LB Chandler Wooten back at practice

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https://www.al.com/auburnfootball/2019/05/chandler-wooten-cleared-for-summer-workouts-after-a-day-knee-injury.html

Chandler Wooten cleared for summer workouts after A-Day knee injury

Posted May 23, 7:10 PM

Josh Bean

Auburn's Chandler Wooten (31) is helped off the field after suffering an injury during the 2019 Auburn A-Day scrimmage at Jordan-Hare Stadium in Auburn on April 13, 2019.

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By Tom Green | tgreen@al.com

Auburn linebacker Chandler Wooten has been cleared to return to the field and participate in summer workouts after sustaining a knee injury on A-Day.

Accoring to Auburn linebackers coach Travis Williams, Wooten is fully recovered from the right knee injury that cut short the junior linebacker’s spring game and is active in the Tigers’ summer strength-training program.

“I was a little nervous,” Williams said Thursday before speaking at the Montgomery Auburn Club. “He’s good. He’s back working out. He’s doing really good."

Wooten injured his knee in the second quarter of Auburn’s spring game last month and remained down on the field for several moments as team trainers checked on him. He eventually got back on his feet with the help of the athletic training staff and limped off the field with assistance. 

Wooten was taken back to the locker room for further testing and did not return to the game. Auburn coach Gus Malzahn did not have an update on Wooten’s injury after the game but said earlier this month during his AMBUSH stop in Dothan that all of Auburn’s injured players from the spring were expected back for the season opener against Oregon in August.

For Wooten, that return was much sooner despite the injury initially looking more severe than it wound up being. That, of course, is good news for Auburn’s linebacker corps, which is replacing three seniors in Deshaun Davis, Darrell Williams and Montavious Atkinson. Wooten, along with fellow junior KJ Britt, are the Tigers’ most veteran returning linebackers this season.

Wooten, who played primarily at strongside linebacker last season, spent the spring repping there and behind Britt at middle linebacker. 

“I think he had probably the best spring,” Williams said of Wooten. "He has a chance now. That’s the thing, man. When you’re recruiting these guys, you got to have — because so many people want these kids microwave-ready, but it’s not realistic. You get the right person, like we talked about, even with recruiting, don’t worry about the kids you don’t get; just make sure the kids you get can play.... So, I just try to make sure the ones I get can play. So that’s the main thing. 

“But yeah, Chandler’s doing good. He’s doing good. He’ll be able to play all three positions.”

Wooten will rotate at each linebacker position this fall, as Williams puts an emphasis on keeping his linebackers fresh for late-game situations. Wooten has appeared in 17 games over the last two seasons and totaled 18 tackles. As a sophomore, he saw the field in nine games and made 10 tackles in 2018.

Williams expects even more from the 6-foot-2, 228-pounder entering Year 3 on the Plains.

“A lot of times Year 3 is when that light bulb just clicks,” Williams said. "... Even with Chandler, the tail end of last year — because Chandler was our starting Sam backer last year — the tail end of last year, me and Coach (Kevin) Steele were talking about how this kid here, he’s doing everything right. He’s locked in, dialed in, and he made a good quote. We did our post-spring meetings with the guys, and I was like, ‘You did a really good job. This is what you did well. This is what you need to work on.’ He looked right at me and he said, ‘Coach, keep coaching me hard.’ He said, ‘Coach, don’t let up.’ I said, ‘You know me better than that.’ 

“Just his whole mindset and going about his business is just — he just flipped a switch. Now the game is slowing down for him. I’m very, very pleased with his progress.”

[Auburn2Eugene 2,317]

This is GREAT to hear. I hope he can come back at 100%. He shouldn't rush it though... We hopefully learned our lesson last season rushing back our two WRs with knee injuries.

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[api1957 1,783]

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1 hour ago, Auburn2Eugene said:

This is GREAT to hear. I hope he can come back at 100%. He shouldn't rush it though... We hopefully learned our lesson last season rushing back our two WRs with knee injuries.

I agree, but this was a lot less severe injury than the two receivers. I’m with you though on not coming back too fast because lb is an area we will need our best out there.

[WVR 818]

Great news.