Tag: Gunner Britton

Auburn lands Mississippi State OT transfer Percy Lewis

Auburn has landed Percy Lewis, who will compete to be the starting left tackle for the Tigers in 2024.

Auburn has landed its first offensive line transfer of the offseason and it is a big one. Former Mississippi State offensive tackle [autotag]Percy Lewis[/autotag] signed with the Tigers Thursday night, he is Auburn’s seventh transfer addition this cycle.

Lewis started the final seven games at left tackle for the Bulldogs during the 2023 season. He rotated in their previous five games and allowed just one sack in his 235 pass-blocking snaps, according to Pro Football Focus.

The 6-foot-8, 345-pounder visited Auburn and Arkansas last week and will have two seasons of eligibility on the Plains. The Sallis, Mississippi, native started his career at Mississippi Gulf Coast Community College before transferring to Mississippi State ahead of the 2022 season.

Offensive line coach [autotag]Jake Thornton[/autotag] and Auburn have been looking to solidify the offensive line by adding an offensive tackle, allowing them to move [autotag]Dillon Wade[/autotag] inside to guard to help replace departing starters [autotag]Gunner Britton[/autotag] and [autotag]Kam Stutts[/autotag].

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Decision coming soon for Mississippi State OT transfer Percy Lewis

Percy Lewis allowed just one sack last season and he is ready to make his decision.

Auburn hosted Mississippi State offensive tackle transfer [autotag]Percy Lewis[/autotag] on an official visit and the Tigers are now a finalist for him.

He also visited Arkansas earlier in the week and following his visit to the Plains, he will no longer be visiting Ole Miss.

“I just took two visits — I ain’t going to take no more,” Lewis told Auburn Undercover’s Nathan King. “It’s time to narrow it down because it’s getting about that time again. So I ain’t going to keep going on these visits. I’m just going to narrow it down. Get home tonight, do a little thinking by myself and just make my move in the morning.”

The 6-foot-8, 345-pounder appeared in all 12 games for the Bulldogs at left tackle, starting the final seven. He allowed just one sack and four hurries in 235 pass-blocking snaps, according to Pro Football Focus.

A former JUCO product, Lewis spent two seasons at Mississippi State and will have two seasons of eligibility at his next stop, though he is hoping to play just one before entering the NFL.

Auburn is looking to add one or two offensive linemen through the transfer portal after losing starting guards [autotag]Gunner Britton[/autotag] and [autotag]Kam Stutts[/autotag]. Last years starting left tackle, [autotag]Dillon Wade[/autotag], is exepcted to move inside to guard, freeing up a tackle spot.

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Four-Star offensive lineman DeAndre Carter signs letter of intent with Auburn.

Offensive lineman DeAndre Carter is making his way to the Plains next season.

Hugh Freeze is working towards building an elite offensive line.

Four-star, 6-foot-5, 335-pound offensive lineman [autotag]DeAndre Carter[/autotag] has officially signed with National Letter of Intent to play for the Auburn Tigers next fall.

Carter will most likely slot in at one of the guard positions for Auburn. The Mater Dei High School alum was the third-best interior offensive lineman in this year’s recruiting class. He was also the No. 11 prospect in the talent-loaded state of California.

The California native joins early signee [autotag]Cam Coleman[/autotag] as 2024 recruits coming off State Championship victories. Coleman of course won the Alabama Class 7A State Championship in early December.

Carter was able to win his own state title a few days later, as Mater Dei took down Serra High School 35-0 in the CIF Open Division Championship.

Unlike Coleman, Carter had been committed to Auburn since early September after a great visit this summer.

The large offensive lineman fell in love with the Loviest Village on the Plains, committing just a short month after his visit and turning down the likes of Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Oregon, and USC.

Carter’s recruitment comes at a great time as Auburn is set to lose [autotag]Gunner Britton[/autotag], [autotag]Avery Jones[/autotag], and [autotag]Kam Stutts[/autotag] to graduation next season.

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Auburn is a finalist for transfer OL Gerquan Scott

Gerquan Scott is down to Auburn and Ole Miss.

After visiting Auburn and Ole Miss, former Southern Miss offensive lineman [autotag]Gerquan Scott[/autotag] is ready to make his decision.

“I actually called every other coach and told them I wasn’t going to come (on a visit),” Scott told Auburn Undercover’s Christian Clemente. “I’m going to make a decision in the next day — day or two.”

With starting guards [autotag]Gunner Britton[/autotag] and [autotag]Kam Stutts[/autotag] both out of eligibility after this season, offensive line coach [autotag]Jake Thornton[/autotag] and the Tigers are recruiting him to play guard.

“They got a lot of interest in me. They definitely see me fitting in well to what they’ve got going on,” Scott said “As you know their guard is leaving so they could see me — if I put in the work and beat out people — taking a role at Auburn.”

Scott is from Mobile, Alabama, and was a three-star prospect in the 2019 recruiting class. After redshirting in 2019, he started 40 straight games with 32 at left guard, four at right guard and two at center.

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Memphis OL Mak Pounders earns Auburn offer, schedules visit

One of Memphis’ most productive offensive linemen in 2023 will visit the Plains on Sunday.

Out of all the transfers that [autotag]Hugh Freeze[/autotag] and Auburn acquired from the transfer portal in 2023, among the most reliable were those who joined the offensive line.

Players such as [autotag]Gunner Britton[/autotag], [autotag]Dillon Wade[/autotag], and [autotag]Avery Jones[/autotag] were incredibly beneficial to the Tigers offense this season, and Freeze is looking to find the next man up within the portal.

[autotag]Mak Pounders[/autotag] is one of Auburn’s early targets to fill gaps within the offensive line next season. Pounders served as Memphis’ left tackle this season and was one of the Tigers’ most productive linemen. He announced Friday that he has received an Auburn offer, and Jeffrey Lee of On3 reports that Pounders will be on campus for a visit this Sunday, Dec. 10.

According to Pro Football Focus data, Pounders played 673 snaps this season at left tackle for Memphis, which was the 5th-highest among Memphis players last season, and the 4th-highest among linemen. In 388 snaps where a pass was attempted, Pounders allowed just 11 pressures this season with six hurries and one sack.

In addition to Auburn, Pounders has received offers from South Carolina and Texas Tech.

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Four Auburn Tigers named to AP All-SEC teams

Marcus Harris, Gunner Britton, Jaylin Simpson and Rivaldo Fairweather all named All-SEC by the Associated Press.

Four different Auburn players were honored by the Associated Press on Monday by being named to their All-SEC teams.

Defensive lineman [autotag]Marcus Harris[/autotag] and safety [autotag]Jaylin Simpson[/autotag] were both named to the first-team defense while tight end [autotag]Rivaldo Fairweather[/autotag] and offensive guard [autotag]Gunner Britton[/autotag] made the second-team offense.

Harris led Auburn with 7.0 sacks and 11.0 tackles for loss to go with 40 total tackles. Simpson finished tied for second in the SEC with four interceptions. He added 36 tackles, three pass breakups and a fumble recovery.

Fairweather was Auburn’s top receiving threat, leading the team in receptions (33), yards (349) and touchdowns (6). Britton, who started all 13 games for Auburn, allowed just 3 sacks in 359 pass-blocking snaps, according to Pro Football Focus.

Here is a look at the full teams:

Tale of the Tape: Auburn vs. Vanderbilt

The heavily favored Auburn Tigers travel to Nashville this week to take on Vanderbilt this week. Will this game be closer than expected?

The 4-4 Auburn Tigers will put on their dancing shoes on Saturday when they travel to Broadway to take on the 2-7 Vanderbilt Commodores in Nashville.

Quarterback [autotag]Payton Thorne[/autotag] and the Auburn offensive line look to keep the good times rolling in Music City after coming off arguably their best game of the season.

Vanderbilt on the other hand could really use somebody to step up, as the Commodores have lost 7 straight games after starting 2-0.

The different directions of these two teams explain why Auburn is favored by a 12.5-points on the road in this one, according to BetMGM.

ESPN FPI also believes in the Tigers’ chances to take a wrecking ball to the Commodores. The Index is giving Auburn an 84.1% chance to win.

That is by far the highest Auburn has been favored in FPI since their game against Samford all the way back in September.

Will the tale of the tape show us Auburn will set the world on fire and take care of business, or does a closer look show us this game might be closer than expected?

As always, we’ll start with the quarterbacks.

Starting quarterback [autotag]Payton Thorne [/autotag] played his best as an Auburn Tiger last week in the win over Mississippi State.

The transfer has struggled most of the season, but threw for 230 yards and 3 touchdowns in last week’s victory, putting his season totals at 1,075 yards and 8 touchdowns in 8 games.

Auburn’s “QB1” has also been a threat with the legs, rushing for 297 yards and 2 touchdowns this season.

Vanderbilt’s quarterback situation on the other hand has been more disgusting than the floors at Tootsie’s.

The Commodores started the season with sophomore [autotag]AJ Swann[/autotag]. Swann went on to start Vanderbilt’s first 5 games of the season, throwing for 1,290 yards, 11 touchdowns, and 7 interceptions before going down with a shoulder injury.

Senior [autotag]Ken Seals [/autotag] took over as the de-facto starter and threw for 740 yards and 5 touchdowns in his first 3 starts before getting benched in favor of redshirt freshman [autotag]Walter Taylor[/autotag] last week against Ole Miss.

I’m giving the edge to Thorne and Auburn in this category due to the simple fact Vanderbilt’s quarterback situation is a mess.

The skill position battle is a little bit murkier. Vanderbilt has the best receiver in this game, [autotag]Will Sheppard[/autotag], but it’s hard to judge how much of his output is attributed to the Commodores always playing from behind.

I will say Auburn running back [autotag]Jarquez Hunter[/autotag] is the most talented player for either team on the offensive side of the ball. That fact alone gives the Tigers the edge in the skill position battle, although it’s close.

Auburn also gets the edge up front. [autotag]Gunner Britton[/autotag] is not only the best lineman in this game, but he has also become one of the premier blockers in the SEC.

The Tigers has the edge across the offensive side of the ball.

On the defensive side of things, it’s not even close. Auburn boasts one of the best defenses in the SEC (22.5 opponents PPG), while Vanderbilt has arguably the worst (36 opponents PPG).

The talent gap on the defensive side of the ball is bigger than Dolly Parton’s Brentwood mansion.

After taking a closer look at this game, it’s clear why Auburn is favored by 12.5 points. The Tigers have an incredible chance to come out of Nashville one win away from being bowl-eligible.

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Hugh Freeze previews Auburn’s upcoming game at Vanderbilt

Here’s a recap of everything Hugh Freeze said during his weekly press conference on Monday.

Hugh Freeze had plenty of positive things to say during Monday’s press conference.

His team snapped a four-game SEC skid last Saturday afternoon by defeating Mississippi State, 27-14, and the Tigers have a great chance of earning another win this Saturday on the road at Vanderbilt.

Quarterback [autotag]Payton Thorne[/autotag] and running back [autotag]Jarquez Hunter[/autotag] each reached season-highs in yards last Saturday due in part to solid offensive line play. [autotag]Gunner Britton[/autotag] was named SEC co-offensive lineman of the week after allowing just two hurries on Saturday, while [autotag]Connor Lew[/autotag] earned SEC Freshman of the Week following his first start at center.

Freeze said Monday that he was impressed with Lew’s first start.

“I heard this morning that (Lew) is going to get freshman player of the week from SEC Network. So, congratulations to him. He graded out well. I’m thankful that he waited till the last possession to snap a ball and hit his own butt. If that would have happened the first possession, I would have been a nervous wreck the rest of the game. I asked him what happened, and he said, ‘I have no idea Coach.’ He did well. He made most of the calls the right way. He is very athletic, sometimes that hurts him a little, truthfully. He’s moving at a speed that maybe he needs to move a little slower. I thought he played solid for a freshman.”

Freeze discussed Payton Thorne’s breakout game, Vanderbilt’s offense, and much more on Monday. Here is a recap of what Freeze said during his weekly press conference.

Auburn linemen Gunner Britton and Connor Lew named to SEC team of the week

Auburn utility lineman Gunner Britton and freshmen center Connor Lew have been named to the Week 9 All-SEC team after Auburn’s 27-13 win.

Auburn linemen [autotag]Gunner Britton[/autotag] and [autotag]Connor Lew[/autotag] have been named to the SEC team of the week after their strong performances in Auburn’s 27-13 win over Mississippi State.

Britton was named the SEC Co-Offensive Lineman of the Week, while center Conner Lew has been named the SEC Freshmen of the Week.

Both linemen earned the award after they helped Auburn’s offense eclipse 416 yards of total offense, 186 of which came on the ground. They also were able to keep a clean sheet for quarterback Payton Thorne in the sack category for the first time since week 1.

This is the second time this season Britton has won SEC team of the week honors, the first time being the aforementioned week 1 game.

Auburn’s best lineman didn’t allow a quarterback hurry or a sack in the contest, and repeatedly made good blocks in the run game.

As for Lew, he wins Freshmen of the Week honors in his first career start on the Plains, as he was forced into action after Avery Jones injured himself against Ole Miss.

Lew had a great game, allowing only one quarterback hurry and no sacks. It will be interesting to see if head coach [autotag]Hugh Freeze [/autotag] opts to rotate him in at center and the guard positions moving forward.

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ESPN favors Auburn in three of next four games

The Tigers are off to an 0-4 start to the SEC slate, but their run of tough luck could end soon.

The past four weeks have been brutal for Auburn. After starting the 2023 season at 3-0, the Tigers have dropped four games in a row, all to SEC squads.

Lineman [autotag]Gunner Britton[/autotag] says that the team’s mindset heading into the rest of the season is “focusing on the next game.”

“Look towards the next game, it’s really tough. We have played four ranked teams back-to-back-to-back. That’s a tough stretch for any team, but Freeze said in the pregame speech that is what you do when you play in the SEC,” Britton said following Auburn’s 28-21 loss to Ole Miss last Saturday night. “Even for me when I came here, I knew the teams I was going to be playing, so you just have to look towards next week and there is nothing you can really do to change the game. You just have to go and watch the film, learn the film, and move on from there.”

What do the next four weeks have in store? ESPN believes that the Tigers can get back to their winning ways as their matchup predictor favors them in three of their four upcoming games.

After facing Texas A&M, Georgia, LSU, and Ole Miss in consecutive weeks, Auburn gets a slight break by facing Mississippi State, Vanderbilt, Arkansas, and Alabama to close SEC play, with one nonconference game mixed in.

Which games are the Tigers favored to win from here on out? Here’s how ESPN forecasts the next four games to play out for Auburn.