Link sAUsage -- April 25, 2012

Gus Malzahn has taken the Tiger Prowl recruiting tool to Arkansas State and renamed it the A-State Ambush. The secondary NCAA violations can't be too far away.

Auburn basketball hosted two recruits over the A-Day weekend, but it appears that both have signed with other schools. Back to the drawing board for Tony Barbee.

Offensive coordinator Scot Loeffler tried to explain his philosophy and shed some light on what Auburn's 2012 offense might look like in a recent Q and A.

In case you missed it, the Auburn Villager reports that residents of the Loveliest Village enjoy higher satisfaction than the national average. No surprise there.

In a ranking of the SEC's offensive guards, Auburn's John Sullen checks in at No. 11. 

Link sAUsage -- April 24, 2012

Gene Chizik answered a few questions at this morning's SEC coaches' teleconference and said that he believes Auburn is closer to having an offensive identity. He also likes the strides that quarterback Kiehl Frazier has made. Related: If Frazier is healthy and isn't the starter against Clemson, we'll be stunned.

Chizik believes the Clemson game will be a great test for this Auburn team. Frankly, if the offense can't put up some solid numbers against a defense that gave up 70 in its last game, we should consider it a major failure.

Chizik's decision to introduce NFL verbiage into his team's offensive and defensive schemes was a smart one.

The Auburn staff is making a hard push for 4-star tight end and Alabama commit O.J. Howard, which is just despicable, right Nick Saban?

For any Auburn fans hoping the Tigers will break out orange jerseys at some point in time, we hope this photo changes your mind.

Mississippi State will be wearing white alternate uniforms for its game against Texas A&M on Nov. 8. State is an Adidas school now, and because it was a Nike school at the time that it wore the uniform inspiring the alternates, the Bulldogs won't be able to use the helmet logo from that uniform. Apparently, Nike claims ownership of that logo. This is a prime example of why a school shouldn't get too cozy with any uniform supplier.

No. 128 in Barrett Salee's countdown of the SEC's best players going into 2012 is none other than Auburn offensive lineman Chad Slade.

Link sAUsage -- April 18, 2012

Dee Liner, the top prospect in Auburn's 2013 recruiting class and best-named defensive lineman ever -- recently took a visit to Tuscaloosa. Fear not, Liner assures Auburn fans that he is still firmly committed to the Tigers.

After taking a look at a projected football depth chart, we can't help but feel pretty good about most areas going into the fall. The one exception: linebacker. Auburn desperately needs someone to have a breakout year at that position.

What can we take away from Auburn's spring practice? If you ask Gene Chizik, nothing. You shouldn't pay attention to A-Day's stats, reps or anything else. But if you must deduce something from the last two weeks, know that Auburn's practices felt more like NFL practices and no one's job is safe.

No matter what you take away from spring practice, lingering questions certainly remain.

Cam Newton has made it all the way to the final of the Madden Cover Bracket. Cam now faces Detroit Lions wide receiver Calvin Johnson, and the winner earns a spot on the Madden 13 cover.

We've seen SEC teams ranked based on traditions, uniforms, stadiums, etc. It only makes sense to rank them based on their fan bases' sanity levels. Comparing Auburn to Pete Campbell makes plenty of sense. We're successful, but we want so much more, and that tends to drive us over the edge.

Despite a dismal weekend in Nashville, Auburn baseball didn't suffer too much in the stats department. The wins-and-losses department? That's another story.

For the third time this year, men's track and field standout Harry Adams has been named SEC runner of the week. 

LSU has released artist renderings of its proposed stadium expansion, which would increase capacity to more than 100,000. The thought of 100,000 fans in Tiger Stadium is absolutely terrifying. 

Link sAUsage -- April 17, 2012

Former quarterback Barrett Trotter was interviewed by The Sporting News about his time at Auburn and his reasons for leaving. Trotter comes across as pretty bitter over his benching last season.

Even though there isn't a running back on Auburn's current roster nearly as talented as Mike Dyer, the Tigers are much better off without him.

Spring practice is over on the Plains, which means the Tigers are getting ready for summer workouts. Auburn fans should get ready for zero significant football news until fall camp begins in August.

It's not often one gets to see color photos from the 1959 season, but these shots from the '59 Tennessee game show what old-school Auburn football really looked like.

Marcus Lattimore, who missed six South Carolina games last season with a blown-out knee, has learned how to condition better and stay healthier. We're glad Auburn has seen the last of Lattimore -- at least in the regular season.

Missouri might not be the only SEC team sporting new uniform elements in the fall. These Ole Miss helmets have been making the internet rounds over the last 24 hours, but no one knows if they're legit or not. The grey version is pretty meh, but the powder blue is an absolute beaut.

Link sAUsage -- April 16, 2012

Spring football practice has come and gone, and head coach Gene Chizik offered up some pretty standard coach speak. Chizik said the team is still too inconsistent, but that he's happy with the progress that has been made.

Missouri unveiled its new football unis over the weekend, and despite being uniform traditionalists, we don't think they look too bad.

College and Magnolia contributor Ross Collings provides A-Day observations from across the Atlantic.

It was a bit of a rough weekend for Auburn sports other than football: Women's tennis fell to Alabama, baseball dropped two of three at Vanderbilt, and softball was swept at No. 3 Florida. 

On a more positive note, men's tennis defeated Alabama.

Junior Blayne Barber has been named a semifinalist for the Ben Hogan Award, which is awarded to the top men's collegiate golfer. It's the second straight year Barber has been named a semifinalist for the award.

Link sAUsage -- April 13, 2012

Fans attending A-Day on Saturday will have a chance to see every quarterback on Auburn's roster, as offensive coordinator Scot Loeffler claims Kiehl Frazier, Clint Moseley and Zeke Pike will likely all get their share of first-team snaps.

Bobby Lowder is no longer a member of the Auburn University Board of Trustees, a fact that has many Auburn people smiling. But would Auburn athletics be where they are today without Lowder?

Offensive lineman Shon Coleman, who is back at practice after a two-year battle with leukemia, recently answered a few questions about his ordeal. Coleman wants to compete for playing time in fall camp, which would just be spectacular.

The Toomer's Corner eagles are back atop their perches at the intersection of College and Magnolia -- hey, that's the name of this blog!

It seems that the folks at Tiger Rags looked into their crystal ball in 2010 and foresaw the events leading up to Bobby Petrino's firing at Arkansas.

Link sAUsage -- April 12, 2012

We feared the worst when pitcher Will Kendall left Saturday's game against Alabama with an elbow injury, and the worst has come to fruition. Kendall will miss the remainder of the season after surgery on his injured left elbow. Jon Luke Jacobs will take his spot in the weekend rotation.

Mike Dyer admits that he made some mistakes while he was at Auburn. After reading his testimony from the Antonio Goodwin trial, we probably don't need to file this in the department of breaking news.

After a few positive updates on the Toomer's Oaks, it appears that we all may have gotten our hopes up too soon. As always, go to hell, Harvey Updyke.

While the prospect of A-Day is exciting, that excitement tends to wear off pretty quickly.

You've probably read plenty of A-Day previews from folks close to the action. Here's an A-Day preview from across the pond.

In a countdown of the SEC's top 150 players going into 2012, Auburn kicker Cody Parkey lands at No. 140.

Texas A&M has shown that it doesn't really care about tradition -- letting the rivalry with Texas die, moving to a conference with which it has no history, etc. -- so it shouldn't be a surprise that the Aggies are considering tearing down their 85-year-old stadium, Kyle Field.

The fifth-ranked Auburn equestrian team begins competition at the National Championships in Waco, Texas, today. The Tigers are looking to defend their 2011 national title.

Link sAUsage -- April 11, 2012

Mike Dyer was back in Auburn on Wednesday to testify that his gun was used in the armed robbery allegedly committed by Antonio Goodwin, Dakota Mosley, Mike McNeil and Shaun Kitchens. Despite what some Auburn fans think, yes, this is news.

In much happier news, offensive lineman Shon Coleman made his practice debut during Wednesday's session. Coleman was a 5-star recruit who signed in 2010, but he's been battling leukemia for the past two years. Even if Coleman never plays a down for Auburn, this is a great day.

Former All-American linebacker Kurt Crain died on Tuesday, apparently of a self-inflicted gunshot wound. These words express our feelings on that terrible news.

The Heisman statues aren't the only pieces of hardware coming to the Plains. The eagle statues are making their return to Toomer's Corner a refurbishment project in Washington D.C. 

All Cam does is win: The former Auburn quarterback has been voted into the Final Four of the EA Sports Madden cover bracket. Newton's next opponent is San Francisco 49ers linebacker and former Ole Miss star Patrick Willis.

In case you had any doubts, a look at Auburn's stats from its series against Alabama shows just how bad the Tigers were in Tuscaloosa.