"George is getting frustrated!"

Exasperated? Frustrated? Beleagured? Just tired? Well, you are probably not alone, Auburn fans. The good news: Auburn (4-1, 2-1) managed to hold on for a 14-12 victory against the Tennessee Volunteers (1-3, 0-2). T he loss has Tennessee off to its worst start since 1994. The bad news: Auburn's offense is still not producing the yardage and point totals that many predicted before the season began. In fact, Auburn's defense accounted for as many points as the offense. Jake Ricks' fumble recovery in the end zone in the 2nd quarter proved to be the difference-maker. This is probably not what Tommy Tuberville imagined when he signed up for "The Tony Franklin System." Auburn's offense managed only 226 total yards (129 passing, 97 rushing) and 7 points. Penalties were again a problem. The Tigers were flagged 9 times. Despite the struggles on offense, the Auburn defense played its best in the 4th quarter.

The Volunteers began their last 6 offensive drives near midfield or in Auburn territory and scored on only one possession. The other 5 ended in a 3-and-out for the Auburn defense. The defense held Jonathan Crompton to 8 of 23 passing for 67 yards. Montario Hardesty was the Vols' leading rusher with 35 yards on 10 carries. Auburn held the Volunteers to 4 of 16 on 3rd down conversions.

Frustration for Auburn fans (at least this Auburn fan) centers on two areas: the quarterback and the offensive line. Chris Todd's arm looked weak, and his accuracy was poor. Todd went 14 of 23 for 96 yards, with 1 touchdown and 1 interception against Tennessee. Todd appeared to make several poor decisions, often throwing into congested areas with multiple defenders surrounding the Auburn receiver. Kodi Burns was not much better, completing 4 of 6 passes for 36 yards. Most of Burns' plays, however, were designed runs that did not appear to catch the Vols' defense off guard. The offensive line was again plagued by false-starts and holding penalties. Left tackle Lee Ziemba has been particularly prone to committing penalties this season.

Auburn will have to work hard to correct its mistakes as they prepare to travel to Nashville to take on the 19th-ranked Vanderbilt Commodores. Vanderbilt enters the game 4-0 (2-0). ESPN's College Gameday will be on the scene, too. The kickoff is scheduled for 6 PM (Eastern) on ESPN. The early line has Auburn as a 4.5-point favorite. The Weekly Preview will have more on this game throughtout the week as we countdown to Saturday.