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Roster outlook: Defensive tackle


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Roster outlook: Defensive tackle

 

AUBURN | The next in a series of position-by-position looks at Auburn’s roster in 2019 is defensive tackle. There are some very big holes to fill but Auburn’s defensive staff has done a good job of preparing for next year with replacements already lined up.

While Derrick Brown hasn’t officially announced his decision, the junior is expected to join seniors Dontavius Russell and Andrew Williams in the 2019 NFL Draft. That means AU must replace its top three defensive tackles in the playing rotation.

 
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Truesdell closes in on a tackle against Arkansas.
Robin Conn/AuburnSports.com

Despite having those three talented players in front of him, junior Tyrone Truesdell has played in 19 games over the past two seasons including 11 this fall in which he’s tallied nine tackles and 0.5 tackles-for-loss. He’ll battle junior DaQuan Newkirk and sophomore Coynis Miller for two starting positions although all three should be important parts of the playing rotation.

Newkirk, who joined the team from junior college last January, overcame an Achilles injury to play in seven games this fall while Miller played in eight as a true freshmen. Both possess plenty of talent and this offseason will be a big one for both to continue to develop.

Sophomore Alec Jackson played in 10 games this season after redshirting his first season. He weighed about 270 pounds on his 6-foot-5 frame coming out of high school and was expected to need a couple of years to build up size and strength, which also makes this an important offseason for the Montgomery, Ala., native.

Not surprisingly, the defensive tackle position is a priority for the Tigers in the 2019 class. So far, Auburn has garnered commitments from two talented linemen, Jaren Handy and Jamond Gordon, who could project as strongside defensive ends or defensive tackles on the next level, and is targeting several other top prospects.

Auburn's defensive staff would normally want at minimum of five d-tackles in the playing rotation so expect at least one newcomer to garner regular playing time.

AU's staff also likes to build versatility into its lineup and has several defensive ends that can play or have played inside at tackle including junior Nick Coe and redshirt freshman Caleb Johnson.

 

 

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Why cant we recruit like this on the other side of the ball?

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8 hours ago, ChrisH said:

Why cant we recruit like this on the other side of the ball?

Garner has recruited on a high level since the early 90’s.   He has the relationships but more importantly he gets people in the league.   

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55 minutes ago, lala said:

Garner has recruited on a high level since the early 90’s.   He has the relationships but more importantly he gets people in the league.   

About 3 years ago at least half this board wanted to run Garner off as bad as they want Gus gone now. 

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1 hour ago, alexava said:

About 3 years ago at least half this board wanted to run Garner off as bad as they want Gus gone now. 

Maybe so but doesn’t change the fact.  That was pre-Champ who was needed to change the overall mindset 

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We are loosing a lot of  D-Line talent but we have solid players with game experience waiting to take their place and appear to have some incoming talent that will get some PT. Initially the D-Line will not be quite as strong but I don't see a huge drop off. We are returning a large number of staring DB's with some really good young guys coming in. We may actually be better at DB this year with all the experience young players got last year. LB is the question mark on D if Twill can get the returning players and any incoming players to anything close to the level of the LB's we are losing we could still have a really good D next year.  

I think the biggest question on D next year is if O can get back to controlling the ball and the clock. If we can have an O that is on the field and controlling the clock from 30-35 minutes a game we could statistically end up with a better D then this year.

I am anxious to see the write up on the LB's and the progress they make this spring as they are the key to the D this coming year. I hope to see more of the backup LB's in the bowl game also both for the experience they gain and also because that probably means we are doing well.

 

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With the experience Auburn has coming back on the ends I wonder if someone would get rotated in to tackle?  I know nothing about skill sets needed on the outside vs the inside of the line so that may not be an option with Coe, Bryant, or Moultry.

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25 minutes ago, Win4AU said:

With the experience Auburn has coming back on the ends I wonder if someone would get rotated in to tackle?  I know nothing about skill sets needed on the outside vs the inside of the line so that may not be an option with Coe, Bryant, or Moultry.

I thought Coe would be a DT. As well as he’s playing de now.... I’m not so sure. 

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8 hours ago, Win4AU said:

With the experience Auburn has coming back on the ends I wonder if someone would get rotated in to tackle?  I know nothing about skill sets needed on the outside vs the inside of the line so that may not be an option with Coe, Bryant, or Moultry.

I believe Coe played inside in long passing down situations. He is awful big for the Buck position. His length makes him an asset on the outside, but he may be a better fit as a strong-side DE or as a 3-Tech DT (especially in passing downs).

If we had a rock-star speed rusher/edge rusher as the no-brainer at Buck, we would probably look at Coe either at SDE or 3-Tech.

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always a big fan of Garner. I think our D-line will be fine.

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