Russell Wilson and Auburn

Interesting news out of Auburn with Russell Wilson supposedly visiting The Plains, though that info appears to be in some question.

According to this report, our friends at the Auburn Rivals site had a different take.

"It's a job interview," the source close to Wilson told ESPN.com. "He's trying to figure out what to do with the rest of his life."

However AuburnSports.com reported, in the form of a message-board entry, that Wilson was not in town.

"He is not visiting Auburn today," the post said. "Not sure where that got started, but it is inaccurate."

Who knows the truth, but let's do what we're supposed to do these days and spend some time speculating about Wilson's potential impact in Gus Malzahn's offense.

I've made no secret of the fact that I'm a fan of Wilson and believe he could be sensational in an offense with high-level talent around him. I thought he'd have been a perfect fit at South Carolina because of the complementary horses at running back and receiver, and because there doesn't appear to be much difference between the Gamecocks' offense and the one he ran at N.C. State.

Auburn and Malzahn would be a different story because Wilson would have to learn a whole new offense, and do it during a limited time frame.

Chris Todd did pretty well in that system in 2009, and here's what he told ESPN.com about the learning curve:

"It's possible to have success in the offense starting out in the summer. It's not an easy feat to accomplish. But it can be done. You would really have to take the time to learn all the route combinations and protections. But what Malzahn does is really simplifies it for a quarterback by going over things so many times the week of the game you feel prepared enough to go as fast as you need.

"To play in that offense would be an opportunity that would be hard to pass up. It's proven itself."

Malzahn has created a monster with an offense that was completely unstoppable last year with Cam Newton running the show. The ability to apply stress to defenses both horizontally and vertically, and to do it at a breakneck tempo, has defensive coordinators pulling their hair out.

But the real brilliance -- and one of the reasons Clemson fans should be excited about the presence of Chad Morris -- could be the adaptability of this system. Todd wasn't a running threat at all in 2009, yet Auburn still averaged 33.3 points and more than 200 rushing yards per game that year before Newton's arrival.

Last year, Malzahn accentuated Newton's punishing running ability by incorporating a heavy dose of between-the-tackles quarterback runs (draws, counters, powers) that made Auburn virtually unstoppable on third down.

I'd imagine Wilson could ultimately be a deadly weapon in Malzahn's offense, just not necessarily in the ways Newton was. He's the jitterbug type who's excellent at throwing accurately on the run, so the assumption here is that Malzahn would incorporate a lot of stuff to get him on the perimeter and probably wouldn't pound him between the tackles.

Some offenses, such as Paul Johson's flexbone or Steve Spurrier's old Fun 'N' Gun, force the talent to adapt to the system. Malzahn's system seems less rigid and more capable of adapting to the talent.

The big question is: How long will it take Wilson to learn? Newton didn't master it right away, as evidenced by some struggles last spring and Malzhn's conservative approach early last season.

Could be a chore at first, but you have to think this could be a formidable combination eventually in 2011 -- assuming it happens, of course.

By the way, interesting story here on the reaction from the Asheville Tourists.

A fourth-round pick of the Colorado Rockies in the 2010 draft, who received a $250,000 signing bonus, Wilson would have to give some of that back if he left the Tourists before the end of this season to play college football.

“It's a significant portion he would have to return,” said Marc Gustafson, the Rockies' senior director of player development.

Gustafson also said it would be difficult for Wilson, who is struggling offensively with the Tourists, to return to baseball if he played football this fall.

“It would be hard for him to come back to baseball because he would miss a lot of games and have had so much time away,” Gustafson said.

Wilson is hitting .216 in 38 games with Asheville with 53 strikeouts in 116 at-bats. In 230 at-bats as a pro, Wilson has struck out 89 times.

Wilson, who recently turned down an interview request because he said he wouldn't talk about football, informed the Rockies that he was visiting Auburn.

“He called (Monday night) and said a lot of (college football) teams were courting him,” Gustafson said. “He said he doesn't know what he wants to do, so right now, it's all speculation.”

LW