Tight End Tales

[quietfan 233]

http://www.al.com/auburnfootball/press-reg...&thispage=1

AUBURN — Tommy Trott is a tight end in name only, and he's just fine with that.

His former life as a bruising blocker and only occasional pass-catcher in Al Borges' Auburn offense are long gone. Today, he is an inside receiver who just happens to have "TE" by his name on the roster.

How often does Trott have to block? The question causes him to pause to think.

"There's very little mano-a-mano, going up against a defensive end and trying to blow him off the ball," he said. "We've got one or two plays where we do that."

Trott had perhaps the best spring of any receiver and the junior from Montgomery is off to a nice start in the early days of preseason camp. But while Trott has flourished in offensive coordinator Tony Franklin's new system, other tight ends haven't fared as well.

Gabe McKenzie, a 6-foot-4, 254-pound junior, is one of the Tigers' most athletic big men. He has the appearance of someone who could sack a quarterback, catch two passes and then change clothes and grab 15 rebounds in the gymnasium across the street.

But he's still struggling to find a meaningful role in Franklin's offense.

Franklin sounded dire warnings about McKenzie's future at the position during the spring, but he said McKenzie has shown him something this week in camp.

"We really challenged Gabe," Franklin said. "Gabe had to get better or Gabe wouldn't play. Gabe got better. He evidently did more in the summer than I thought he did. He's shown signs out here of being of being able to fit in and get more playing time. I've been really pleased with him."

McKenzie said the offense is "clicking" and he feels more comfortable than ever with his role.

"We've got good plays, good players and a good team," he said.

The tight ends do spend some time with the offensive line doing traditional run- and pass-blocking work, but they also catch plenty of passes in the "skele" drills with other slot and outside receivers.

Trott said most of his blocking duties will be downfield. "The way we usually do it, the quarterback always has a read to hand it off or keep it, so a lot of times we'll be blocking out in the open air, blocking DBs and linebackers," he said.

McKenzie came to Auburn from Davidson High with a reputation as a blocker, but he quickly developed very serviceable hands. He calls the blocking/catching mix in the current offense "the best of both worlds."

Beyond Trott and McKenzie, the picture is less encouraging. Auburn has several recruited tight ends whose positions seem almost obsolete. Bailey Woods, a well-regarded redshirt freshman from Marietta, Ga., doesn't appear close to cracking the lineup. Tight end Brent Slusher is out with an undisclosed injury, but there's little indication that he is a big part of the team's plans at this point. Incoming freshman Vance Smith was recruited by Borges, not Franklin.

Franklin has maintained that athletic tight ends with good hands can play an important role in his offense. The tight end was a vital part of the spread offense Franklin coached at Kentucky, but the position was non-existent at Troy.

The tight end at Auburn could depend on the person playing it.

"I'm pretty comfortable with it," said McKenzie. "They want big guys running around. I do that."

And this morning:

http://blog.al.com/auburnbeat/2008/08/the_...f_twoadays.html

* Franklin continued to rave about the performance of TE Gabe McKenzie, calling him perhaps the biggest surprise of the camp.

[AWK 0]

http://www.al.com/auburnfootball/press-reg...&thispage=1

AUBURN  Tommy Trott is a tight end in name only, and he's just fine with that.

His former life as a bruising blocker and only occasional pass-catcher in Al Borges' Auburn offense are long gone. Today, he is an inside receiver who just happens to have "TE" by his name on the roster.

How often does Trott have to block? The question causes him to pause to think.

"There's very little mano-a-mano, going up against a defensive end and trying to blow him off the ball," he said. "We've got one or two plays where we do that."

Trott had perhaps the best spring of any receiver and the junior from Montgomery is off to a nice start in the early days of preseason camp. But while Trott has flourished in offensive coordinator Tony Franklin's new system, other tight ends haven't fared as well.

Gabe McKenzie, a 6-foot-4, 254-pound junior, is one of the Tigers' most athletic big men. He has the appearance of someone who could sack a quarterback, catch two passes and then change clothes and grab 15 rebounds in the gymnasium across the street.

But he's still struggling to find a meaningful role in Franklin's offense.

Franklin sounded dire warnings about McKenzie's future at the position during the spring, but he said McKenzie has shown him something this week in camp.

"We really challenged Gabe," Franklin said. "Gabe had to get better or Gabe wouldn't play. Gabe got better. He evidently did more in the summer than I thought he did. He's shown signs out here of being of being able to fit in and get more playing time. I've been really pleased with him."

McKenzie said the offense is "clicking" and he feels more comfortable than ever with his role.

"We've got good plays, good players and a good team," he said.

The tight ends do spend some time with the offensive line doing traditional run- and pass-blocking work, but they also catch plenty of passes in the "skele" drills with other slot and outside receivers.

Trott said most of his blocking duties will be downfield. "The way we usually do it, the quarterback always has a read to hand it off or keep it, so a lot of times we'll be blocking out in the open air, blocking DBs and linebackers," he said.

McKenzie came to Auburn from Davidson High with a reputation as a blocker, but he quickly developed very serviceable hands. He calls the blocking/catching mix in the current offense "the best of both worlds."

Beyond Trott and McKenzie, the picture is less encouraging. Auburn has several recruited tight ends whose positions seem almost obsolete. Bailey Woods, a well-regarded redshirt freshman from Marietta, Ga., doesn't appear close to cracking the lineup. Tight end Brent Slusher is out with an undisclosed injury, but there's little indication that he is a big part of the team's plans at this point. Incoming freshman Vance Smith was recruited by Borges, not Franklin.

Franklin has maintained that athletic tight ends with good hands can play an important role in his offense. The tight end was a vital part of the spread offense Franklin coached at Kentucky, but the position was non-existent at Troy.

The tight end at Auburn could depend on the person playing it.

"I'm pretty comfortable with it," said McKenzie. "They want big guys running around. I do that."

And this morning:

http://blog.al.com/auburnbeat/2008/08/the_...f_twoadays.html

* Franklin continued to rave about the performance of TE Gabe McKenzie, calling him perhaps the biggest surprise of the camp.

Having two tight ends that are capable of making a play every down is so frustrating for an opposing defense. This is great news.

[bigsixfive 336]

McKenzie has been severely underused. The kid can play ball. Trott's pass catching ability always garnered attention, but Gabe seemed to outperform him in games and make the catches. I'm excited to see him get some more touches this year. I think he can really be a go to guy in short yardage situations or quick hits, and he's fast enough that he can get a chunk of yardage if he catches it in space.

[PChamp119 96]

Gabe McKenzie is one of my favorite players on this team. I have no clue why he was not utilized last year. Isn't this the kid that had like a catch behind his back against Florida or LSU or something like that? Didn't he make the game winning catch against Kansas St? The kid is very athletic, makes catches, and is genuinely a fantastic person. He is very smart as well. This kid is going places and I really hope to see more of him on the field.

Tommy Trott - wasn't he fantastic in practice the last two years as well? But come game time he tends to drop a lot of passes?

[Hoopie 6]

Gabe is a much more nimble athlete than Trott. In the past Gabe would make a couple of very good plays and then miss assignments badly. Gabe has the tools to put it all together and go to the pros. Trott is good and very usable...if Gabe takes it to another level, then our O really will be able to attack defenses even better.

[kwagoner 214]

Didn't he make the game winning catch against Kansas St?

If I'm not mistaken, he was the only Tiger to catch a TD period until Rod decided to pick it up into the season, then Dunn.

[mowegl 4]

McKenzie has been severely underused. The kid can play ball. Trott's pass catching ability always garnered attention, but Gabe seemed to outperform him in games and make the catches. I'm excited to see him get some more touches this year. I think he can really be a go to guy in short yardage situations or quick hits, and he's fast enough that he can get a chunk of yardage if he catches it in space.

agree

[AU_tiger_2000 0]

Gabe McKenzie is one of my favorite players on this team. I have no clue why he was not utilized last year. Isn't this the kid that had like a catch behind his back against Florida or LSU or something like that? Didn't he make the game winning catch against Kansas St? The kid is very athletic, makes catches, and is genuinely a fantastic person. He is very smart as well. This kid is going places and I really hope to see more of him on the field.

Tommy Trott - wasn't he fantastic in practice the last two years as well? But come game time he tends to drop a lot of passes?

I think Tommy's biggest problem was that he was not a blocker. So when he went into the game extra attention was paid to him by the D because they knew he was in there to catch a pass.

[mowegl 4]

Gabe McKenzie is one of my favorite players on this team. I have no clue why he was not utilized last year. Isn't this the kid that had like a catch behind his back against Florida or LSU or something like that? Didn't he make the game winning catch against Kansas St? The kid is very athletic, makes catches, and is genuinely a fantastic person. He is very smart as well. This kid is going places and I really hope to see more of him on the field.

Tommy Trott - wasn't he fantastic in practice the last two years as well? But come game time he tends to drop a lot of passes?

I think Tommy's biggest problem was that he was not a blocker. So when he went into the game extra attention was paid to him by the D because they knew he was in there to catch a pass.

That and he had several drops early in the season that got in his head and caused him to keep having drops. But like someone said I'm sure Gabe made his share of missed assignments and read routes wrong. Coaches don't like that much.

[tiger1432 0]

God help some poor db when gabe is downfield blocking

[Rhetortiger821 3]

Gabe might be overall more talented, but Tommy works his tail off and it shows when he makes amazing plays like the vanderbilt 3 down catch. I think its also important to understand our offense will almost triple in almost every stat.

Wde!!!