By InTheKnow72
It’s been a bad week for Gene Chizik. First, thanks to an unforgotten blunder early in the Auburn transition, he lost his recruiting expert in the Mobile area—one of the nation’s hottest hotbeds for talent. And that coach didn’t just go anywhere. He went to his fiercest rival. Now a decision not to give Clinton Durst a scholarship has cost Auburn’s new head man his punter.

If you’ll remember, Durst was single-handedly the only thing going for Auburn in the Iron Bowl. Before the beatdown ensued, Durst successfully pinned Alabama deep inside its redzone, giving Auburn the short field it needed to make a run at an upset. His efforts almost paid off when a deflected John Parker Wilson pass hung for what seemed like days in the air before falling to the turf. It could have been an easy six and a leg up in a game that Auburn didn’t have much chance of winning. In return for such performances, Tommy Tuberville had promised Durst a scholarship, saying he had done enough to earn a scholarship spot on the team. But apparently, Chizik needed the scholarship to usher in more grade-A talent on the Plains, leaving a college student in a lurch (as Evan Woodbery reports in the Mobile Press-Register today).

Losing an All-SEC member of the Auburn “fambly,” then your best punter in one week. Hmm. Watching last season, it was abundantly clear that Auburn didn’t have many playmakers on offense. And watching the recruiting horizon, it doesn’t appear anything better is on the way. Doesn’t that mean they kind of needed a good punter? Not a good move.

When Chizik was hired, one of the comments that you heard continually from the press close to the Iowa State program centered around the questionable, sometimes mindless decisions that he made. Looks like he’s brought that bag with him from Ames.

13 thoughts on “Chizik’s decision making uncanny”

  1. I’m certainly not gonna defend anybody’s actions at Auburn for the way Willis was handled. But you might want to dig a little deeper before you start talking about Durst. Durst said himself that he respected the coaches’ decision, but that he couldn’t afford to stay in school without working if he wasn’t on scholarship. Auburn already has one other punter on scholarship, and I don’t know too many teams that have two punters on scholarship. Finally, your comment that Auburn no longer has a good punter is ridiculous. Durst barely beat out Ryan Shoemaker last year, who was all SEC as a freshman in 2007. Shoemaker still has 2 years of eligibility left, so AU is fine in the punting dept. If Chizik had to choose between giving another scholarship to a punter or to a good WR, that’s the easiest decision he’ll ever have to make at Auburn.

    Gee ITK, you’ve written 4 articles in the past 3 days, and all of them have been about Auburn, or what Auburn should think about Lance Thompson. You do realize that Bama just finished a 12-2 season, and is about to sign a top 5 recruiting class dontcha?? And you say AU fans are “aubsessed”??

  2. julio – Durst did say he respected the coaches decision but he also felt like he earned and deserved a scholarship and your former coach did as well. If you’ll remember also, the game Durst had to come out of the game and Shoemaker came in to replace him, Shoemaker was terrible.

  3. It’s good to have fans, and you’re my biggest, Julio. Thank you for reading my stuff visiting capstonereport.com as often as you do.

    Stay in School!

    Signed,
    intheknow72

    P.S. – I have noticed, but its fun making fun of Auburn. Gonna be a long, fun offseason!

  4. I have to agree with some of the others. I’m seeing way too much commentary lately about what Auburn’s doing. I don’t really care. Willis coming over is quite newsworthy, but how Chizik handles his punters is not.

    I liked this blog a lot more when Shane and ITK weren’t posting.

  5. Looks like ITK is following In OL SHANES footsteps! He is writing more and more on this site and MOST of it is AUbsessed!
    Keep it up its funny to read and one day you may look back and see just how embarrased you should be! AUbsessed… I love it!!!

  6. Anything football related in this state is relevant. In their streak, Auburn fans took tackiness to a new level. It is simply time to reap what they’ve sown.
    My focus will turn to either school whenever relevant information comes to play. Negative AU news just has been in the forefront this week, so naturally I’ve commented on it. Trust me, BAMAToNE, if you were really an Alabama fan (and not Julio logging in under another alias), you wouldn’t be complaining.

  7. Damn are we really gonna go back to accusations about AUbbies loggin in as assumed names? I think its been proven its the damn bummers who do it! But hang on ITK you may find that nut one day you blind DUMAS

  8. Don’t worry Omni…unlike that nut job tmc, ITK is close enough with Cappy that he knows I don’t log in under any names besides my own. It makes for ggod banter for him to say otherwise, though.

  9. Chizik is in way over his head and somebody please throw chizik a freakin rope. no…..wait….he would probably trip over it.

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