Auburn head coach Gene Chizik knew the stakes were big.  If his team got the win over Mississippi State they’d be 1-1 with an SEC victory under their belts.  A loss would mean an 0-2 record that would slide them to the precipice of a disastrous season.  The Tigers better have good claws.

     With Louisiana Monroe, LSU and Arkansas on the horizon, Auburn is looking a 1-4 start right in the face.  Well, that was before Louisiana Monroe upset Arkansas Saturday night.  If Chizik’s Tigers don’t find some answers fast they’ll suffer the same fate as the Razorbacks and then 0-5 is a reality.

     Before the game, much of the attention was on Dan Mullen and the fact that the Mississippi State coach had never beaten an SEC Western Division team not named Ole Miss.  The fact that the Bulldogs had beaten Florida, Georgia and Michigan seemed to get lost in the glare of Mullen’s 3-12 record against SEC West opponents.

     After the 28-10 defeat, Chizik now finds himself in an equally frustrating position.  Talk of Chizik’s record with and without Cam Newton is gaining momentum and perhaps rightfully so.  Much was made of the 5-19 record Auburn’s then new coach brought with him from Iowa State.  But, it was Iowa State.

     Can Chizik’s record at Auburn without Newton continue to be dismissed?  You tell me.  Is 16-12 acceptable?  How about the 7-10 non-Newton SEC record?  How much does winning a national championship with Newton in 2010 soften the blow of a pair of 8-5 records in 2009 and 2011 and an 0-2 start this year?  Does Chizik have things headed in the right direction or is Auburn destined for mediocrity under his watch?

     What has to happen to get the season turned around?  Obviously, the productivity at the quarterback position must improve.  Kiehl Frazier finished the day 13 of 22 for 125 yards, but most of that came once the game was virtually over.  He had completed only 3 of 10 passes for 18 yards through three quarters.

     The offensive play calling is baffling at times.  There were a number of times Saturday that offensive coordinator Scott Loeffler had clearly lost confidence in Frazier.  Loeffler called several designed quarterback runs in passing situations.  Was he protecting his quarterback from making more mistakes by not asking him to pass in those situations?

     There’s talent on this team on both sides of the ball.  But where is the focus?  What is the identity of this team?  Chizik has recruited talent, but he hasn’t properly developed it.  Case in point:  the defensive ends.  No one can argue that Corey Lemonier and Dee Ford aren’t talented.  The problem is, they seemingly either make a huge play or get themselves totally out of position.  Chizik is a defensive coach, yet there is no consistency on the defensive side of the ball.

     That defense will be tested this week by a Louisiana-Monroe offense that threw for more than 400 yards against Arkansas.  Auburn will be facing an opponent that doesn’t just think they can beat an SEC team on the road – they know they can.

     It was no embarrassment to lose in the opening week to a good Clemson team and it was a game that Auburn was in until the end.  To lose the way they did to Mississippi Sate on Saturday, though, changed everything.  That loss turned up the pressure on the team and certainly on Gene Chizik.

     A team headed in the right direction would have shown signs of improvement between the first and second games.  No one can argue that this Auburn team did anything but regress.  Now the stakes are even higher.  

     “This is a week-by-week basis for us.  There’s new kids in positions that they’ve never been in before,” Chizik said.  “This is a new team and a new time, and it’s our job as coaches to get them refocused and redirected so that we can win a football game next week.”

     The timing might be right for Auburn to get things turned around.  Louisiana-Monroe certainly isn’t going to go unnoticed coming off the victory over Arkansas.  With LSU and Arkansas up next for the Tigers, it’s certainly not going to get any easier.