A translation of Gene Chizik's word

The following comments came from former Iowa State football coach Gene Chizik Friday at the Southeastern Conference's Media Day. Or Days, rather. It's a 3-day event that hosted 1,000 media people.

Chizik: Thank you. It's obviously an honor and a blessing to be here today at my first SEC Media Day. …

(My response: You went 0-8 in the Big 12 last year at Iowa State. An honor, yes. A blessing? You better believe it.)

Chizik: Our football team has really worked this summer extremely hard. Obviously everything's on a voluntary basis.

(Me:  Sure. All summer workouts are purely on a “volunteer basis” at all major-college football programs.)

Chizik: And so it's an exciting time for me personally here at Auburn. It's an exciting time for our fans. And it's gonna be kind of a new beginning.

(Me: It better be a new beginning for you. You go 5-19 your first two years at Auburn, and you'll never see a third SEC Media Day.)

Chizik: We feel like we've assembled one of the best coaching staffs in the country, certainly in this league, that's what you have to do.

(Me: You have to do it everywhere, Gene. Why didn't you do it at Iowa State?)

Chizik: Hey, this league is as good as it gets. It's the best in the country.

(Me: So you were 0-8 in a league that wasn't the best in the country?)

Chizik: The Big 12 is leaps and bounds better than it was, let's say, five years ago, in my opinion, top to bottom. So I think it's made some significant strides in being able to claim it as one of the best conferences in the country. And it certainly is.

(Me: Oh, that explains the 0-8.)

Chizik: I feel like we have the greatest fans on the planet. I'm sure every head coach is going to stand up here and say the same about their institution as well. But, again, I'll go back to, I've lived (at) Auburn for three years of my life, and the fans are just off the chart.

(Me: Man, I can't wait to listen to the 11 coaches at the Big Ten's media day in Chicago this Monday. Excited about the coming season, the league is going to be incredibly tough, our fans are off the chart, lather, rinse, repeat.)

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