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COLLEGE FOOTBALL: SEC Media Days
Riding the Tide

• As the SEC's Media Day got under way Wednesday, Auburn coach Tommy Tuberville was happy the focus and pressure this year was off the Tigers and placed on new Alabama coach Nick Saban and the Crimson Tide.

Colin Chmielewski

HOOVER, Ala. — Much of the focus at this year’s Southeastern Conference Media Days — as it has been for the past six months — will be on new Alabama coach Nick Saban.

In a state that is known for its football fever, nearly all the talk has been about the Tide since it lured Saban away from the Miami Dolphins.

And that's just fine with Tommy Tuberville and his Auburn Tigers.

"It's been good for us," Tuberville said Wednesday. "I know Nick's probably had a tough time, as I did my first year at Auburn, having to answer all the questions about this and that. But I've kind of enjoyed being underneath the radar for the last six months."

If there was any debate as to the imbalance between the two state powers, the amount of questions that Tuberville, quarterback Brandon Cox and defensive lineman Quentin Groves answered about their rivals ended that.

"It doesn't bother me because I like them getting all the attention," Groves said. "If everybody's eyes are on Alabama, whose eyes are on Auburn? While your eyes are on Alabama, we're over here doing what we have to do to get bigger, faster, stronger." Consider it from the Tigers' standpoint:

• They have beaten Alabama five consecutive times;
• They finished 11-2 last season and were the only team to beat national champion Florida;
• And they return seven starters from one of the SEC's best defenses.

Groves, who could have passed up his senior season to head to the NFL, is the anchor of that defense.

"He's got a lot of quickness and speed," Tuberville said. "We're proud he came back. That says a lot about his character and his attitude. He wants to win a lot of games."

With Groves leading the defensive line and safety Eric Brock and cornerback Jonathan Wilhite shoring up the secondary, the Tigers' biggest question mark might fall at linebacker.

Sophomore Tray Blackmon was suspended for six games last season and then left school for the spring semester. Tuberville has allowed him to return to the team but hasn’t decided whether the middle linebacker will play yet. While that will remain uncertain until the end of fall practice, Blackmon's skills won't.

"Tray Blackmon is one of the most productive defensive players that I've been around in a long time," the coach said. "Kind of reminded me of Ray Lewis when I coached Ray at Miami. He has a nose for the football."

If Blackmon is a question mark for the Tigers, Cox is not. The quarterback has chalked up a 19-5 record for Auburn as a starter, but suffered through some rough games last season — losses to Georgia and Arkansas — because he was injured. Both of Cox's knees were hobbled last year when he said he dropped from 205 pounds to 190. Now at 210, the senior claims to be 100 percent healthy and ready to be consistent.

"If I can stay healthy and our receivers can make plays, we can throw the ball downfield a lot more than we have in the past," Cox said. "That will help our offense get the running game going."

Tuberville made no secret of the fact that his team will continue to pound it on the ground. But without the departed Kenny Irons, it's not clear yet who will do the carrying.

"We've worked very hard the last few years at trying to have four or five running backs that we feel like can play in this league, because they get beat up," Tuberville said. "I feel very good about Brad Lester, Ben Tate, Carl Stewart, Mario Fannin and Tristan Davis."

The other major difference is that the Tigers will play Florida, LSU, Arkansas and Georgia on the road this season. But that's just another challenge that Tuberville and the Tigers welcome as they try to continue to secure their spot as one of the elite teams in the SEC.

"This league's fun when you play in these different stadiums," Tuberville said. "They're all hostile environments. If you can win on the road, that means you've really got a good football team. And we've won a lot of road games over the last five years."

Five years in which Auburn also hasn't lost to Alabama — something plenty of people seem to have forgotten right now.

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