Auburn Is All In -- Hot Water

"All in" is gambling terminology. That has been Auburn's pet slogan all year and is exactly what they are doing. Gambling their reputation at a National level. Gambling their fans trust, their Coaches future, their athletic future, a 10-0 season and the hard work of 104 football players not named Cam Newton.

They are pushing in all their chips on the word of a kid who was charged with three felonies and accused of three separate instances of academic cheating.

"All in" on the word of a Pastor/Bishop (does that ever turn out good?) who runs a dilapidated church on the outskirts of Atlanta that was just recently taken off of the demolition list by the city of Newnan after suddenly, and without explanation by its Pastor Cecil Newton, coming up with $50,000 to make repairs after being dogged by the city for years.

All in is usually a sure bet or a bluff and is not played by someone holding a pair of 4's. In this game Coach Gene Chizik is that someone and he will either be a hero or a villain to the Auburn faithful. Yesterday in Dallas, Kenny Rogers told ESPN that Cecil Newton stated that it would take between $100,000 and $180,000 to sign Cam. If that story is corroborated by Mississippi State coaches as stated in Joe Schad's report earlier in the week, Auburn is in hot water.

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Covering this story has been like trying to jump on a movingmerry-go-round or merging into highway traffic. Today, former MSU QB John Bond met with the FBI. Gene Chizik and Auburn Athletic Director Jay Jacobs met with the NCAA regarding the eligibility of Cam Newton. When asked by Joe Schad about the results of that meeting Jacobs said "we cannot comment on that." The attorney for Kenny Rogers was quoted as saying "Kenny Rogers has had contact with other Auburn players in the past." He also indicated that he was not referring to Cam Newton.

If Auburn beats Georgia tomorrow, they win the SEC West. If not, they have to beat Alabama in Tuscaloosa to win it. Although that game is two weeks away I will emphatically state that there is a better chance of a little leaguer taking Tim Lincecum deep than Auburn beating Bama in Tuscaloosa without Cam Newton. So Coach Chizik has a decision to make - play him or not play him.

It is my opinion that the decision has been made but we will not know until kickoff tomorrow at 3:30 EST. No need to give Georgia coaches time to prepare an alternate defensive plan.

Can Auburn beat Georgia with Cam? Easily. Can they beat them without Cam? My answer to that is very simple - without Cam Auburn would not have beaten Mississippi State, Clemson, South Carolina, LSU, Arkansas or even Kentucky. So, no. Auburn fans have told anyone who will listen that they are not a one man team. Tomorrow we may get to find out.

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