Hugh Freeze and the Auburn Tigers took the stage at SEC Media Days Thursday and one of the many topics up for discussion was position battles within the program.
The most notable battle, at least in the eyes of those outside of the program, is at wide receiver. The Tigers have a revamped wide receiver room which will feature three transfers, four true freshmen, and two returners. However, the most contested battle is on the other side of the line.
Freeze told reporters Thursday that the defensive line will feature a steady rotation this season.
“The most contested, we have six guys on defensive line you might say it’s contested, but I think we need to rotate all six of them,” Freeze said.
Auburn’s defensive line will be experienced as [autotag]Jayson Jones[/autotag] and [autotag]Keldric Faulk[/autotag] returning with the additions of [autotag]Trill Carter[/autotag], [autotag]Philip Blidi[/autotag], [autotag]Isaiah Raikes[/autotag], and [autotag]Gage Keys[/autotag] joining the program from the transfer portal. Experience will not be an issue, but it will be up to Freeze and defensive line coach [autotag]Vontrell King-Williams[/autotag] to find the perfect combination to give the Tigers the best chance to succeed.
Another position group of concern is at safety, which was ravaged by the NFL draft. [autotag]Jaylin Simpson[/autotag] is out, meaning Auburn will need to look to transfers and new faces to fill the role.
“I’d probably say safety. You are going to have Keionte (Scott) and Kayin (Lee) getting the bulk of reps at corner, but we really need (Antonio) Kite and (Jaylin) Crawford, Amon Lane (Ganus), some of these younger guys to get ready to play there,” Freeze said. “(Jerrin) Thompson is the vocal leader there, but we need other pieces to give us depth there.”
Freeze went on to mention that [autotag]Payton Thorne[/autotag] will get the nod at quarterback and that the rotation of running backs will feature [autotag]Jarquez Hunter[/autotag], [autotag]Damari Alston[/autotag], and [autotag]Jeremiah Cobb[/autotag]. At receiver, Freeze calls for six receivers to step into the rotation. Freshmen [autotag]Cam Coleman[/autotag] and [autotag]Perry Thompson[/autotag], as well as transfers [autotag]KeAndre Lambert-Smith[/autotag] and [autotag]Robert Lewis[/autotag], look to be prime candidates to earn steady playing time at the position.
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