Shivers ferocious style

[aubiefifty 17,492]

Shaun Shivers might be small, but ferocious style is huge threat

ByBrandon Marcello 6 hours ago

8

AUBURN, Alabama — Shaun Shivers felt comfortable in mid-September.

The freshman, however, had to wait until the final game of October to finally get his shot at a heavy workload at running back.

The short, stout man they call "Worm" certainly has not disappointed. The 5-foot-7 track star from south Florida is averaging 5.7 yards per carry as a change-of-pace 'back behind JaTarvious Whitlow. It wasn't until the 31-16 victory at Ole Miss last week that coaches decided to make the shortest player on the team the second-team tailback -- and it proved fruitful for the offense as he finished with 45 yards on 10 carries.

"We're getting started on a roll now," Shivers said. "Me as a player, I watch Boobee (Martin), Kam Martin, I watch what they do and try to do it as well as them when we're in practice. They've been my role models here, those running backs. Just watching them do what they do makes me go out there and do the same thing."

Shivers is shifty, yes, but what makes him so important to Auburn's offense is his courage in the middle of the field and one-on-one with linebackers and defensive backs. He's not afraid to lower his shoulder and absorb impact, and sometimes his low-center of gravity leads to some big hits that result in defenders falling flat on their backs instead of the 173-pound tailback barreling toward them.

"Oh, yeah, you know, that's what I do," he said. "It wasn't shocking to me. It's just normal."

LSU and Ole Miss found out firsthand this season. Shivers carried the ball seven times for 25 yards and one touchdown against LSU, with most of carries coming on a touchdown drive. During that possession he knocked an LSU defender loose off his body out of bounds, sparking a couple of barks between the two players.

It was on that drive Shivers felt as if he had adjusted to the speed and ferocity of college football.

"Yeah," he smiled. "Well, you could say throughout the whole game, not just that play."

Shivers' impressive performance against LSU did not yield more playing time, however. He carried the ball a total of six times in the next four games for 18 yards. Then, when Whitlow took over as the go-to tailback in Week 6 at Mississippi State, a door opened for Shivers. It didn't fully open until last week, when coach Gus Malzahn promised "tweaks" to the offense after a disappointing 30-24 loss at home to Tennessee.

"I’ve been really impressed with him, with his attitude and competitiveness," Malzahn said at the time.

Shivers certainly didn't disappoint. He carried the ball 10 times for 45 yards, the second-best total among the running backs. Whitlow led the way with 170 yards rushing while totaling 208 yards total. Meanwhile, former starter Kam Martin was bumped to a role mostly as a fourth-team tailback behind Malik Miller, who emerged as a third-down 'back.

It was quite the change for the Tigers' rotation, which had mostly included Kam Martin as the starter and Whitlow as the backup. The 193-pound Martin, however, has mostly proven ineffective in the SEC. The junior averages only 3.1 yards per carry against SEC teams. Whitlow averages 6.1 yards.

“Kam is one of our leaders," Malzahn said. "He sets the tone for a lot of guys on offense. He is a team guy and he is ready when called upon whenever his name is called.”

Meanwhile, it appears Shivers has found his calling as a freshman. He'll continue to drill surprised linebackers in the mouth until coaches pull him off the field.

"When me and a linebacker met in the hole (at Ole Miss), the sideline got hyped, and then I came back to the sideline and they were like, 'That's how you run the football,'" Shivers said.

 

[CR 2,448]

So after showing out against LSU, Shivers gets 6 carries in the next 4 games for 18 yds. This is what drives a lot of us crazy about our offense. Players that can make things happen get few to no touches while the offense sputters. When asked, Chip or Gus will say"We've got to do a better job of getting player x the ball."  "He's going to be a good player for us." Why take away our best options by denying them the opportunity to touch the ball?
Still think this guy can be a special player.

[WDE427 72]

I Like watching him when he gets the ball. He isn’t scared of $h*+. Fun young man to watch. He has the heart and courage to do what ever he wants. WDE Shivers 

[alexava 6,974]

32 minutes ago, CR said:

So after showing out against LSU, Shivers gets 6 carries in the next 4 games for 18 yds. This is what drives a lot of us crazy about our offense. Players that can make things happen get few to no touches while the offense sputters. When asked, Chip or Gus will say"We've got to do a better job of getting player x the ball."  "He's going to be a good player for us." Why take away our best options by denying them the opportunity to touch the ball?
Still think this guy can be a special player.

People say the exact same thing about Miller, Asa and Kam. There is only one ball. But.... I agree worm would be one guy I want running the ball more. 

[CR 2,448]

2 minutes ago, alexava said:

People say the exact same thing about Miller, Asa and Kam. There is only one ball. But.... I agree worm would be one guy I want running the ball more. 

Not calling any player out, but I don't hear a clamoring for Kam or Malik to touch the ball ANY more. Asa is a mystery that no one will really answer on why he's buried on the bench.

[alexava 6,974]

1 minute ago, CR said:

Not calling any player out, but I don't hear a clamoring for Kam or Malik to touch the ball ANY more. Asa is a mystery that no one will really answer on why he's buried on the bench.

Kam calls have gone all but vanished. Earlier we heard several.  Malik still. gets plenty. Even some for joiner and the walkon. 

[CR 2,448]

People think Malik should get the ball more? Wow.

[WDE427 72]

Could you imagine if Malzahn had the heart and courage of this young man. 

[lca408 378]

Malik's been pretty solid running the ball, not exceptional but not bad runs. Boobie is clearly the best all around back if healthy, Shivers is exciting and the future looks bright for him. Kam is just not quite suited for this type of running attack - he's more of a situational guy and that's a problem that slows this offense down when we have to substitute him in the game. Who knows about Asa.

Kam is fine but, forgive me for saying this but I'll quote Catelyn Stark:

"they are the Knights of Summer, and Winter is Coming!"

Boobie, Shivers, and Miller should be your 3 guys at RB for November/Winter. They make the offense function the best. Pick one at a time, don't sub them out unless they're injured and go fast. It may not end up elite but the offense will be much better on the field than it has been.

[doc4aday 1,887]

I think Boobee & Worm & Miller are going to light it up the last remaining games and have us all wondering why in the heck did it take Gus this long to figure out what he has on hand. This is a pattern that goes back many seasons with RBs. (Mason, KJ, Petway, and others). I feel that these last 4 or 5 games will showcase their abilities. time will tell the story these remaining games.

[chimes 442]

Does it surprise/baffle anyone else that Kam was named RB1 after Fall practice? I don’t think he’s remotely shown that ability this season. Seems pretty clear, at least at this point, that Whitlow is our best all-around option and that Shivers can definitely be a solid change of pace guy. What were the coaches seeing during practices? 

[chimes 442]

2 hours ago, doc4aday said:

I think Boobee & Worm & Miller are going to light it up the last remaining games and have us all wondering why in the heck did it take Gus this long to figure out what he has on hand. This is a pattern that goes back many seasons with RBs. (Mason, KJ, Petway, and others). I feel that these last 4 or 5 games will showcase their abilities. time will tell the story these remaining games.

I think Mason was actually worked into the fold pretty well early on and handed the keys at the right time

[MexicanBurtReynolds 9]

6 hours ago, lca408 said:

Kam is fine but, forgive me for saying this but I'll quote Catelyn Stark:

"they are the Knights of Summer, and Winter is Coming!" 

lca408 - Lots of people make GOT references as it relates to AU football...….

Lots of c**ts.

 

[CR 2,448]

19 minutes ago, chimes said:

Does it surprise/baffle anyone else that Kam was named RB1 after Fall practice? I don’t think he’s remotely shown that ability this season. Seems pretty clear, at least at this point, that Whitlow is our best all-around option and that Shivers can definitely be a solid change of pace guy. What were the coaches seeing during practices? 

Kam has went from 1st string to basically 4th string in record time. As to what the coaches see in practice, that seems to be a mystery to most. Behind this line, there seems to be no way he could have ever been considered the best option at RB for 2018.

[alexava 6,974]

Well boobie was not a rb until about 10-11 months ago? Shivers is barely 18 years old as is Asa was in high school less than a year ago. Malik has been often injured. I would go out on a limb and say Kam was the default RB1. The coaches probably quietly also felt WEwere screwd if someone else didn’t step up and fully expected them to. But I don’t disagree with bringing him into the season as the presumed starter and let the depth chart work itself  out. I was praying someone else stepped up. If we ran a kerryon at maybe 45% effectiveness in the SECCG, over Kmart who’s been in the system as long as he had..... maybe he wasn’t going to be the horse. We were thin. Still thin back there. If Asa was as productive as we hoped, I truly believe he would be running the ball. 

[aujeff11 6,243]

8 hours ago, MexicanBurtReynolds said:

lca408 - Lots of people make GOT references as it relates to AU football...….

Lots of c**ts.

 

Now tell us how you really feel about it.