Jump to content

9/28/22 Auburn Articles


aubiefifty

Recommended Posts

Brian Kelly said LSU is preparing for rough conditions against Auburn due to Hurricane Ian

Tyler Nettuno
3 minutes

As the west coast of Florida hunkers down in preparation for what could be devastating effects of Hurricane Ian, college football programs around the region are monitoring the situation.

That includes Tigers coach Brian Kelly, who discussed how the team is preparing for potential bad weather in Saturday’s contest on the road against Auburn.

Buy Tigers Tickets

“No doubt. We’ve talked about a gameplan in terms of what it might look like, hopefully that’s going to pass through,” Kelly said. “We’re going to get probably some rain of some kind and that’ll be our first time in that kind of element. It’s a grass situation, so you put those plans together relative to what that would look like if, in fact, we did get hit with some severe rain.”

The current track shows the hurricane staying well away from eastern Alabama, but that doesn’t mean the game couldn’t be impacted by the outer bands. Per the 10 p.m. CT rainfall potential update from the National Hurricane Center, Auburn could be set to receive up to four inches of rain.

Kelly may be new to coaching in the south, but he’s dealt with the impacts of hurricanes before, most notably against Clemson in 2015 and NC State the following year while he was at Notre Dame.

“I’ve been in two remnants of hurricanes, one at North Carolina State, which was abysmal and I think the other was at Clemson,” Kelly said. “They affect the game conditions, and so you have to plan accordingly in terms of your passing game, running game. Kicking game is affected dramatically. Field position, tactically how you call a game. You just have to wrap your head around it prior to and prepare for it. And then, quite frankly, you have to react accordingly during the game.

“I’m not making too much of it. I’m not going to put too much on our players. Our players just need to play, and as coaches we’ll adapt accordingly during the game.”

LSU’s Week 5 contest should go on as planned, but it will likely be in less pristine conditions than the team has faced to this point.

Contact/Follow us @LSUTigersWire on Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Louisiana State news, notes, and opinions.

Follow Tyler to continue the conversation on Twitter: @TylerNettuno

Link to comment
Share on other sites





Bryan Harsin talks about Auburn’s Week 5 matchup with LSU

Jack Singley
3-4 minutes

Following a shaky SEC opener that ultimately led to a 17-14 overtime win over Missouri, Bryan Harsin and the Auburn Tigers turn to the LSU Tigers for game two of SEC play.

Coach Harsin had this to say about Auburn's week five opponent:

“On offense, they average 39 points per game, they’re fifth in the SEC. And 49% on third downs, very good on third downs. Their quarterback is playing well. Jayden Daniels transferred from ASU. He's a really good player, a really good runner, and leads a team in rushing.”

The LSU Tigers are not just a threat on the offensive side of the ball, but defensively as well. Led by linebacker Harold Perkins Jr, who has the team-high in tackles with twenty-one, and sack leader on the team Sai’von Jones.

“Defensively, they are third in the SEC in total defense and they're first in SEC turnovers per game. They're doing a very good job on that side of the ball. Their special teams are solid averaging 18 yards for kickoff return, 37.6 yards on the net for their punt, and they are 3-for-5 in field goals. So, very good that way.”

For Auburn, they’ll have to face a defense that is only allowing 3.45 yards per rushing attempt and a stifling secondary that is only allowing 146 passing yards per game. The Auburn offense will look to make up for flaws in the line and scheme plays for their dynamic playmakers Tank Bigsby, Robby Ashford, and former LSU receiver Koy Moore. Defensively, they’ll look to stop the aforementioned Daniels, who has over 1,000 all-purpose yards this season, and their two-headed monster at wide receiver Kayshon Boutte (93 yards on 10 receptions with 41 rushing yards) and Malik Nabors (264 yards on twenty receptions for one touchdown).

The Tigers’ offensive line had their hands full last week as Missouri got to the quarterback four times and had 12 tackles for loss. The injury status of center Tate Johnson going into the week was uncertain, but on Monday afternoon Coach Harsin revealed Johnson's status to the media.

“Tate Johnson, so he was injured in the last game, and he will have surgery on Thursday,” Harsin said. “This should be six to eight weeks, but it could be season-ending. He'll have surgery on his elbow this Thursday. So, we'll work through replacing him and what we're going to do on the offensive line this week in practice.”

For an offensive line that already lost Nick Brahms, its 6th year senior starting center in the offseason due to medical retirement, the injury to starting center Tate Johnson could mean a shake-up across the entire line. Guards Brandon Council and Keiondre Jones practiced at center over the offseason, but for now, backup Jalil Irvin is expected to get the nod against a powerful LSU defensive line that’s currently 4th in the SEC in team sacks.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Auburn football: Tigers have an opponent they can focus on rather than coaching change

Glenn Sattell
5-6 minutes

As the buzzards continue to circle above head coach Bryan Harsin’s office, what kind of effort can we expect from the Tigers on Saturday?

Supreme, comes to mind. It’s LSU week. It’s the Tiger Bowl.

It’s a heated rivalry that dates all the way back to 1901, a game Auburn won, 28-0, in Baton Rouge. It’s 1 of 24 victories the Tigers have enjoyed in this series, one that has been played annually since 1992. Auburn is 24-31-1 all-time against LSU, but 13-8 against the Bayou Bengals at Jordan-Hare Stadium, where the teams will reconvene on Saturday for a 6 p.m. CT kickoff.

Auburn has won the past 2 meetings in a largely overlooked rivalry, at least nationally. But when these  teams get together, the intensity level is ratcheted up as high as it gets, even to the point of registering on the Richter scale.

In LSU’s national championship season of 2019, considered by more than a few as the greatest team in college football history, it was Auburn that gave them their toughest game. Ranked No. 2 at the time, LSU survived a 23-20 decision over No. 9 Auburn in Baton Rouge.

During Auburn’s 2010 run to the national championship, it was Cam Newton who dashed for a long touchdown run, and the No. 4 Tigers needed a late 4th-quarter TD run to break a 17-17 tie and beat No. 6 LSU, 24-17.

When these teams get together, regardless of the circumstances — imminent coaching change, national championship journeys, buildings burning in the background — this game always brings the passion that makes college football the great sport that it is.

Don’t expect anything less on Saturday. Despite the fact that LSU is an 8-point favorite, the teams have split right down the middle the last 6 meetings, with all but 1 ending in a 1-score game.

It’s one of those games where coaches have absolutely no need to fire up their troops, on either side. LSU 1st-year head coach Brian Kelly will get his 1st experience of SEC play on the road. He has his Tigers headed to Auburn with an identical 3-1, 1-0 record.

Isn’t perception interesting? Here we have Harsin with a 3-1, 1-0 mark through 4 games, and the media has him one foot out the door. Meanwhile, Kelly has the same 3-1, 1-0 record, and he’s still enjoying honeymoon status back in Baton Rouge.

Expectations are the difference. A win on Saturday will ease at least some of the pressure Harsin must feel from all the pushing toward the exit door. A loss, however, and he may not be the guy taking the Tigers to Athens the following week.

While the focus remains on Harsin’s future at Auburn, you can be sure the players will be lathered up and ready to tangle on The Plains.

What might we expect from Auburn?

Related: LSU is an 8-point favorite as of writing across the major sportsbooks. Sports betting is live in Louisiana.

For starters, we can expect the Tigers to put points on the board. Auburn has scored in 121 consecutive games, the 2nd-longest streak in school history. We can expect the defense to come out fired up. Auburn’s defense has allowed just 25 1st-quarter touchdowns in the past 70 games.

We can expect Robby Ashford to continue to develop as a dual threat under center after scoring his 1st career touchdown, an 11-yard run in the 1st quarter last week against Missouri.

We can definitely expect to see Tank Bigsby carry the weight of the offense on his shoulders. Now with 2,214 career rushing yards and 19 touchdowns, Bigsby passed Kenny Irons (2,186) into 16th place on the Auburn all-time rushing list and takes aim on Cameron Artis-Payne (2,218).

We could also expect that tight end John Samuel Shenker could have another record-setting game against LSU. It was last year, in Baton Rouge, that Shenker set the Auburn all-time single-season record for receiving yards by a tight end. He finished the 2021 campaign with 413 yards, and he has his sights set on another record.

Shenker needs 4 catches on Saturday to become Auburn’s all-time career receptions leader for tight ends. It would give him 60 and surpass the mark set by the late, great Philip Lutzenkirchen (2009-12), who holds the mark with 59.

One thing is certain — for 60 minutes on Saturday, we can forget about all the outside noise, the clutter, and enjoy the 2022 version of this long and hotly-contested rivalry.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Bryan Harsin hot seat: CFB insider paints dire picture for Auburn coach if Tigers lose to Mizzou

Sydney Hunte | 4 days ago
 
 
 

Bryan Harsin faced significant heat after a 6-7 record in his 1st season at Auburn.

The Tigers ended the year on a 5-game losing streak and saw numerous players transfer out after the season, with Harsin being called out for that as well as sub-par recruiting and personality clashes with both players and staff members.

 

While Harsin was retained for 2022 after an investigation into the football program, the heat hasn’t died down. Auburn is 2-2 after a blowout loss to Penn State at Jordan-Hare Stadium, one of its worst home defeats in some time. It now must beat Missouri on Saturday if it wants to avoid the season taking even more of a turn for the worse.

Now, there’s talk that a loss to Mizzou could cost Harsin his job, according to college football insider Bruce Feldman.

“You have a coach here who really has got nobody supporting him,” Feldman said on FOX’s Big Noon Saturday, noting that Allen Greene, who hired Harsin, is no longer with the university, while citing Harsin’s recruiting struggles and dissatisfaction among boosters. “So right now, he’s never had much of a chance to get any traction there. If they get beat [Saturday] by Missouri, I’m told there’s a really good chance they could pull the plug on him as early as [Sunday].”

Harsin is 8-8 through 16 games as Auburn’s head coach. If he drops to 8-9 on Saturday, it sounds as if it could be the last time he’s on the Tigers sideline.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

theplainsman.com
 

Missouri win highlights Auburn offense's weaknesses - The Auburn Plainsman

 
5-6 minutes

Auburn fans heard a certain mantra repeated all offseason by Bryan Harsin and his players: just watch. After Saturday’s performance against Missouri, nobody would blame Tigers fans if they ignored that advice and shut their eyes to escape from the horror show that unfolded in Jordan Hare Stadium.

Per CFBGraphs, Auburn’s offense entered conference play ranked 38th in EPA per rush and 101st overall in offensive EPA. Against a Mizzou squad that allowed 223 rushing yards and 40 points to Kansas State, Harsin’s unit posted just 217 yards from scrimmage, a pair of touchdowns and a field goal in a game that at one point featured twelve consecutive punts.

Auburn opened the game on fire, moving the ball with ease on the ground and scoring touchdowns on Tank Bigsby and Robby Ashford runs. However, after the scripted portion of the game plan ended, that momentum came to a grinding halt.

The three subsequent first half drives for Ashford and company ended in a punt, a punt and a missed field goal from 45 yards out. Two of those possessions resulted in net losses of yardage and the only positive sequence largely came off of a 15-yard gain by John Samuel Shenker that could have been called incomplete if not for the initial ruling of a catch.

Auburn came out of the half and responded with six consecutive punts, three of which followed three-and-outs. Missouri limited the Tigers to 95 total yards in the final thirty minutes of regulation, a defensive effort that culminated in a fourth and one stop at the Missouri 30 yard line on Auburn’s final possession before overtime.

The game only continued on the grace of Missouri head coach Eli Drinkwitz’s decision to run out the clock and kick a field goal, despite his offense sitting deep in Auburn territory with a full minute remaining and multiple downs to try and score. When Harrison Mevis missed the 26-yard chip shot, it gave the Auburn offense another chance to prove itself.

Instead, the Tigers promptly went three-and-out and nearly lost the game on an Ashford throw that was initially ruled an interception. Auburn snatched victory from the jaws of defeat thanks to that overturned call, a Missouri offside call wiping out a missed Anders Carlson field goal and an inexplicable fumble by Nathaniel Peat.

In the SEC, a win is a win no matter how you find it, but Harsin and offensive coordinator Eric Kiesau have work to do if they want to capture another conference victory next week against LSU. Harsin’s teams have been outscored 52-12 after halftime in their last four SEC games, and Saturday that differential almost became 55-12.

A key part of solving the lack of production is better play from the offensive line. Harsin admitted that the unit had work to do going forward. 

“We struggled in some of our pass protection, no question. I also think they (the Missouri defense) did a good job, but that’s an area that we’re going to continue to emphasize and keep working on," Harsin said. "It’s not going to go away until we fix some of our own problems. We've got to be better on the offensive line. We got too much pressure.”

According to PFF, Auburn gave up 36 quarterback pressures on 45 dropbacks last week to Penn State and the big men up front once again had a rough outing. Averaging 1.8 yards per rush, while giving up four sacks and 12 tackles for loss, against a Missouri defensive line that allowed 5.5 yards per carry against Kansas State will not cut it against the rest of this schedule.

John Samuel Shenker felt that the Tigers only needed to carry over their execution from the first two drives of the game to get better results. 

“Everyone was executing their jobs. Obviously Mizzou has a good defense, so they’re playing things and slowing things down, but I thought we had a great start and that helped a lot," Shenker said. "If we can just translate that throughout the game we’d be something special.”

Only time will tell how Auburn can respond and grow after its early offensive struggles. In a day and age where schools do not hesitate to fire a coach due to unsatisfactory performance, Harsin's job security may be dependent on that improvement. 

Do you like this story? The Plainsman doesn't accept money from tuition or student fees, and we don't charge a subscription fee. But you can donate to support The Plainsman.


Share and discuss “Missouri win highlights Auburn offense's weaknesses” on social media.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Can Auburn accelerate production at WR despite passing game issues?

Published: Sep. 27, 2022, 1:26 p.m.
6-7 minutes

Auburn’s wide receiver corps is in rare company through the first four weeks of the season — and not for the right reason.

Auburn is one of just three FBS teams — not including option-based service academies like Army and Navy — that has yet to have a wide receiver score a touchdown, either receiving or rushing, this season. The Tigers join UAB and South Florida in that distinction, making them the only Power 5 team with that glaring omission on their season stats.

“We’ve got dogs in that room, and we haven’t been able to show it as much, but it’s coming,” Auburn quarterback Robby Ashford said. “…We’ve got a lot of ballers and they’re just waiting to pop out. I think they will really soon.”

Read more Auburn football: Auburn’s offense still looking for remedy to second-half woes

Tate Johnson out 6-8 weeks as Auburn down to third center

A few notable changes to Auburn’s depth chart entering LSU game

Through Auburn’s first four games, its quarterbacks have thrown two touchdowns — one to tight end John Samuel Shenker in the season opener and one to running back Jarquez Hunter in the loss to Penn State — which is tied for fifth-fewest passing touchdowns in the nation. The struggles with the offense overall and the passing game in particular have been well-documented already this season: Auburn is 103rd nationally in passing offense (202.8 yards per game), 105th in passing efficiency (121.09) and 85th in completion percentage (60.2 percent), while Ashford and T.J. Finley have thrown a combined six interceptions.

Despite those unappealing numbers in the passing game, Auburn’s wide receivers have shown signs of promise — especially from where the unit was a year ago at this point. The Tigers struggled with dropped passes, misalignments and other mental errors through four games last fall, prompting head coach Bryan Harsin to fire receivers coach Cornelius Williams and promote Eric Kiesau from analyst to on-field coach.

Kiesau is now offensive coordinator, and Harsin tabbed longtime NFL assistant Ike Hilliard — a former All-SEC and All-America receiver at Florida — to oversee the Tigers’ wide receivers. The group lost two of its top-three receivers from last season, with Kobe Hudson landing at UCF following an offseason dismissal and Demetris Robertson exhausting his eligibility, and nearly lost another key piece after Ja’Varrius Johnson spent time in the transfer portal in February before reconsidering and returning to the team in the spring.

Auburn did a quick revamp of the room, adding three freshman wide receivers in the 2022 class and picking up two on the transfer market.

Two of the bright spots for the receiving corps have been Johnson and former LSU transfer Koy Moore. Johnson leads the team with 231 yards on 13 receptions, averaging 17.77 yards per catch, while Moore is coming off his best game with his new team — a four-catch, 74-yard performance against Missouri that included each of Auburn’s three most explosive plays of the day. Moore had receptions of 21, 20 and 24 yards in Auburn’s 17-14 overtime win to open SEC play, including a heads-up play on a designed wide receiver pass in which he kept the ball and scampered for 21 yards downfield instead of trying to force a pass.

“It was good on his end just to go create something but also take care of the football,” Harsin said. “He’s a really smart player. That’s the one thing. That’s why we put him in those positions. He’s really smart. And it was good to see him get the ball in his hands and do some things…. He’s a guy we’ve got to continue to keep getting going. But I liked his attitude in the game. A lot of energy. Wanted the ball in his hands. Just that mentality was big for us, especially in that game.

“So, we’ll keep building on that, because he’s a good player. And I think what we saw, we can do some more things to try to get him in the mix.”

Prior to last week’s game against Missouri, Moore had just two catches through the first three games — a pair of 13-yard receptions against San Jose State and Penn State. Meanwhile Johnson, despite being the team’s top receiver — and its best downfield threat (he has been on the receiving end of passes of 39, 36 and 24 yards that have gotten down inside the opponent’s 7-yard line this season) — did not record a catch in the SEC opener. He was targeted just once on the afternoon, and it came on Ashford’s final pass attempt of the game — a third-down pass that was nearly picked off in overtime.

Along with Johnson and Moore, Shedrick Jackson has caught 10 passes for 141 yards through three games, while Harsin and Kiesau tried to work freshmen Omari Kelly and Camden Brown into the gameplan against Missouri. With Auburn’s offense sputtering, particularly in the second half against quality competition, Harsin knows the coaching staff needs to do more to get the receivers involved so the offense can get on track, regardless of who is at quarterback.

It has been a work in progress, and there are certainly some things to build upon with guys like Moore and Johnson flashing their potential— but the Tigers can’t afford to take their time; the results need to come if the team is to stand a chance in SEC play.

“We had a few things at the wide receiver position that was good,” Harsin said. “We need to do more of that and use those guys. And we’re trying to do those things.”

Tom Green is an Auburn beat reporter for Alabama Media Group. Follow him on Twitter @Tomas_Verde.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Auburn’s offense still searching for remedy to second-half woes

Published: Sep. 27, 2022, 7:02 a.m.
5-7 minutes

A troubling trend for Auburn’s offense has carried over from the final stretch of last season.

The Tigers have continued to struggle offensively in the second half of games against Power 5 competition — an issue that sunk the team during its five-game losing streak to end last season and has resurfaced the last two weeks against Missouri and Penn State. Over the last two weeks, Auburn scored just six second-half points (not including overtime) on 14 possessions, averaging 0.29 points per drive after halftime.

“That has been a struggle,” tight end and team captain John Samuel Shenker said. “That’s been one of our things we’ve tried to harp on coming into the second half.”

Read more Auburn football: Tate Johnson out 6-8 weeks as Auburn down to third center

Statistically speaking: Auburn’s offense among worst in FBS through Week 4

A few notable changes to Auburn’s depth chart entering LSU game

The issue has been a lingering one for Auburn, which trudged through the back stretch of last season with a meandering second-half offense in its final five SEC games, beginning with its last win of 2021 — almost 11 months ago against Ole Miss.

In that game, Auburn mustered just three second-half points but had a strong enough first half to hold on for a 31-20 win. Over the Tigers’ last seven games against Power 5 opponents — the final five conference games last fall, this year’s Penn State game and the SEC opener against Missouri — they have been outscored 97-21 in the second half, not including a combined five overtime periods against Alabama and Missouri.

During that stretch, Auburn has averaged just 0.47 points per drive. For context, the worst points-per-drive offense in the FBS this season is Akron at 0.45.

A “struggle,” as Shenker described it, is an understatement.

Last season’s tailspin was last season, though. Auburn retooled its offense with a new offensive coordinator in Eric Kiesau, who was promoted from wide receivers coach in the offseason, and a new quarterback following the transfer of Bo Nix (who missed the South Carolina and Alabama games last season), as well as a revamped receiving corps.

This season was supposed to be a fresh start for Auburn’s offense in Year 2 under head coach Bryan Harsin. Instead, it has been more of the same results for a unit that has been among the worst all-around in the country through four weeks.

The second-half offensive woes have been underscored the last two weeks against Penn State and Missouri. Penn State outscored Auburn 27-6 in the second half two weeks ago, turning a one-score game at halftime into the Tigers’ worst home loss in the last decade. Auburn and Missouri failed to put any points on the board in the second half of last weekend’s display of futility, combining for 12 consecutive punts coming out of halftime before the final two possessions of regulation ended in a turnover on downs on Auburn and a missed chip-shot field goal by Missouri’s Harrison Mevis.

“I think we’ve got to just come out and be aggressive and execute better,” quarterback Robby Ashford said. “I think sometimes we come out there sometimes kind of hesitant, and that’s not us. I will say we haven’t been playing Auburn football to our standard.”

How ineffective has Auburn’s offense been the last two weeks after halftime? Scoring issues aside, the Tigers have managed just 3.84 yards per play after halftime in those two games, averaging just 1.16 yards per carry and going a combined 2-of-17 on third-down attempts. The Tigers have punted nine times -- going three-and-out on six of those drives -- committed two turnovers, turned it over on downs on two other second-half drives and scored just once in the second half against those teams.

“The second half, in those areas, we’ve got to be better,” Harsin said. “I think that’s an obvious statement there…. We don’t want to come out in the second half and not be more productive. That’s the goal that you want to have at halftime.”

Harsin noted his team has missed some opportunities in the second half the last two weeks, and that the issues haven’t been the same each game. Yet the end result has been — Auburn’s offense faltering and failing to produce at a competitive-enough level after halftime.

It’s clear Harsin and Kiesau need to make better halftime adjustment to put the offense in better position to succeed in the second half, and the embattled second-year head coach agreed they need to do better at getting the ball into the hands of Auburn’s top playmakers. Either way, the Tigers need to do something to remedy their second-half issues if they want to be competitive in SEC play.

Shenker suggested a prescription of “maybe more juice” for the offense, but it could take more than that to turn things around with five of its remaining seven SEC games coming against top-16 scoring defenses.

“We’ve got to be clicking on all cylinders — offensively and defensively,” Ashford said. “But the defense has been playing their butts off. It’s really up to us now to be able to flip that switch and just get around the corner to be able to make us an all-around great team. I think we’re going to do it.

“I feel confident in this team, I feel confident in the gameplan that we’ve got and the coaching staff we have. I feel like it’s coming. I feel like this week is going to be the week.”

Tom Green is an Auburn beat reporter for Alabama Media Group. Follow him on Twitter @Tomas_Verde.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Bryan Harsin: TJ Finley 'day-to-day,' other Auburn football injury updates

2aeb4d6a2aaf8ef2c6b57c8615ce7d93

  •  
 
 
 
 
 
  •  
  •  
  •  
  •  
Bennett Durando, Montgomery Advertiser
Wed, September 28, 2022 at 1:12 PM·2 min read
 
 
In this article:
  •  
 
 
 
 
 
  •  
  • Bryan Harsin
    American football player and coach
  •  
  • T. J. Finley
    American football quarterback
 
 

AUBURN — Quarterback T.J. Finley is "day-to-day" with a right shoulder injury as Auburn football prepares to face LSU, coach Bryan Harsin said Wednesday.

Finley missed the Tigers' SEC opener vs. Missouri after injuring his throwing shoulder on an awkward landing the previous week. Robby Ashford is expected to start his second consecutive game when Auburn (3-1, 1-0 SEC) hosts LSU (3-1, 1-0) on Saturday (6 p.m. CT, ESPN) at Jordan-Hare Stadium. The Oregon transfer was listed atop the quarterback depth chart this week.

Finley shared the second-team spot with freshman Holden Geriner, who appeared for two drives last week.

Harsin said Finley has been practicing this week. "We'll see how he goes today, and we'll see what he looks like," the coach said.

 

Auburn football injuries: Donovan Kaufman back vs. LSU?

Auburn starting safety Donovan Kaufman is also day-to-day after missing the Missouri game. Harsin did not specify Kaufman's injury, but he said he expects the defensive back be able to return this week "barring any setback."

"He just wasn't able to go last week," Harsin said. "He tried to work through and just wasn't able to get the reps."

SPECIAL SEASONFor Donovan Kaufman, 9 years of football without dad in the stands ends in Auburn season opener

'PEOPLE IMPROVE':Can TJ Finley reprogram himself to save Auburn football again? Here's how he spent his offseason

Kaufman is considered one of Auburn's most valuable defensive backs because of his versatility. He started the season playing most of his snaps in the slot as a nickel, but the Tigers adjusted in Week 2. Kaufman moved to free safety, and JUCO transfer Keionte Scott started at nickel. Redshirt freshman Cayden Bridges had been playing free safety. His snaps decreased from 55 to four.

But Bridges was in the right place at the right time after Kaufman's injury allowed him to start vs. Mizzou. Bridges fell on Nathaniel Peat's fumble in the end zone for a game-clinching touchback in overtime after it seemed Peat was within one yard of winning the game for Missouri.

Kaufman has 12 tackles this season and has broken up two of the three passes on which he was targeted in coverage.

Auburn's only other significant injury to a starter is at center, where Nick Brahms' season ended before it began and now Tate Johnson is out at least six weeks for elbow surgery. Third-stringer Jalil Irvin is expected to start vs. LSU, but Harsin is experimenting with different rotations this week.

This article originally appeared on Montgomery Advertiser: Bryan Harsin: TJ Finley 'day-to-day,' other Auburn football injuries

 
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now
×
×
  • Create New...