This is the way the season ends and the questions intensify for Gus Malzahn and Auburn. With an Outback Bowl performance marked by one bloomin' embarrassment after another.
With a 34 31 overtime loss to a Wisconsin team coming off a 59 0 defeat in the Big Ten Championship Game.
With a second loss this season to a team with a 59 0 defeat on its resume. Texas AM says hi.
With a blown fourth quarter lead for the second straight game.
And still defeat could've been avoided if only the Malzahn led offense the team's lone bright spot would've driven 25 yards to a touchdown on its overtime possession after the defense held Wisconsin to a field goal.
Instead the offense went backwards on three questionable play calls the kicker missed his second field goal try of the game and the Tigers limped into the off season with an 8 5 record.
If you're scoring at home that's four losses in the last five games. It's Malzahn's second bowl loss in two postseason games as the Auburn head coach both by the same 34 31 score. It's one more reason to mention again that Malzahn's third season as the boss on the Plains will be his most important yet.
The lone bright spot for Auburn fans That 8 5 finish means Nick Saban still has never beaten an Auburn team that finished with nine or more wins. But even that's nothing more than fool's gold.
What it really means is Auburn just bolstered its reputation as a rollercoaster of a college football program that has all kinds of trouble sustaining success as a championship contender.
Now comes the difficult task of replacing some very important players. The most productive Tigers on Thursday quarterback Nick Marshall and running back Cameron Artis Payne both played their final games in an Auburn uniform.
Marshall added to an impressive two year legacy completing 15 of 22 passes for 217 yards and two touchdowns. He may not be an NFL quarterback but he gave the Tigers more at that position than anyone had a right to expect from the converted defensive back
Artis Payne carried 26 times for 126 yards and two touchdowns. He finished the year with 1 608 rushing yards passing Rudi Johnson for third on the school's single season list behind Tre Mason and Bo Jackson and he may go down as the most underrated player in Auburn history.
But as has been the case too many times under Malzahn the offense wasn't quite good enough to overcome a hide your eyes performance by the defense.
Auburn knew Wisconsin would run the ball with Heisman runner up Melvin Gordon leading the way and still proved powerless to stop it. Gordon set a record for an Auburn opponent carrying 34 times for 251 yards and three touchdowns. All told the Badgers rushed for 400 yards.
The low point of the season for a defense that got Ellis Johnson fired and Will Muschamp hired came on fourth and 1 late in the third quarter. Gordon ran through a Grand Canyon between the tackles hit the gas and ran away for a 53 yard score.
Muschamp has his work cut out for him. Each of Auburn's last seven FBS opponents scored at least 31 points. Malzahn has work to do too. His offense failed late in close games against Texas AM Alabama and Wisconsin.
Overall there's no other way to view Malzahn's encore season than as a howling disappointment putting him at a bit of a crossroads heading into Year Three. It's too early to know but not too early to ask Where will he and the Tigers go from here
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