The news that we were waiting to hear all week is finally at the forefront.
Auburn running back Jarquez Hunter, who spent the last two seasons in a secondary role in Auburn’s offense, will not play in Saturday’s opener against UMass.
Richard Silva of the Montgomery Advertiser reported that Hunter, along with several others, were not dressed out during Auburn’s warm-up period. Nathan King of 247Sports followed up by confirming that Hunter will not participate.
Earlier this week, head coach [autotag]Hugh Freeze[/autotag] offered a vague response when asked about the status of Hunter heading into the game.
“I don’t discuss who’s playing and who’s not,” Freeze said. “We hope everyone’s healthy enough to play. We’ve got a few that are on that list that may can go, may can’t. But I’m just not going to discuss who’s playing and who’s not.”
Hunter missed the first several days of Auburn’s preseason camp due to a university investigation. However, he was later able to take part in several days of camp. There is no official word on how long Hunter will be unavailable.
Outside of Hunter, CB Nehemiah Pritchett, WR Nick Mardner, S Caleb Wooden, and CB JD Rhym are also unavailable according to Silva.
Players not in pads as Auburn takes the field to warmup:
-Jarquez Hunter
-Nehemiah Pritchett
-Nick Mardner
-Caleb Wooden
-JD Rhym— Richard Silva (@rich_silva18) September 2, 2023
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