2016 Opponent Previews

Auburn seeks improvement in Malzahn's fourth season

In this Saturday, Oct. 3, 2015 file photo, Auburn head coach Gus Malzahn yells to his players to get into formation during the first half of an NCAA college football game against Auburn in Auburn, Ala. (AP Photo/Brynn Anderson)
In this Saturday, Oct. 3, 2015 file photo, Auburn head coach Gus Malzahn yells to his players to get into formation during the first half of an NCAA college football game against Auburn in Auburn, Ala. (AP Photo/Brynn Anderson)

This is the eighth piece of a 12-part series previewing Arkansas' 2016 football opponents.

Auburn is coming off a 7-6 year capped by a 31-10 win over Memphis in the Birmingham Bowl. The Tigers went 2-6 in SEC play, finishing last in the western division.

2016 Football Previews

WholeHogSports will preview all 12 of Arkansas' 2016 football opponents in the following days. Here is a schedule of when each preview will be published:

-http://www.wholehog…">Louisiana Tech: Monday, June 13

-http://www.wholehog…">TCU: Tuesday, June 14

-http://www.wholehog…">Texas State: Wednesday, June 15

-http://www.wholehog…">Texas A&M: Thursday, June 16

-http://www.wholehog…">Alcorn State: Friday, June 17

-http://www.wholehog…">Alabama: Monday, June 20

-http://www.wholehog…">Ole Miss: Tuesday, June 21

-http://www.wholehog…">Auburn: Wednesday, June 22

-http://www.wholehog…">Florida: Thursday, June 23

-http://www.wholehog…">LSU: Friday, June 24

-http://www.wholehog…">Mississippi State: Monday, June 27

-http://www.wholehog…">Missouri: Tuesday, June 28

2016 outlook

Auburn has a bye week prior to hosting Arkansas on Oct. 22. The following week, the Tigers travel to Ole Miss.

According to ESPN’s Football Power Index, Auburn is projected to win 6.9 games. Offshore sportsbook 5 Dimes put the over/under at 7.5 when it released SEC win totals last month.

The FPI also has the Tigers at No. 17 in the country, which is seventh in the SEC and fifth in the SEC West.

Significant departures

Three Tigers players were selected in this year’s NFL Draft, while another two declared early but went undrafted.

The first player drafted was left tackle Shon Coleman (25 career starts), who went in the third round to the Browns. Despite battling leukemia at the beginning of his college career, Coleman evolved into a second-team all-SEC performer.

Wide receiver Ricardo Louis (46 rec., 716 yds., 3 TD), a fourth-round pick by the Browns, was the next player off the board. He is most remembered for his 73-yard game-winning touchdown reception against Georgia in 2013, known as the “Prayer at Jordan-Hare.”

The only other player drafted was cornerback Blake Countess (71 tackles, 11 PBU, 2 INT), who went to the Eagles in the sixth round.

The underclassmen who declared early but weren’t picked were running back Peyton Barber (238 car., 1,017 yds., 13 TD) and right tackle Avery Young (36 career starts).

Auburn must replace several other players, too.

In addition to Louis, wide receivers Melvin Ray (20 rec., 279 yds., 2 TD) and D’haquille Williams (12 rec., 147 yds., 1 TD in 5 games) are gone.

The linebacker corps is also depleted after Kris Frost, Cassanova McKinzy and Justin Garrett graduated. The trio combined for 602 career tackles at Auburn.

Countess’ counterpart at cornerback, Jonathan Jones (69 tackles, 13 PBU, 1 INT), was a senior last year and could earn a spot on an NFL roster this season.

Former five-star running back Roc Thomas (43 car., 261 yds., 1 TD) has transferred to Jacksonville State after not receiving many reps with the Tigers.

Key returners

If he can stay healthy, defensive end Carl Lawson could be one of Auburn’s best players. He had 17 tackles and 11 quarterback hurries in only seven games while battling a hip injury last season. A torn ACL caused him to miss the entire 2014 season.

That position will also be aided by Byron Cowart, the No. 1 overall recruit in 2015, according to Rivals and ESPN. However, Cowart struggled as a freshman, registering six tackles and six quarterback hurries despite playing in all 13 games.

The most experienced returning linebacker is Tre’ Williams (55 tackles, 4 TFL), who has started four games, while defensive backs Carlton Davis (56 tackles, 8 PBU, 3 INT) and Johnathan Ford (118 tackles, 3.5 TFL, 2 PBU, 2 INT) are back.

Offensively, both of the quarterbacks who shared time under center last season are still on the Tigers’ roster. Jeremy Johnson (60.5 percent, 1,054 yds., 10 TD, 7 INT, 6 rush. TD) and Sean White (58 percent, 1,166 yds., 1 TD, 4 INT) are competing for the starting job this season.

With Barber and Thomas gone, Jovon Robinson (117 car., 639 yds., 3 TD) is primed to become Auburn’s No. 1 running back.

Right guard Braden Smith (14 career starts), who earned second-team all-SEC honors last season, will pave the way up front.

Kicker Daniel Carlson (23 of 27 FG, 40 of 40 PAT, long of 56 yds.) and punter Kevin Phillips (55 punts, 41 yds./punt, 17 inside the 20) return, as well.

Notable additions

Auburn signed the 11th best class in 2016, according to Rivals. The class is headlined by a pair of five-star defensive linemen: defensive end Marlon Davidson and defensive tackle Derrick Brown.

A big piece of the class is four-star dual-threat quarterback John Franklin III, who began his career at Florida State before transferring to East Mississippi C.C. and could be the Tigers’ starter this fall.

Splitting reps with another quarterback, Franklin completed 58.2 percent of his passes for 733 yards, seven touchdowns and two interceptions in nine games with the Lions. He also ran for 451 yards and nine touchdowns on 43 carries.

Paul James III – who began his career at Illinois – is another junior college transfer who is expected to play a large role at defensive end. After racking up 14 sacks at Copiah-Lincoln C.C., he should help Auburn’s pass rush.

The Tigers also signed a trio of four-star wide receivers in Elijah Stove, Nate Craig-Myers and Kyle Davis, as well as three-star receiver Marquis McClain.

Davis enrolled early and went through spring practice, while the other three did not. With go-to receiver Ricardo Louis now in the NFL, these four receivers could see a lot of action as freshmen.

Cornerback Marshall Taylor joined the Tigers as a graduate transfer from Miami (Ohio), providing Auburn will experience in the secondary.

Coaching staff

Gus Malzahn enters his fourth season as Auburn’s head coach with a 27-13 record with the Tigers. Including his one year at Arkansas State, he is 36-16 overall.

Since leading Auburn to the BCS championship game his first season, when the Tigers lost to Florida State 34-31, Malzahn’s win total has decreased to eight in 2014 and seven in 2015.

At the coordinator positions, Rhett Lashlee and Kodi Burns are co-offensive coordinators, while Kevin Steele is the defensive coordinator.

Lashlee came to Auburn with Malzahn after serving as his offensive coordinator at Arkansas State. He was also the offensive coordinator at FCS Samford in 2011.

Less than 24 hours after taking a job at Arizona State this offseason, Burns joined Auburn’s staff as the wide receivers coach and co-offensive coordinator. He spent last season as the receivers coach at Conference-USA’s Middle Tennessee and the 2014 seasons as the running backs coach at Samford.

Steele is also in his first season with the Tigers. He came to Auburn from LSU, where he had the same position for one season. His career has also taken him to Alabama, Clemson, Florida State, Baylor (as a head coach from 1999-2002), Nebraska, Tennessee, Oklahoma State, New Mexico State and the NFL’s Carolina Panthers.

Series history

Last season, Arkansas used a four-overtime 54-46 win over Auburn to turn its season around. It snapped the Razorbacks’ two-game losing streak to the Tigers and gave them a 14-10-1 all-time lead in the series.

Arkansas ties

The most notable tie Auburn has with Arkansas is its head coach. Gus Malzahn grew up in Fort Smith, where he played football, basketball and baseball at Fort Smith Christian.

He spent two seasons as a walk-on wide receiver at Arkansas before transferring and playing at Henderson State in Arkadelphia. Malzahn began his coaching career at the high school level in Arkansas, spending time at Hughes, Shiloh Christian in Springdale and Springdale High, before becoming the Razorbacks’ offensive coordinator in 2006. His first college head-coaching job was at Arkansas State in 2012.

Because of that connection, several people with Arkansas ties are on Auburn’s staff.

Rhett Lashlee, the Tigers’ offensive coordinator, played for Malzahn at Shiloh Christian before becoming a backup quarterback at Arkansas from 2002-2004. He then coached with Malzahn at Springdale High for two seasons, at Arkansas as an offensive graduate assistant in 2006 and at Arkansas State as offensive coordinator in 2012.

Kodi Burns, Auburn’s co-offensive coordinator and wide receivers coach, was a quarterback at Fort Smith Northside before playing at Auburn. He began his coaching career as a graduate assistant at Arkansas State under Malzahn in 2012.

Tim Horton, who coaches the running backs at Auburn, played football and ran track at Conway before becoming a second-team all-SWC selection at Arkansas. He also coached the running backs and was the recruiting coordinator for the Razorbacks from 2007-2012.

The only player from Arkansas on the Tigers’ roster, however, is sophomore walk-on kicker Will Hastings, who was an all-state wide receiver at Pulaski Academy in Little Rock.

Arkansas’ roster also features only one player from Alabama: defensive end JaMichael Winston (Prichard Vigor High).

Winston played with Auburn linebacker Deshaun Davis and defensive lineman Justin Thomas-Thornton at Prichard Vigor, while Hastings played with Arkansas walk-on wide receiver Cameron Colbert at Pulaski Academy.

Arkansas offensive lineman Deion Malone and Auburn offensive lineman Deon Mix were teammates at South Panola High in Batesville, Miss.

The Razorbacks and Tigers also both have a former Texas offensive lineman – Jake Raulerson (Arkansas) and Darius James (Auburn) each started multiple games for the Longhorns in 2014.

Thoughts from a beat writer

To get an even better idea of what Auburn will look like in 2016, WholeHogSports reached out Brandon Marcello, who covers the Tigers for The Atlanta Journal-Constitution’s SEC Country. We asked him several questions about Auburn. Here are his responses:

WHS: What are reasonable expectations for Auburn in 2016? (Related: How hot is Gus Malzahn's seat heading into the season?)

BM: Auburn fans simply want to see improvement for the first time since the 2013 season. The Tigers made a remarkable and memorable run to the BCS Championship game in Gus Malzahn’s first season, but the trajectory has been going south ever since. Fans want to see the needle move to eight wins or more and it could be difficult with this schedule on tap — road games at Alabama and Georgia — and so many questions at quarterback, receiver and linebacker.

I’m always asked how many wins Malzahn must win to stay afloat, but I don’t necessarily believe there is a magic number. It’s more about which games he wins, loses and how the Tigers win and lose those games. Losing to both Georgia and Alabama for a third straight year, however, could seal his fate. Then again, I’m hearing positive things from the administration this summer.

Simply put, no one really knows until the feet get near the fire. It’s all about gut feelings in this business and we’ll have a much better handle on where Malzahn and this program stands in late November. Until then, the pressure is going to be very high.

WHS: What does the quarterback battle look like after spring practice and heading into the fall?

BM: Those close to the program believe Sean White exited the spring as the top quarterback, but that doesn’t mean he will be the starter. The general thought is transfer John Franklin III, the best dual-threat QB on the roster, will end up winning the job during the first two weeks of pre-season practices in August. This offense simply operates at a brisker and more favorable pace with a dual-threat star in the backfield as many witnessed with Nick Marshall running the show in 2013 and 2014.

The quarterback job is wide open, but a lot of folks believe White and Jeremy Johnson have already had their shot at the job. They combined for 11 touchdowns and 11 interceptions last season, and both had their issues in the red zone (White also fumbled in the red zone in the spring game, by the way). White took over for Johnson after the Heisman contender (remember that!?) co-led the nation with six interceptions through the first three games last season. His psyche took a big hit and White, while better, wasn’t necessarily the answer to the Tigers’ scoring woes. Auburn needs a dynamic playmaker in the Shotgun and Franklin III will probably be the guy when the season opener arrives Sept. 3 against Clemson.

WHS: Which player(s) - offensively and defensively - do you expect the Tigers to lean heavily on this season?

BM: I fully expect them to lean on John Franklin III, whether as the starting quarterback or Wildcat quarterback. Receiver is a mess of names right now but they have a lot of talent. The big issue is whether freshmen like Nate Craig-Myers, Kyle Davis, Eli Stove and Marquis McClain can produce under the pressure.

The defense will carry this team early in the season. Carl Lawson is the star of the entire team at defensive end and, if he can stay healthy, will watch his draft stock rise drastically throughout the season. I really like Montravius Adams at defensive tackle as well, and Carlton Davis is a good cornerback developing into a great one after a stellar freshman season.

WHS: Are there any newcomers you think will play large roles in 2016?

BM: The aforementioned freshman receivers will be a part of the offense. How many? I think two to three of them will see time on the field. I also like freshman Marlon Davidson, who stepped up in place of injured defensive end Paul James III to have a stellar spring. He looks like a junior instead of a freshman. James III is also a newcomer, though he’s from the junior college ranks. He will play a large role as well.

And, of course, all of the attention will be on Franklin III at quarterback. It’s my belief, as I mentioned above, that he will win the quarterback job in August.

WHS: How do you think Auburn will fair against Arkansas on Oct. 22?

BM: This game gets tougher and tougher for Auburn every season with Bret Bielema as the head coach, but Auburn’s defensive line is now built to handle all types of offenses, including the big Hogs up front for Arkansas. My question about the game is all about Auburn’s locker room after opening the season with five straight important home games against the likes of national runner-up Clemson, LSU and Texas A&M. The good news is Auburn gets the Razorbacks at home after an open date and it will have the overtime loss last season to motivate them.

I’ll give the edge to Auburn, if only because it’s at home and there’s no way the Tigers’ offense can be any worse than it was last season. It was, on paper, the second-worst offense in Malzahn’s 10 years of calling plays on the college level.

I mean, it can’t get any worse, right?

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