The SEC as a whole is seeing a lot of talented running backs exit following the 2021 campaign. Of the top 10 rushers last season, only four are set to play in 2022 with their original team.
The good news for Auburn is that two of the top backs returning for 2022 just happen to be on the current roster. They likely will need to have big campaigns to help prevent the outcome of 2021.
The 2021 leading rusher Tyler Badie of Missouri is off to the NFL, as well as the No. 3 player on the SEC rushing list Brian Robinson Jr of Alabama. We dive into the top five returns based on their production in 2021.
Despite the mass exodus, Auburn has plenty of production returning in 2022.
As we begin to look ahead to the 2022 College Football season and spring football, returning production is the topic at hand. According to Bill Connolly of ESPN (subscription required), the Tigers have plenty coming back next season.
The football team, despite a mass exodus to the transfer portal, ranked among the top half of FBS in returning production.
Overall Returning Production: 65% (No. 66)
John Reed-USA TODAY Sports
It will be a different team in 2022 when Auburn takes the field. While you will see some familiar faces such as running back Tank Bigsby, there is no Bo Nix under center. It could be former LSU transfer TJ Finley or Texas A&M transfer Zach Calzada. Or it could be former Oregon Duck Robby Ashford. The team also has Dematrius Davis and Holden Geriner.
The quarterback competition could be wide open. As should be the wide receiver position after losing a lot of production at the position.
Offense: 65% (No. 65)
Jay Biggerstaff-USA TODAY Sports
Key Returners: Tank Bigsby, Jarquez Hunter, John Samuel Shenker, Shedrick Jackson, Nick Brahms, Keiondre Jones
As we noted the quarterback position could be wide open. Finley obviously has familiarity with the system after he joined the team following spring ball at LSU last season. Tank Bigsby and Jarquez Hunter will provide the one-two punch at running back. Their success may fall on the wide receiver group that is relatively raw. They do return Shedrick Jackson, who finished second in receptions on the team behind Kobe Hudson.
While the defense is returning just as much production as the offense, they are only ranked No. 74 overall in FBS. The best of the group will be Derick Hall and Colby Wooden. Last season Hall finished with nine sacks, 12.5 TFLs, and a team-leading 43 quarterback pressures. Wooden finished with 4.5 sacks, 8.5 TFLs, and 41 quarterback pressures. Pritchett will have big shoes to fill with Roger McCreary heading off to the NFL.
Despite the uncertainty surrounding the football program, running back Jarquez Hunter and defensive lineman Marcus Harris made sure they were doing everything they could to improve themselves this past week.
The duo were named the Iron Men of Week 3, a weekly award given to one offensive and defensive player to recognize their hard work in the offseason.
Hunter had a strong true freshman season for Auburn. He rushed for 593 yards and three touchdowns on 89 carries. He also caught 12 passes for 61 yards and a touchdown.
Harris, a transfer from Kansas, recorded 27 tackles, 6.0 tackles for loss, 2.0 sacks, four quarterback hurries and recovered one fumble in his first season on the Plains.
Both of Hunter and Harris are expected to have bigger roles in the 2022 season. Hunter gives Auburn a solid second running back behind Tank Bigsby, a position where you need multiple contributors.
Harris will have a great shot to be a starter at defensive tackle and help anchor a talented but thin group along the defensive line.
Heading into the 2021 campaign under new head coach Bryan Harsin, Auburn Tigers running back Tank Bigsby was among the best-returning players at the position. It was a toss-up as to who was viewed as the top sophomore running back along with Kansas State’s Deuce Vaughn and Texas’ Bijan Robinson.
Essentially came down to what is your favorite flavor of ice cream. Each of them has their strengths. All three were among the various Freshman All-American teams.
Unfortunately, Bigsby didn’t have the season that many expected in his second season on the Plains. He would finish the year with more yards than his freshman year but it didn’t seem to meet those high expectations. His yards per carry dropped from 6.0 as a freshman to 4.9 in 2021. Bigsby was more productive as a receiver, averaging 8.8 yards per reception out of the backfield.
After starting the season with three-straight 100-yard performances, he would add just two more over the final nine games. In that stretch, Auburn finished 4-6. Not all of the failures can be tied to Bigsby as he was slowed down by an injured offensive line that underperformed.
Looking to the 2022 campaign, Tank was named No. 10 of the top 10 returning running backs by Pro Football Focus.
What PFF Says…
Jeff Blake-USA TODAY Sports
Bigsby will be looking for a bounce-back season in 2022 after a disappointing true sophomore season in 2021. He went from generating 0.24 WAA in 2020 to -0.08 this past season. For reference, that’s the difference between the 96th and 25th percentile among FBS players at the position. A shift in offensive philosophy under the new regime could have played a part in that — Bigsby ran a zone concept on 76% of his runs in 2020 to just 52% in 2021. The Auburn star has every bit of a chance to become a first-team All-American in 2022.
The team will likely be looking to rely on Bigsby quite a bit in 2022 with the quarterback situation. It could be one of four guys taking snaps under center for Auburn. Zach Calzada has the most experience of any of the passers on the roster. He took over for Haynes King at Texas A&M last year after suffering an injury against the Colorado Buffaloes.
Either way, this is a make-or-break year for the former four-star running back from Georgia. Along with Jarquez Hunter, this duo should be one of the better one-two punches in the SEC.
Another Auburn player has been named to an All-SEC Team.
Auburn running back Jarquez Hunter has been named to the Freshman All-SEC Team after an impressive freshman campaign. Hunter was a late pickup in the 2021 recruiting class and proved to be incredibly valuable to Auburn especially early on in the season as a backup.
Hunter ran for 576 yards and three touchdowns on 84 attempts. He now has the longest run in Auburn football history after a 94-yard burst against Alabama State early on in the season. Hunter really struggled from the Georgia game on, averaging over 3.6 yards per carry only once. But still, Hunter finishes his freshman season as an All-SEC player.
Where does Auburn have an advantage over Arkansas?
Auburn’s matchup with Arkansas begins what is a brutal back half of the season for the Tigers.
The Tigers are current road dogs (ESPN’s FPI gives Arkansas a 60% chance to win) with current aspirations of making the SEC title game.
I don’t want to jinx it, but we’ve seen this movie before. A two-loss Auburn team, with only one loss in their conference? A brutal bottom half of the schedule? A vulnerable Alabama team that has to face Auburn at the end of the season?
I honestly don’t think it will happen again, for two reasons. One, Auburn isn’t as good as they were in 2017 in the trenches. Two, Bo Nix. If they’re going to make a push though, it starts with this Arkansas game.
Where does Auburn have an advantage? Here’s every position group matchup.
Here are five areas of concern as Auburn takes on Georgia.
Auburn is currently riding a high they haven’t experienced since 1999.
The Tigers took down LSU in Baton Rouge this past weekend and now turn to face the No. 2 Georgia Bulldogs with some momentum in their favor.
Unfortunately, momentum isn’t the only thing the Tigers are going to need to pull out a win at home this season. The Tigers will need to play a borderline perfect game against what appears to be a future playoff team in Georgia. Everyone’s going to need to be focused and having fun.
Here are some areas of concern for Auburn this weekend when they play the seemingly unbeatable Bulldogs.
In the absence of Tank Bigsby, Jarquez Hunter stepped up in a big way for the Tigers. Hunter earned SEC Co-Freshman of the Week.
Rushed for 65 yards on six carries and one touchdown in Auburn’s come-from-behind win at LSU, its first in Tiger Stadium since 1999
53 of his 65 yards came on Auburn’s game winning touchdown drive that included a 44-yard run and was capped by a 1-yard touchdown run with 3:11 remaining.
Averaging 10.6 yards per carry, tops in FBS this season
Here are five reasons why Auburn will beat Georgia State on Saturday.
Auburn heads into the Georgia State game with a daunting five game stretch following.
Games against LSU, Georgia, Arkansas, Ole Miss, and Texas A&M all follow this final cupcake game of the season for the Tigers. Of course, I expect the Tigers to not worry about their future schedule at all. Harsin wants this team to focus on being 1-0 this week. It’s time to get back on track after a heartbreaking loss at Penn State last weekend. Can the Tigers put their foot back on the gas pedal against Georgia State?
Here are five reasons why Auburn will beat Georgia State on Saturday.
Tank Bigsby and Jarquez Hunter have been feasting over the course of these first three games.
Bigsby has cracked the century mark in every game so far. Hunter set the Auburn record for the longest touchdown run ever. Hunter also is second in the nation in yards per carry (12.6). Now, with a fourth of the season gone, Auburn is on pace to finish with its best rushing attack since 2013.
Auburn is currently averaging 287.3 rushing yards per game (seventh nationally). If the Tigers continue on the pace they are on, it will be the most rushing yards per game since the 2013 team averaged 328.3 rushing yards per game. The next closest is the 2016 team, which averaged 271.3 rushing yards per game.
Looking at the way Auburn’s offensive line is playing, I expect the Tigers to keep their foot on the gas with the rushing attack. Could we see two Auburn rushers eclipse 1,000 yards before the season ends?
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