The Arkansas Razorbacks walked into Jordan-Hare Stadium on a four game losing steak.  They had lost their two SEC contests by a score of 110-10.  For a struggling Auburn offense, a game against the SEC’s worst defense looked like just what the doctor ordered.

     What a misdiagnosis.

     The Tigers were never really in the game and were dominated by Arkansas to the tune of 24-7.

     The Razorbacks defense was giving up an average of more than forty points per game.  Auburn managed just seven.

     The Hogs had totaled just seven sacks in the first five games of the season.  Auburn gave up eight.

     To say that Arkansas came into the game in disarray would be an understatement.  To say that Auburn left the game in any better condition would be a lie.

     The Tigers now own a 1-4 record, their worst start since losing five of their first six games in 1998.

     For a program just two years removed from winning the national championship there are now more questions than answers.  We’ll start with the most basic ones.  Where are the biggest issues?  Do they have the right leadership to get there?

     The most glaring issues are on the offensive side of the ball.  The Tigers average a meager 15.4 points per game.  That’s not only the worst in the conference, but is more than five points per game less than next-to-last Kentucky.

     The quarterback position gets much of the blame and deservedly so.  The Tigers rank next-to-last in the league in passing yardage, averaging just 172 yards per game.  But, the problems are much deeper.

     The running game is just as bad.  The Tigers average 130.4 yards per game on the ground.  Only Kentucky and Arkansas produce lower rushing numbers.

     To be fair, Auburn is an offense in transition in some respects.  When Gus Malzahn took the head coaching job at Arkansas State, Gene Chizik abandoned the spread offense for a more traditional pro-set formation.  It’s a move that could prove to be a good one in the long-term, but each philosophy requires the right personnel to run it effectively.

     Florida went through similar offensive woes last year under new coach Will Muschamp.  One year into the transition, the Gators are undefeated and look like serious contenders for the Eastern Division and maybe more.

     Quarterback Kiehl Frazier is a product of the spread formation and until this year had never even taken a snap under center.  There’s little doubt that he would be more productive in a spread offense that he is more familiar with.

     Frazier was pulled at halftime Saturday and backup Clint Moseley was given an opportunity to run the offense for the first time this season.  Moseley has battled a shoulder injury since last year.  Only in the last couple of weeks has that injury improved enough to make Moseley a viable option.

     Moseley did move the offense at times and led the Tigers to their only score of the game.  In the end, though, neither quarterback could do enough to get the Auburn offense on track.  Moseley, like Frazier, was sacked four times.  He also threw two interceptions in the red zone.  Frazier was picked once during the first half of play.

     Who will lead the offense is anyone’s guess at this point.

     “We just felt like we needed a spark,” Chizik said. “That doesn’t mean that’s the way it’s going to stay, but at the time we felt like we needed something different.”

     Something different, indeed.

     The time has come for Gene Chizik to show that he is the right man to lead the Auburn program.  Yes, Chizik is just two years removed from the national title.  He has a record of 31-14 as Auburn’s head man.  His record drops to just 17-14 without Cam Newton running his offense, though.  His SEC record without Newton?  Seven wins, twelve losses.

     The fact is, without Newton, Chizik is looking very much like the coach that brought with him a 5-19 record from Iowa State.

     Now Auburn turns its attention to an Ole Miss team that hasn’t won an SEC game in more than two years.

     The Rebels looked like they had a victory in the bag against first-year SEC opponent Texas A&M Saturday night.  They had a 10 point lead in the fourth quarter, but let it slip away.

     The Ole Miss offense averages 31.3 points per game, more than twice the points Auburn is putting on the board.

     Defensively, the two teams have put up similar numbers.  The Rebels are allowing 27.7 points per game compared to Auburn’s 23.6.  Ole Miss has seven interceptions, though, compared to Auburn’s one.

     The only numbers that will matter Saturday will be the ones on the scoreboard.

     A dose of Arkansas clearly wasn’t the right medicine for this Auburn team.  If an Ole Miss team on a sixteen game SEC losing streak isn’t the remedy, it may be time to pull the plug.