Auburn hoping to avoid repeat of 2003

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Posted 8:10PM on Tuesday, September 6, 2005

AUBURN, Ala. (AP) The Auburn Tigers need to overcome a painful opening loss, revive the running game and develop some consistency at quarterback -- again. When faced with that scenario two years ago, the Tigers flopped badly. And now? ``I think we're handling it a lot better,'' safety Will Herring said. ``We had just these incredible expectations going into the year two years ago. Yeah, we had those expectations going into this year and we still do. ``I think we definitely learned from the adversity that we've faced in the past,'' he said. ``We're not going to sit around and sulk about this loss.'' Auburn, which opened the season ranked 16th, tumbled from the AP Top 25 with the 23-14 loss Saturday night to underdog Georgia Tech. Next up is Mississippi State; the Tigers are expected to win and begin putting their season back on track. Just like the Georgia Tech game in 2003. Even as they try to avoid dwelling on that season, Auburn players know the situation is similar, the potential pitfalls equally deep. Auburn opened the 2003 season predicted to win the Southeastern Conference title behind a much talked about running game but opened with a humbling loss to Southern California. All the problems that plagued the Tigers in that game were supposed to be corrected heading into the following week against Georgia Tech. They weren't, as evidenced by a 17-3 defeat. The Tigers managed just 40 rushing yards in that game two years ago, and only 10 more in the rematch. Quarterback Jason Campbell couldn't shoulder the load by himself at the time and neither could first-time starter Brandon Cox, who had four interceptions and a fumble in the attempt Saturday night while throwing for 342 yards. ``It kind of has the same feel,'' acknowledges tailback Tre Smith. But the Tigers insist they have a different outlook this time and aren't going to have a weeklong hangover, even though their 15-game winning streak is over. Coach Tommy Tuberville referred only indirectly to that 2003 game in his news conference Tuesday as a lesson on how not to respond to a tough loss. ``We've looked back before after a loss early in the season and didn't play well the next week,'' Tuberville said. ``That's not going to happen this week. We're going to play well.'' For the Tigers, that means starting stronger, cutting down the turnovers and other mistakes like five illegal procedure penalties and getting Smith and fellow runners Carl Stewart and Kenny Irons more involved in the gameplan. But Tuberville doesn't stop there. ``Every aspect of our game has to improve, every player has to improve,'' he said. ``We have the potential to have a good football team but potential only goes so far.'' Marcus McNeill doesn't think there's much comparison with this team and the one two years ago, particularly since the Bulldogs opened strong with a 38-6 win over Murray State. ``It's real different,'' the offensive tackle said. ``We were all real down after we lost that first game against USC a couple of years ago, and we really weren't looking forward to the Georgia Tech game. I feel like we have a lot more respect for this Mississippi State team.'' Receiver Courtney Taylor isn't sure what exactly caused the Georgia Tech letdown, but for whatever reason he said the Tigers came out ``flat.'' Now, he said they're more focused on fixing problems than having lost the game. TIGER TALES: Tuberville said backup defensive tackle (right ankle) is the only player questionable for the Mississippi State game because of injury. Tuberville said Thompson could return to practice on a limited basis Wednesday. (Copyright 2005 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)