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Paul Finebaum criticizes Jackson Arnold, assigns him blame for Auburn struggles

Grant Grubbs Profile Pictureby: Grant Grubbs9 hours agogrant_grubbs_
Jackson Arnold
Jackson Arnold (Photo: Auburn Athletics)

Auburn fans are searching for answers after starting 0-2 in conference play. During an appearance on McElroy and Cubelic in the Morning on Monday, ESPN’s Paul Finebaum blamed Auburn’s struggles on quarterback Jackson Arnold.

“It’s easy to take shots, and I understand it. We’ve all heard the same thing since Saturday afternoon, but it’s difficult to win when you have a quarterback as ineffective as Jackson Arnold,” Finebaum said. “He doesn’t make great decisions.

“I don’t have a ranking of the 16 SEC quarterbacks in front of me, but I know where he’s not, and I have a pretty good idea where he is. He’s at or near the bottom, and that’s really the problem. You can say Hugh Freeze can’t call the right play, can’t get the right movement going, but, ultimately, this quarterback makes very poor decisions.”

Jackson Arnold had a lackluster showing in Auburn’s 16-10 loss against Texas A&M on Saturday. In the defeat, Arnold completed 18-of-his-33 (54.5%) pass attempts for 125 total yards and no touchdowns.

It’s not the first time this season Arnold has failed to pile on the passing yards. In fact, Arnold is only averaging 169.2 passing yards per game this season, the second-least of all starting QBs in the SEC, only outpacing Kentucky‘s Cutter Boley.

Alas, Arnold’s game has several bright spots worth noting. Though he’s only recorded five passing touchdowns this season, he hasn’t thrown a single interception.

Most notably, Jackson Arnold is one of the most potent rushing threats of all the SEC quarterbacks. He averages the fifth most rushing yards per game among SEC gunslingers and is tied for the most rushing TDs within that group.

Nonetheless, Auburn fans won’t be satisfied with individual statistics if they don’t amount to tallies in the win column. Paul Finebaum believes Auburn has the talent to win now, but the Tigers must make a change.

“Really impressed with Auburn defense,” Finebaum said. “I know I may be saying that all the way to a .500 record, but that defense has kept them in two brutal road games in the SEC and it’s really too bad that Auburn just keeps making many mistakes offensively and can’t get very much going because I think this team is very capable of winning.”

Auburn has a bye this week to sort through its issues. On Oct. 11, the Tigers will return to the field to square off against Georgia. The game will be at Jordan-Hare Stadium.