn fans.

  11. The delusions of Alabama fans are all over this article. Once again they read something and claim it to be real. That is delusional people. Talk about the streak or whatever you want to talk about. Fact is bammer fans think CTT is a bad recruiter, and takes the leftovers after bammer has steamed through. Believe that if you want but the fact remains he beats your a$$ every single time. Take all the recruiting wins you want we take the wins on the field. Delusional pathetic fans. A good question was asked before, “What happens when Saban can’t beat Tubs on the field?” Is is ok with bammer fans to keep on winning the recruiting wars?? Believe this- Saban will not stick around. I for one hope he stays around along time and Tubs can keep beating him with the pathetic recruits we get year in and year out.

  12. I do, thank you for the compliment! I am starting to turnaround my opinon of this redneck guy! Really.

  13. Sounds like the Bammers are skeered that ole CTT is back at it again in Mobile. Better crank up the Red Elephant Club and pass the hat again.

    IF you’re skeered, say skeered!

    Fear the Toes!

  14. This is the most happening blog! Even the Aubbos cant stay away!

    C-Bass….AUBURN has a salesman for a coach, Come on man! Tony Franklin is selling his offense anywhere he can

    This is the SEC. And the SEC is no stranger to 4.4 speed.
    CTF is trading big strong talented fast guys, for small fast guys.
    Are you really foolish enough to think that CTT can win through poor recruting?

    Troy State is full of 1A wonders and Private school allstars. And if you want to have the same 8-4 records that Troy had the last two years just recruit the players Troy would take.

  15. LOL tmc. I agree Saban won’t stick around long,and as much as I love Tommy T, ya big eared hefer ya, I believe he won’t be around much longer either. I just hope we don’t have to flip a coin for Calloway, if we do, Bama you may do the flipping.

  16. The Vigor coach sure likes to run his mouth about Saban and the Tide.
    Could the ghost of Logan Young be greasing the palms of the HS coaches AGAIN.
    I am sure (know) the NCAA and IRS have their eyes on this clown.

  17. Barnies can’t stay away because they’re doing all they can, living up the days in the state’s victorious spot light.

    I don’t blame them, though. If I knew my time was soon to be up, I’d run amok, boasting the last six wins 24/7, simply because deep down I know I won’t ever see success like this for a long, loooooong time.

    You guys are doing a very nice job! Just as you did in the 1950s and in the 1980s!

  18. Kenny, I’ll ask you again. Will you love and support your coach if he does not beat AUBURN through 2010? Yes or No.

  19. It is an irrelevant question because it will not happen. The better question would be what will Auburn fans do when Tubberville loses to Alabama? Auburn has done a good job living off of the wins. It is the main thing Tubberville has done to keep the fan base and the administration cohesive. You are living in isoloation if you do not things will ever change, but that is fine with me.

  20. Once upon a time CTT could recriut freely in the State of Alabama, now he cant.
    Since Shula left, CTT’s recruiting is a joke. And no amount of “6 in a row” and “you lost to LaMo” will change the fact that you will start seeing the difference on the field.

    9 in a row!!! “you lost to South Florida (Florida’s Troy state)”

  21. Kenny, Yes or No?

    tmc, Coach Tubs is taking back Mobile. Trent Richardson is waffling. Like sixdownnow7 said, “it’s time to grease some more palms”. Can you say staring down the barrel of a gun?

    The TIGERS are coming!

  22. Shane is a BLOGGER.

    You are right!
    CTT is taking back Mobile
    1 private school allstar at a time. One 1A wonder at a time. Soon he will be raiding the schools for the blind.

    I find your remark about greasing palms,
    absurd because Auburn has the record for SEC sanctions. (Isnt it a sad day when the only record your school holds is for doing the most cheating?)

    The TIGERS are coming!
    I would be scared except I have found Auburn’s crptonite. It is called a book.
    (Bet that scared you didnt it?)

  23. TMC i got a feeling SISSY NICKIE would love that 8-4 record of Troy come Dec.08 ???
    YA RECKON?

    And damn just so you BAMMERS know you hace to win so bad lets re-examin that
    recruiting nosense agian ..just for fun
    see FineBUMS article today??

  24. tmc, how do you think sabin got the Mobile & NW Florida players to come to LSU? Break out the Crisco! Oh yea, PLEASE don’t throw the book at our team, they quit coloring in the second grade.

    War Chicken!
    The Barnies are coming!
    sabin gone after 2010.

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