SEC News – Page 5 – Syndication Server

On3 Roundtable highlights Auburn’s playmakers at wide receiver

Who will be the Tigers’ top receiving targets in 2023?

The 2023 edition of the Auburn Tigers will look vastly different.

Auburn’s offense will see notable changes at offensive line and wide receiver. The latter position group was discussed on a recent episode of The On3 Roundtable.

Host J.D. PicKell welcomed Auburn Live’s Justin Hokanson to chat about the Tigers last week. Auburn will have several new faces lining up to catch passes from either [autotag]Robby Ashford[/autotag] or [autotag]Payton Thorne[/autotag] this season thanks to the transfer portal. Players such as [autotag]Jyaire Shorter[/autotag], [autotag]Shane Hooks[/autotag], and [autotag]Nick Mardner[/autotag] will be tall targets for Auburn’s quarterbacks, but the one transfer receiver that Hokanson is most looking forward to watching is FIU transfer [autotag]Rivaldo Fairweather[/autotag].

Fairweather comes to Auburn after reeling in 28 catches for 426 yards and three touchdowns last season at FIU and is poised to help out the Tigers at tight end.

He’s only played football for four or five years of his life, but played basketball, played soccer in high school, super athletic and super raw,” Hokanson said. “That kid’s got NFL potential written all over him. He’s going to be really interesting to see. Is he involved in just the red zone or is he involved all the way up and down the field? He’s a guy that’s going to be a big target.”

Outside of the new transfers, Auburn’s leading receiver from a season ago returns to the roster.

[autotag]Ja’Varrius Johnson[/autotag] caught 26 passes for 493 yards last season for the Tigers. Hokanson believes that Auburn’s fresh receivers will provide relief to Johnson.

“I think there’s a lot to be determined. I don’t know that there will be a premier pass catcher,” Hokanson said. “I feel like you’ve got some guys that can maybe turn into reliable guys across the board but I would probably start with those four.”

According to Pro Football Focus, three of Auburn’s top offensive players reside in the receiving corps.

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Greg McElroy reacts to Auburn’s 2024 SEC schedule

McElroy broke down each SEC team’s 2024 draw on the latest episode of his podcast “Always College Football.”

Now that the 2024 SEC schedule release has had time to marinate, college football experts from across the region have begun to share their opinions on each program’s draw.

The most recent personality to share his take on SEC team’s fates is former Alabama quarterback [autotag]Greg McElroy[/autotag]. Since hanging up his cleats, McElroy is staying busy by hosting a podcast, co-hosting a radio show in Birmingham with former Auburn lineman [autotag]Cole Cubelic[/autotag], and serving as a college football analyst on ESPN.

In a recent episode of his podcast, Always College Football, McElroy took time to break down Auburn’s 2024 draw. McElroy complimented the SEC’s work in being able to keep Alabama and Georgia on Auburn’s schedule, but went on to say that the rest of the docket was “random.”

“Look at Auburn’s schedule. There wasn’t a whole lot of consistency across the board, but you did protect their two biggest rivals. The Iron Bowl and the [Deep] South’s Oldest Rivalry, Auburn-Georgia,” McElroy said. “So, I’m glad that those two games remained. The others felt just kind of thrown together a little bit with the Auburn Tigers.”

Another topic of note regarding the SEC schedule release is the lack of several games. Auburn will not play LSU or Mississippi State next season, but several notables that McElroy mentioned in his show are Alabama-Mississippi State, South Carolina-Georgia, and Oklahoma–Texas A&M.

Check out the entire episode of Always College Football here:

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Auburn’s 2024 draw is one of the SEC’s toughest says CBS Sports

It is business as usual for Auburn as they will play yet another brutal SEC schedule in 2024.

Auburn football playing a challenging SEC slate? Color us shocked.

The 2024 SEC schedule reveal took place on Wednesday, and even without the limitations of divisional play, Auburn is still going to face a gauntlet when Oklahoma and Texas join the conference next season.

The Tigers will face their usual rivals in Alabama and Georgia next season, both on the road. Auburn will also have to travel to bowl-eligible teams in Kentucky and Missouri and will face Arkansas, Oklahoma, Texas A&M, and Vanderbilt at Jordan-Hare Stadium.

Following the schedule reveal, CBS Sports writer Barrett Sallee ranked each program’s SEC slate by difficulty and ranked Auburn’s schedule as the second toughest in the conference.

Sallee says that Auburn’s road schedule is enough by itself to warrant the high ranking.

The Tigers currently have to play rivals Alabama and Georgia on the road during even-numbered years, so their road presence on the 2024 schedule isn’t exactly a shock. However, the big news is that they’re the only SEC team to have that distinguished (sarcasm intended) honor when the Longhorns and Sooners join.

The top honor goes to Oklahoma, who will have the pleasure of playing Alabama, Tennessee, Auburn, and LSU in its initial season in the SEC. Florida checks in at No. 3 on the list, but its’ nonconference slate of Miami, UCF, and Florida State is reason enough to claim that it will have the most challenging schedule overall.

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A look at each SEC program’s top returning offensive player

Be on the lookout for these offensive stars this season!

The 2023 football will be here before you know it. Why not take this time to get to know some of the SEC’s top returning players?

There are many exciting players who will be entering the conference thanks to the transfer portal, but there are just as many talented athletes who will be returning to their respective rosters in 2023.

When making this list, we looked at each team’s individual 2022 grades from Pro Football Focus. To be qualified to become a returning leader, each player must have the highest grade among returning players and must have played in at least ten games last season for their current team. So players who transferred into the program, or out of the program, did not make the cut.

Here’s a look at each SEC program’s top returning offense player, sorted by their final 2022 Pro Football Focus grade.

Roundtable: The Auburn Wire staff shares their takeaways from the 2024 SEC football schedule release

Auburn Wire’s Taylor Jones, JD McCarthy, and Daniel Locke each share their opinions on Auburn’s 2024 draw.

After months of speculation, the SEC schedule has been released.

Auburn has learned its 2024 opponents. The Tigers will welcome Oklahoma to Jordan-Hare Stadium in the Sooners’ initial season in the conference. Auburn will play its two biggest rivals, Alabama and Georgia, as well.

One of the biggest surprises of Auburn’s schedule is the absence of LSU. Auburn and LSU have played every season since 1992, and have played 57 total times. However, with the SEC getting rid of divisional play beginning in 2024, LSU’s presence will soon fade away.

Following the announcement of the 2024 SEC schedule, the guys at Auburn Wire shared their thoughts on Auburn’s draw. Here’s what Taylor Jones, JD McCarthy and Daniel Locke have to say about the 2024 SEC schedule release.

Could Auburn football make a giant leap in Year 2 under Hugh Freeze?

On3 gives Auburn a favorable outlook following Wednesday’s 2024 SEC schedule reveal.

If you are an Auburn fan, you have to be feeling confident in Auburn’s chances to get back to its old ways by the end of the 2024 season.

The SEC released its 2024 slate for all 16 teams on Wednesday, and Auburn picked up one of the more favorable draws in the conference. Sure, the Tigers will have to visit Athens and Tuscaloosa, but they get to play Arkansas, Oklahoma, Texas A&M and Vanderbilt at home, which makes up for a challenging road tilt against the SEC’s top brands.

For a program looking to get back to relevancy, having an easier road than the typical gantlet of SEC West teams is welcomed. On3’s Jesse Simonton included Auburn in his five takeaways from the SEC’s schedule release and expects [autotag]Hugh Freeze[/autotag]’s program to take great strides in getting back to its traditional ways.

Similarly, Auburn (four winnable home games + road dates at UK and Missouri) looks set up for a potential Year 2 leap under Hugh Freeze if the roster continues to improve.

Simonton also shared the same sentiment as several Auburn fans by mentioning the absence of Florida on the schedule. The Tigers and Gators have played 84 times in history, but only seven times since 2000. Auburn has not hosted Florida for a game at Jordan-Hare Stadium since 2011. Maybe the SEC will move to a nine-game format in 2025, which will make way for more games between these two old rivals.

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Twitter reacts to Auburn’s 2024 SEC football schedule

What do you think of the new-look schedule?

The start of a new era of SEC football is here as the conference announced the 2024 football schedule Wednesday night.

The 2024 season is the first that Oklahoma and Texas will compete in the SEC, as a welcome, every current member of the SEC will play one of the Sooners or the Longhorns in 2024. The SEC will also be removing divisions in the 2024 season as the conference expands to 16 seasons.

With divisions a thing of the past, teams will be able to play every member of the conference consistently but the downside is that some rivalries will no longer be played every year.

One such rivalry is Auburn and LSU, which will not be played in 2024 for the first time since 1991. However, the Tigers will get to host Oklahoma for their signature home game of the season.

Auburn fans had plenty to say about the schedule, here are their top reactions.

Auburn football’s 2024 SEC schedule is revealed

Are you surprised by Auburn’s SEC draw for next season?

A new era in SEC football is officially here, as the 2024 SEC football schedule has been revealed.

Oklahoma and Texas will officially join the SEC in 2024, and both teams will be welcomed to the conference with a challenging slate. One of the many spoilers that broke Wednesday ahead of the schedule reveal was that each SEC team would play either the Sooners or Longhorns in 2024, which benefits both parties.

What were the other criteria for making the schedule? SEC Network shared that no school will travel to the same location it traveled to in 2023, traditional opponents and balance of schedule strength were also considered.

Which teams make up Auburn’s 2024 conference slate? Here’s a look at Auburn football’s 2024 SEC schedule:

Report: Each SEC team set to play either Oklahoma or Texas in 2024

It appears that every SEC program will get the chance to play the conference’s new additions in their initial season.

The closer we get to Wednesday’s SEC football schedule reveal, the more spoilers surface.

Bama Online reported early Wednesday that college football fans will get to experience the first regular-season meeting between Alabama and Georgia since 2020, when Alabama knocked off the Bulldogs, 41-24 at Bryant-Denny Stadium.

Another report coming from Peter Burns of SEC Network suggests each SEC team will play either Oklahoma or Texas as part of its eight-game schedule.

The news that Auburn could face either Oklahoma or Texas is exciting and possibly gives hope the Tigers will face a challenging, yet unique schedule in 2024. Whether the Tigers will welcome the conference’s newcomers to Jordan-Hare Stadium is to be announced.

The Tigers and Sooners have a short history. The only two meetings between these two programs have taken place in New Orleans at the Sugar Bowl. Most recently, the Sooners defeated Auburn in the 2017 Sugar Bowl, 35-19.

Auburn has a longer history with Texas. The teams have met eight times, and Texas leads the overall series, 5-3. However, the Tigers have won two straight. Most recently, Auburn defeated the Longhorns, 14-10, in 1991 in Austin.

Auburn’s official SEC schedule will be released Wednesday night at 6 p.m. CT. Fans can see the reveal live on SEC Network.

BREAKING:

Each of the SEC teams will play either Texas or Oklahoma once in the upcoming 2024 CFB season.

So every SEC team will have Longhorns or Sooners on their 2024 schedule.

Whether they are home or away announced later tonight on @SECNetwork #SECThisMorning

— Peter Burns (@PeterBurnsESPN) June 14, 2023

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CBS Sports forecasts Auburn’s permanent opponents in a nine-game format

What would an SEC schedule look like based on the Big Ten’s nine-game format?

The long-awaited decision regarding the future of SEC football scheduling was revealed last week by the league office.

The SEC will keep its’ traditional eight-game format while disposing of divisions. The top two teams at the end of the regular season will meet at the SEC Championship Game at Mercedez-Benz Stadium in Atlanta.

The format will be used in 2024, with the possibility of changing in 2025 and beyond. If the conference were to go to a nine-game schedule in 2025, what would that look like?

Never fear, CBS Sports has taken the time to forecast each permanent fixture to each SEC team’s schedule based on the same model that the Big Ten has promoted with the addition of UCLA and USC. In Auburn’s case, CBS Sports has included two of Auburn’s historical rivals, plus a positive from a geographical standpoint.

Here’s a look at CBS Sports’ picks for Auburn’s three permanent opponents based on a hypothetical nine-game schedule:

Alabama
Georgia
Mississippi State

CBS Sports’ David Cobb feels that having Mississippi State on Auburn’s yearly schedule will offset the challenging gauntlet that Alabama and Georgia provide.

Alabama and Georgia are obvious permanent rivals for Auburn because they are among the most storied rivalries in the conference. However, it’s a brutal draw given how dominant those squads are. To compensate, a Mississippi State program that should be among the most beatable in the conference starts out as Auburn’s two-play partner.

This projection will be challenging for Auburn, but when is the last time that the Tigers had a favorable schedule? It is a sin for Alabama and Georgia to not be featured on Auburn’s schedule despite both programs’ recent success. Mississippi State, although not sharing the same success as Alabama or Georgia, is no slouch either. The Bulldogs have beaten Auburn two seasons in a row, and are 5-5 against the Tigers over the last ten seasons.

In summary, having these three teams on Auburn’s permanent schedule will not give Auburn a break every season, but it is a great way to maintain Auburn’s top rivalry games, which will make fans and players alike happy.

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