Tag: ja’varrius johnson

Auburn is ready to ‘turn the page’ after suffering tough loss to LSU

Auburn players felt disappointed after losing to rival LSU on Saturday night. Now, all of their focus is on next week’s road game at No. 1 Georgia.

Auburn found confidence early in their game with LSU.

Quarterback [autotag]Robby Ashford[/autotag] led Auburn to a 17-0 first-half lead by setting the tone with two touchdown passes, including a 53-yard pass to [autotag]Ja’varrius Johnson[/autotag] to put Auburn on the board in the 1st quarter.

However, LSU scored 21 unanswered points over the final three quarters to ultimately pull away and stun Auburn, 21-17 at Jordan-Hare Stadium.

Auburn failed to reach the end zone in the second half for the second straight week, they also committed four turnovers which allowed LSU to get back into the game, and ultimately win. Auburn players were clearly disappointed after the loss.

“It is frustrating. We just have to do a better job on our end and take care of the ball,” linebacker [autotag]Owen Pappoe[/autotag] said following Saturday’s loss. “We can’t have too many turnovers like that because that can really hurt us. We just have to be better all around.”

While the loss has players feeling agitated, they understand that they have to keep building a great locker room environment in order to ultimately improve and earn more wins.

“The biggest thing is just sticking together,” EDGE rusher [autotag]Derick Hall[/autotag] said. “We knew we had that game and there were a couple of opportunities. We gave that game away. We have to take care of the ball better and on defense and we have to get more stops obviously.”

The good news is, it appears that most players are already shaking off the loss to LSU, and are ready to get back to the practice field. Next on the slate is the first road game of the season at No. 1 Georgia, and Auburn will need to enter that game with clear minds.

“We’re flipping the page tomorrow,” tight end [autotag]John Samuel Shenker[/autotag] said. “We want to be 2-0 in the SEC, and we are not, we are 1-1. But it’s still early in the season and we’re going to get to work tomorrow, get ready for Georgia, and just be a better team next Saturday.”

Auburn travels to Georgia next Saturday for the 127th renewal of the Deep South’s Oldest Rivalry. Kickoff from Sanford Stadium in Athens is set for 2:30 p.m. CT, and will be broadcasted live on CBS.

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Winners and Losers from Auburn’s loss to LSU

The negatives cast a huge, looming shadow over the positives in Auburn’s loss to LSU on Saturday night.

Auburn football’s strong start against rival LSU was not enough to carry it to a victory, as it fell to the Bayou Bengals, 21-17, on Saturday night at Jordan-Hare Stadium.

Auburn jumped to a 17-0 lead with 9:38 remaining in the second quarter. Auburn reached that point by doing something that had not happened through four games, a receiver reeling in a touchdown catch.

It happened twice in the first half.

Starting quarterback [autotag]Robby Ashford[/autotag] threw touchdown passes of 53 yards and 18 yards to [autotag]Ja’varrius Johnson[/autotag] and [autotag]Camden Brown[/autotag], respectively. Speaking of passing, Ashford threw for 337 yards, which was a huge contribution to Auburn’s 438 yards of offense.

For as many positives as we saw on the field Saturday night, there were just as many negatives. Auburn committed four turnovers and running back [autotag]Tank Bigsby[/autotag] once again was limited in carries.

There were highs, and there were lows. Here are the winners and losers from Auburn’s loss to LSU.

Auburn blows another lead, falls to LSU 21-17

Auburn was unable to hold onto a 17-0 lead.

For the fifth straight time, Auburn had a double-digit lead against an SEC opponent.

Auburn is now 1-4 in those games.

LSU scored 21 unanswered points Saturday night in Jordan-Hare Stadium to win 21-17 and make Auburn 1-1 in the SEC 3-2 overall.

Auburn outgained LSU and held them to 85 yards passing but turned the ball over four times, missed a field goal, made multiple questionable play calls, and failed to score in the second half.

[autotag]Robby Ashford[/autotag] showed why Auburn’s coaching staff is so excited about his future on the first drive. With the Tigers facing third-and-eight from their 47 he evaded an LSU pass rusher and found a streaking [autotag]Ja’Varrius Johnson[/autotag] for the 53-yard touchdown pass.

After the teams traded punts he once again showed off his arm. He found a wide-open [autotag]Jarquez Hunter[/autotag] for a 61-yard gain and then an uncovered [autotag]Camden Brown[/autotag] for the touchdown and the 14-0 lead with 13:58 left in the second quarter.

Auburn took a 17-0 lead on their next possession on a 29-yard field goal from [autotag]Anders Carlson[/autotag] after their drive stalled out in the red zone.

After playing a nearly perfect game Ashford made his first mistake on Auburn’s next drive. On 1st-and-10 he rolled to his right trying to keep the play alive but LSU pass rusher BJ Ojulari was able to catch him for the strip sack which they picked up for the scoop and score.

That marked a turning point in the game. Auburn was able to move the ball on their next drive but Carlson missed the 40-yard field goal with 1:58 left in the first half.

As he normally does, [autotag]Bryan Harsin[/autotag] used his time out aggressively to get the ball back and it would have worked had Derick Hall not been penalized for illegal hands to the face and given LSU a first down on third down. LSU took advantage of the second chance, making it a 17-14 Auburn lead when Jayden Daniels punched it in from the one-yard line just before the half ended.

Auburn saw their lead get erased completely in the third quarter after a failed conversion on fourth-and-10 gave LSU a short field. They did not complete a pass on their 7-play 63-yard drive that ended with a John Emery Jr. 20-yard touchdown that gave them a 21-17 lead with 3:32 left in the third quarter.

Auburn had a chance to retake the lead in the fourth quarter, driving to the LSU 10-yard line but Koy Moore threw an ill-advised pass on a trick play and LSU picked it off to end the threat. Despite LSU fumbling it away a few plays later, Ashford was picked off when an LSU defender ripped the ball away from Moore to all but end the game.

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The full Auburn depth chart for Week 2

There was a bit of movement on the offensive side of the ball for this week’s new depth chart.

The new Auburn Tigers depth chart for the team’s Week 2 game against San Jose State has arrived, and it comes with some changes on the offensive side of the ball.

While the defense remains static, it would seem that senior [autotag]Kameron Stutts[/autotag] has officially won the right guard battle against teammate [autotag]Keiondre Jones[/autotag], who is now listed as a backup as opposed to the famous “or” on the depth chart. In the wide receiving corps, junior [autotag]Ja’Varrius Johnson[/autotag] appears to have bested redshirt freshman [autotag]Tar’Varish Dawson Jr.[/autotag] for the starting slot receiver position.

Check out those changes and more on the newest iteration of the depth chart here below:

Auburn beats Mercer 42-16 to open 2022 season

It took a little longer than it needed to, but Auburn beat Mercer for their first win of the season.

Auburn opened the season with a 42-16 win over the Mercer Bears Saturday to start the 2022 season. The Tigers had to wait for their first win as lighting forced an hour and 27-minute delay in the third quarter.

Auburn scored the first 28 points to seize control of the game and never looked back. [autotag]Tank Bigsby[/autotag] and [autotag]Jarquez Hunter[/autotag] led the way offensively, combining for five rushing touchdowns and 181 yards. In total, nine Tigers rushed for 285 yards and five scores on 41 carries.

[autotag]T.J. Finley[/autotag] was Auburn’s starting quarterback but backup quarterback [autotag] Robby Ashford [/autotag] played early and showed that the battle for Auburn’s starting quarterback may not be over. He subbed in for Finley on the fourth play of the game and promptly ran for eight yards. He showed his big play potential to open Auburn’s second drive, taking the ball 49 yards around the left side to set up the Tiger’s second touchdown.

After Finley started the game 8-of-9 for 100 yards and one touchdown his night took a turn. He threw two interceptions in his final four passes and finished the night 9-of-14 with one touchdown and two interceptions.

Ashford took over from Finley after his second interception and attempted his first pass, a dropped screen pass. He didn’t let that deter him, completing his next two passes, a third-down conversion to [autotag]Tar’Varish Dawson Jr.[/autotag] and a beautiful 56-yard pass to [autotag]Ja’Varrius Johnson[/autotag].

Ashford led the final three drives of the night, with the offense touchdowns on the first two and turning it over on downs on their final drive of the night. He finished the night 4-of-7 for 100 yards and rushing for 68 yards on six carries.

Ashford showed enough that the battle to be the starting quarterback is not over and will bleed into the rest of the season.

The defense showed why they project to be the strength of the team, holding Mercer’s offense to 16 points and 4.0 just yards per play a week after they scored 66 points.

[autotag]Cam Riley[/autotag] showed why the coaching staff is so high on him. He led Auburn with 15 tackles and one quarterback hurry. [autotag]Nehemiah Pritchett[/autotag] also showed why he is the new top corner, making three tackles and breaking up two passes.

Auburn will return to action Sat. 10 against San Jose State (1-0) in Jordan-Hare Stadium.

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Auburn running back sidelined for eight to ten weeks

Hunter should be ready to go by fall practice.

On Friday evening, Al.com’s Tom Green reported that [autotag]Jarquez Hunter[/autotag] will be out for eight to ten weeks. He underwent a minor procedure to clear up some damage in his leg. Head Coach [autotag]Bryan Harsin[/autotag] announced that the procedure would cause Hunter to miss the rest of the spring.

Last season, Hunter looked very impressive. In his freshman campaign, he carried the ball 89 times for 593 yards and 3 Touchdowns. The Mississippi native split time with other running backs [autotag]Tank Bigsby[/autotag] and [autotag]Shaun Shivers[/autotag]. With Shivers transferring to Indiana, his role at running back should definitely increase.

Along with Hunter, receivers [autotag]J.J. Evans[/autotag] and [autotag]Ja’Varrius Johnson[/autotag] have also been sidelined with different injuries. Evans is expected to miss the rest of the spring after receiving a knee procedure recently. Johnson has a lingering hamstring injury, but he should be back sooner rather than later.

For the most part, Auburn will have the majority of its’ running back room returning for next season. The Tigers are bringing in true-freshman [autotag] Damari Alston[/autotag] and walk-on Justin Jones, who transferred from UAB in the offseason. Hunter should have a bigger role for the Tigers in 2022. I certainly think that Auburn has one of the more premier backfields in the SEC and the entire country as well. The combination of Hunter and Bigsby will play a huge role in how well the Tigers perform on offense this season.

With Hunter not sustaining a significant injury, he should be ready to go by the start of fall practice. It will be interesting to see how Auburn’s offense performs to start the season.

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Auburn WR Ja’Varrius Johnson listed on 2022 roster

The Tigers may be a bit better off at receiver depth than they initially planned for.

Auburn could potentially not be quite as bad off at receiver as it thought it was.

The Tigers just released their 2022 roster on Monday, and it notably still features junior wide receiver Ja’Varrius Johnson — a player who had reportedly entered the transfer portal this offseason and whose loss would leave Auburn’s potential depth at receiver painfully lacking.

It doesn’t entirely confirm that Johnson is staying, it could be a good sign that he plans on playing for the Tigers in 2022. Auburn recently lost leading receiver Kobe Hudson to the UCF Knights, and Johnson’s presence at spring camp would do a lot to ease the team about the lack of depth it was potentially set to face as it began to prepare for this upcoming season.

Johnson played in eight games last year and caught 19 passes for 274 yards and a touchdown. Despite the relatively limited production last year, Johnson was also back deep for punt returns on special teams, where he returned five punts for 57 yards. With the departures of other Auburn wideouts over the offseason, it’s reasonable to believe that Johnson could see an extended role in Auburn’s offense and get some more touches.

Auburn is beginning to fire up spring practice this week and its spring game (known as A-Day) is set for Saturday, April 9, where Auburn’s roster for 2022 will begin to shape up further.

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2021 Auburn football player profile, overview: No. 6 Ja’Varrius Johnson

Auburn wide receiver Ja’Varrius Johnson had an impressive spring and has a chance to become a producer for the Tigers this season.

Name: Ja’Varrius Johnson

Number: 6

Position: Wide receiver

Class: Sophomore

Height: 5’10”

Weight: 159 lbs

Hometown: Trussville, AL

High School: Hewitt-Trussville

2020 Statistics: N/A

Twitter: @varjohnson1

Overview:

Not many players made a better impact this spring on the new coaching staff than Johnson who was on the end of praise by Bryan Harsin back in April.

“He’s been one of the more consistent players, day in and day out, as far as his execution and preparation. Being able to come off the ball and be an explosive player play after play, the great ones who play that position at wide receiver, that’s what they do. He’s played faster, and he’s done it more consistently. He’s made some plays in practice.”

With the receiver corps depth chart being full of inexperienced players, Johnson will have a major chance to become a contributor.