It’s Day 3 of the blog’
s countdown to the start of Auburn’s spring football drills. If you missed the first two days’ questions, click on these links:
- Wednesday: Who will replace Cam Newton at quarterback?
- Thursday: What’s left on the defensive line?
Today’s question: How are things going to shake out on Auburn’s revamped offensive line?
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No position group was hit as hard as the offensive line. With the graduation of Lee Ziemba, Mike Berry, Ryan Pugh and Byron Isom, the Tigers lost a cohesive group that made 165 combined starts. Those who return have made 15 career starts, so yeah, that’s quite a dropoff.
Who’s back? Let’s begin with those who started last year — Brandon Mosley and A.J. Greene. Unfortunately for Auburn, they both played the same position. Mosley, a converted tight end, filled in ably at right tackle after Greene broke his ankle early in the season. Greene won the right tackle job outright in August, beating out Mosley and John Sullen. I’m not sure what his availability for this spring will be. Even if he claims to be 100 percent, I imagine the Tigers will take things slow with him still only six months after surgery.
It’s unclear what that means for Mosley. He was a strong addition to the line at right tackle, but Auburn obviously has a major void at left tackle with Ziemba gone. Mosley played on the left side early in the season against Mississippi State when Ziemba went down with an injury and has spent time there in practice, so it’s not foreign to him. The question is if Auburn wants to displace its most experienced starter at the position he’s most familiar with on the line?
Sullen figures to be in the mix somewhere. He’s served as a utility player the last two years, getting a taste of guard and tackle, with one start (Ball State in 2009) on his resume. Coaches were very high on Sullen after he re-shaped his body last year, even though it didn’t necessarily translate to more playing time. I think he’ll be the frontrunner to start at one of the guard spots.
Another other older player on the roster is Jared Cooper, one of the last Hugh Nall recruits on the roster. He’s played in 33 career games, although it’s been mostly on special teams. He was listed as a right guard on last year’s depth chart and, given Auburn’s lack of experience, should at least get an opportunity to compete for a spot.
Beyond those players, there are a lot of unknowns. And I mean a lot. After struggling to put together a two deep for most of two seasons, Auburn’s roster of linemen is stocked, thanks to two straight recruiting classes flush with offensive line recruits. Only now that the senior group is gone will fans see what these players are capable of.
The 2010 class produced Ed Christian, Eric Mack, Chad Slade and Tunde Fariyike. The 2011 class includes Reese Dismukes, Thomas O’Reilly, Christian Westerman and Greg Robinson, with Dismukes and O’Reilly already enrolled in order to go through spring drills (UPDATE: O’Reilly isn’t expected to participate because of offseason surgery). That’s a talented group, despite its lack of experience.
Dismukes, a center, will probably compete for playing time right away. Walk-on Blake Burgess, who was listed as Pugh’s backup last season (even though it was probably really Berry), is another option there.
Offensive line coach Jeff Grimes liked what he saw in last year’s freshmen. He told the Anniston Star that Slade and Fariyike made the most of their redshirt years, but all four will be given a chance to show what they can do. Westerman and Robinson might be able to make a splash in August and compete for immediate playing time, but that’s months away. In the meantime, the rest of the linemen will use the spring as an open audition.
Auburn might have lost a lot on the line, but it retained one valuable person — Grimes. He turned down an offer to return to his home state of Texas, a coup for the Tigers, who seem to lose assistant to the Longhorns all the time. Based on the last two recruiting classes, recruits seem to take a shine to Grimes. He’s personable and, as he showed with last year’s seniors, can get the best out of players, getting them to elevate their play. This year’s line might take some time to jell, but Grimes’ track record suggests it’s not a matter of if that will happen, but when.