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SPORTS REPORT
Back in December of 2003, Tuberville was nearly doublecrossed by big-time Auburn boosters and school officials who took a flight to Louisville to talk to then Cardinal Coach Bobby Petrino about taking over for the struggling Tuberville. At the time he had a 30-21 record at Auburn and was heading into the Alabama game with a 6-5 mark with the weight of "Jet-gate" on his shoulders. He went on to beat Alabama 28-23 and has rallied off an amazing 39-8 record since that day including a 14-0 mark the following year in '04. Tuberville has beaten Alabama five straight times and will have a chance of doing what no other Auburn coach in the history of the Iron Bowl has done come Nov. 24; beat Alabama six straight times in the heated series. But will it be his last? There is no question of whether Tuberville likes Auburn or whether he just got through building a new house or any of the other reasons Auburn fans are spitting out by the dozens. The bottom line comes to job security and money. Does he have that at Auburn? He makes over $2 million a year but his counterpart in Tuscaloosa is tipping the $4 million mark each year. And job security, sure he is safe right now but lose a few games and let's talk again. Bobby Lowder is one of the biggest boosters in collegiate athletics. Tuberville and Lowder are not the closest of friends either. Tuberville is upset that Lowder boarded that plane to Louisville and Lowder is bitter that he was caught. Believe it or not, but there is a grudge between those two. Now whether it will lead to Tuberville leaving Auburn is another situation. He has built this program from scratch and done it the right way. He is a great recruiter and has owned the state over the last few years. But with Saban in Tuscaloosa, that is no longer a given. If you are one of the ones who ask why would he leave Auburn to go to Texas A$M then I ask you this question, "Why would Dennis Francione leave Alabama for the dump that is Texas A$M?" My only guess would be the money because Auburn and Alabama are both higher profile and overall better jobs in my opinion. So what will Tuberville do when (it is only a matter of time) A$M calls to speak to him about their opening in College Station? One thing to keep in mind is Tuberville's agent is none other than Jimmy Sexton. The same agent as Saban, Houston Nutt, Steve Spurrior and Phillip Fulmer to name a few. What does this mean? It means that he is very good at his job. Sexton is always lobbying for more money and keeping his clients' names at the front of every major coaching search. My money will be that Tuberville scares Auburn just enough to fork out some mega bucks and make his salary comparable to the salary of Alabama's Saban. Now if the Auburn brain trust fumbles then watch out. Former Alabama Coach Gene Stallings in on the board of regents at A$M and is very high on the Auburn coach. No matter what happens in the coming weeks it appears that Tuberville is finally in a win-win situation.
What other coach in the SEC deserves it more than Tommy Tuberville?
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