Reasons Auburn football’s offensive line is among the top five position groups before spring practice
Though Auburn’s roster appears to be set for the foreseeable future, the portal will reopen in April. The Tigers will start spring practice on February 27 and end it on April 6 with A-Day. The top five positions that Freeze may rely on in 2024 are listed below, in ascending order:
5. The corner back
It will be difficult to lose DJ James and Nehemiah Pritchett to the NFL, but the Tigers seem resilient enough to weather the loss of their reliable outside tandem. The two starting boundary CBs, sophomore Kayin Lee and senior Keionte Scott, both have experience.
According to Pro Football Focus, during his true freshman year in 2023, Lee played 87.2% of his 336 defensive snaps on the outside, and in his two years at Auburn, Scott has had almost 1,100 defensive repetitions. Although Scott has spent the most of his time on the Plains playing in the nickel, he stated in December that returning to the boundary is the plan.
Slot Corner is now vacant, and Champ Anthony, a former junior college standout, is most likely to fill it. Guys like redshirt sophomore JD Rhym and Alabama transfer Antonio Kite are expected to provide depth behind those three players.
4. A line of offensive
Auburn’s offensive line, which has seen significant upheaval since Freeze was hired in November 2022, makes for perhaps the most unexpected inclusion in the top five. There are just three guys left on the roster that OL coach Jake Thornton inherited: Jeremiah Wright, Tate Johnson, and EJ Harris. The Tigers added four players this offseason.
Percy Lewis, a transfer from Mississippi State, is expected to be the first of those arrivals at left tackle. That would enable 6-foot-3 Dillon Wade to kick inside to guard close to center Connor Lew. The only starting position left to fill is guard opposite Wade, where Izavion Miller will start for the second season.
3. A taut ending
During the summer, Auburn made one move at tight end: Tyler Fromm replaced Maryland transfer Rico Walker. With three years remaining on his eligibility, Walkerโa former four-star recruit in the Class of 2023โwill probably be more of an asset in the long run.
Rivaldo Fairweather, who is atop the depth chart, is the reason the Tigers will have an advantage with TE in 2024. In 2023, Fairweather had one of the greatest receiving seasons ever for a tight end at Auburn, catching 38 catches for 394 yards and six touchdowns.
2. Football Player
Eugene Asante, a linebacker, made the most jumps from 2022 to 2023 of any player on Auburn’s squad. After starting on the scout team, Asante became one of the Tigers’ most valuable defensive players, amassing 86 total tackles, five sacks, a pass deflection, and a fumble recovery. He’s back in the middle of the court alongside Austin Keys, and year two as a starter could yield even better results.
Dorian Mausi, a Duke transfer, will probably make his way into the two-deep rotation, but the Tigers might employ a rookie like DJ Barber or Demarcus Riddick to fill in at the position.
At Jordan-Hare Stadium in Auburn, Alabama, on Saturday, October 28, 2023, Auburn Tigers linebacker Eugene Asante (9) celebrates a defensive stop during the team’s game against the Mississippi State Bulldogs. At halftime, the Auburn Tigers lead Mississippi State Bulldogs 24-3. Jake Crandall
1. Sprinting back
At the end of 2023, Jarquez Hunter was ranked as the sixth-best rusher in the SEC. The five guys in front of him are trying to make the move to the NFL or have transferred out of the conference.
All four of Auburn’s scholarship running backsโJeremiah Cobb, a redshirt sophomore; Sean Jackson, a redshirt junior; and sophomore Brian Battieโjoin Hunter. Nine hundred and ninety-nine of the 1,723 rushing yards that the five players in that group totaled last season came from Hunter.
Led by quarterbacks Robby Ashford and Payton Thorne, Auburn’s ground game finished fourth in the SEC with 189 yards per game the previous season. Tennessee (204.9), LSU (204.5), and Georgia (191.2) were the only teams that performed better.