SZVETITZ COLUMN: Chizik in his element on the sideline

On the football field, Gene Chizik is in his element.

Not in a three-piece suit, dressed to the nines with an oversized watch dangling from his left wrist. Not in front of a camera or microphone.

Not signing autographs or talking with fans.

Sure, he does just fine in all those aspects, looking like he just strolled in from an evening on South Beach.

But he’s not at home in any of those getups, or places like he is in a colored shirt, slacks, tennis shoes and a headset around his neck, stalking the sidelines of a football field.

There he looks comfortable. Like he belongs.

If he didn’t spend a majority of his time pacing up and down, wearing out those new Under Armour kicks, he’d kick up his feet and stay awhile.

For the past eight and a half months, getting any emotion out of Chizik has been like pulling teeth. Matter of fact, it took about three months just to verify if he had them, because he didn’t smile. At least not around strangers (See: media).

It’s not like you could blame him. He had a job to do. Business. All day. Every day. No time for anything else.

Five-and-19, remember?

After Saturday’s 37-13 win over Louisiana Tech, he took some time to smile. About as long as it took him to do a postgame interview with ESPNU, hug and kiss his wife, along with a handful of family and friends, acknowledge the crowd and then disappear into the Tigers’ locker room.

When he emerged 10 minutes later in the postgame press conference in the belly of Jordan-Hare Stadium, it was back to business.

Such is life as Auburn’s head coach.

Pressure at every turn. Monkeys on every corner.

“It’s great to win your opening game,” Chizik said. “That’s certainly one of our goals — to win the opening game — but the weight on my shoulders? I have weight on my shoulders for every game. We’ve got a lot put into this. The kids have a lot put into this. So, every game is important.”

Six-and-19.

But that’s in the media room. In the papers. On the TV.

On the field?

On the field, Chizik showed more emotion on a pass interference call midway through the first quarter than he has since the first night he arrived on the Plains to a handful of boosters, Auburn officials and fans. Saturday, he channeled his inner Steve Spurrier.

He also took a couple pages from Trooper Taylor’s playbook.

Jumping up and down.

High-fiving.

Running out to the 15-yard line to bear hug Terrell Zachary after a 93-yard touchdown catch and run — the longest play in Auburn history, by the way.

Chizik was like a little kid out there.

Geney, it’s time to come in for dinner.

Aw, Mom, just one more chest bump.

That’s on the field.

Back in the press room, describing his emotions, it’s ... “I felt very blessed. I just felt prepared. I felt good going into the game. My biggest thing going in was just trying to figure out who our football team is against a good football team.“

Not too high. Not too low.

“He keeps it on even keel,” running backs coach Curtis Luper said.

Not too high, not too low: The Chizik Era.

One-and-0.

MIKE SZVETITZ is sports editor of the Opelika-Auburn News. He may be reached at mszvetitz@oanow.com or 737-2513.