STARKVILLE, Miss. — Paul Rhoads likes to look people in the eyes.
He can tell a lot about someone by what he sees in there.
Saturday against Mississippi State, Rhoads loved what was staring back at him when he looked at his defense.
“Usually, you have a pretty good feel when you see their eyes in the huddle before they take the field in that situation,” Auburn’s first-year defensive coordinator said, “and we had good eyes all night long.”
Believe it.
Saturday night at the fights … er, Davis-Wade Stadium was not for the meek. Or the timid. Or the guys who blink a lot. Or like to look away.
It was for the physical. The hard-nosed. The tough.
Auburn’s defense showed up. So did Mississippi State’s. Both offenses were late, and forgot the popcorn.
It didn’t matter. The defenses were the Main Event.
“It’s all about defense when you go on the road,” AU head coach Tommy Tuberville said.
Heck, it’s all about defense in the SEC, on the road or at home.
Auburn’s 3-2 win over Mississippi State proved that.
Forget about offense for a minute … or 60. This game wasn’t about high-flying artistry. It was about spray and finger paint. The kind that gets all over you.
It wasn’t about looking good or fooling anyone. It wasn’t about thinking. It was about hitting.
It’s not rocket science or quantum physics. When neither offense is in sync, and both teams are playing fast and physical defense, you get what you got Saturday night.
Three to two.
E=MC 2nd down-and-long.
Actually, I take that back. It is physics. When two really fast and big objects meet, there’s going to be carnage. And there was a lot Saturday night in Starkville.
Not a lot of offense. The spread was spread out. And played out.
This is the SEC. Ground-and-pound.
The shotgun? It was just a faster way to lose yardage.
It came down to big-on-big, who-wants-it-more football. So it came down to defense.
Both teams were game. Auburn just had more.
And that’s really what the SEC’s all about. Survival.
The same ol’ SEC defense. The dirty, filthy, don’t-kiss-your-mother-with-that-mouth defense.
Some thing’s never change.
Even if offenses do.
MIKE SZVETITZ is sports editor of the Opelika-Auburn News. He may be reached at mszvetitz@oanow.com or 737-2513.
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