AUBURN, Ala. -- Give star Auburn Leonardo Carson credit for one thing. He speaks his mind, regardless of the consequences.

Carson held true to form following practice on Tuesday. Only this time, his words didn't ring quite so loud in the ears of Auburn coach Tommy Tuberville.

"When something is done about what you say, it seems like what you say means something," said Carson, the Tigers' standout defensive tackle. "It just really feels good to know your word stands out so much."

Tuberville might dispute the hint of arrogance that Carson carried in his voice, but he didn't dispute Carson's message in Knoxville after Auburn's 24-0 loss to Tennessee.

Carson argued that he and his teammates were fatigued and injured, in part, because of long and strenuous practices held by the coaching staff. Tuberville acknowledged it was that time in the season where 3-1/2-hour workouts needed to be cut in half on Tuesday.

Good to his word, Tuberville practiced the Tigers for 17 five-minute sessions, or a little less than 1 1/2 hours.

"I think we were concentrating more, knowing we were going to have a shorter practice. We had a lot more spirited practice," Tuberville said.

Problem solved. Right? Perhaps, if Carson had left his initial demands on Saturday at that. But he continued with his opinions, leaving a rocky terrain of remarks behind that everyone is left to overcome.

Carson said this season seems "like a repeat" of last year's 3-8 season. He said the feeling on the team "is just not good." He said the Tigers' youth and ineffectiveness is "just hurting us. It's hurting us bad." The word "embarrassment" also found its way into his vocabulary.

Carson's attitude had been adjusted somewhat by Tuesday evening. How much Tuberville had to twist his arm is anyone's guess.

"(Tuberville) is a coach and he handled it in a professional way," Carson said. "I did talk to him and I stuck by my words, because that's the way I felt. That's the way Leo felt. He explained to me how to handle it better. I'm sorry for that -- that it got in the media and got twisted around like I was criticizing the way they coach."

And yet at the heart of Carson's initial statement was his clear disapproval of the way the players were being pushed in practice. Tuberville offered no apologies.

"I think our defense is just frustrated we're not winning games," Tuberville said. "I do agree that a lot of our guys are getting tired and that might be from some practice, but we're going to practice hard.

"I don't think we'll have that kind of comment in the paper again. As I told Leo, I need players. I don't need coaches."

Carson's comments also stirred opinions from his teammates, including senior safety Adlai Trone.

"When some guys lose, they want to point a finger," Trone said. "That's my teammate and I have total faith in him, but he might just be pointing fingers, looking for a reason that we lost instead of just accept the fact that, 'Hey, we lost.'

"With the season doing a flip-flop like it is, some guys are disappointed and let down and they want to find the blame somewhere else. Most of the players are pretty cool."

Tuberville pointed out that with shorter practices comes more work in the film room, especially with undefeated Mississippi State (5-0, 2-0 in the Southeastern Conference) on the horizon. Carson said Saturday's home game against the Bulldogs will point out which direction Auburn (3-2, 0-2 SEC) will head in the second half of the 1999 season.

"I really do feel this is going to let us know where we're going," he said.

(Jeff Lockridge writes for the Birmingham Post-Herald in Alabama.)