Preseason camp mattered a little more than usual at Auburn this year. With a new staff in place and more than 60 newcomers on the roster, the final stretch of preparation became a proving ground.
Some players arrived with clear momentum. Others had to earn their way into the conversation.
A handful did exactly that.
Jacob Strand might have made the biggest leap of all. The Oregon State transfer was easy to overlook in spring practice, but injuries were a big reason for that quiet stretch.
Once he got back to full strength in camp, his versatility caught the staff’s attention. Strand has spent most of his college snaps at tackle, yet he now looks like Auburn’s likely starter at left guard.
That spot belonged to Miami transfer Deryc Plazz in the spring, but Strand’s strong camp changed the picture.
Gavin Jenkins also helped himself plenty. Auburn’s staff already valued him highly, and that was obvious from the start.
He was one of just two defensive players to arrive with head coach Alex Golesh from South Florida, and he was a priority portal addition even though his role last season was limited. At 6-foot-2, Jenkins brings obvious length, and cornerbacks coach DeMarcus Van Dyke keeps praising his ball skills.
His background playing both offense and defense in high school shows up there. He may not open the year as a starter, but he looks like a player who can carve out a role in the secondary and factor into Auburn’s future on defense.
Bryson Washington entered the offseason with plenty of buzz after transferring in from Baylor, but the early months didn’t go smoothly. Injuries and conditioning issues slowed him down, even though his production has never been in question.
He rushed for over 1,000 yards at Baylor in 2024 and just under 800 last season. Camp was a chance to get him in better shape and more comfortable in the offense, and he made noticeable progress on both fronts.
Washington still may not be Auburn’s first option at running back, but he looks set to matter in the rushing attack.
Christian Neptune had a similar kind of reset. He came over with Golesh and the offensive staff from USF, where he had already shown what he could do as a true freshman and worked his way into an important slot role.
Injuries slowed his spring, and he began camp in a non-contact jersey. Over the last few weeks, though, he’s gotten back to full speed.
True freshman DeShawn Spencer emerged in the slot during the spring and remains a player the staff likes, but Neptune has started to reassert himself. His edge comes from experience and familiarity with the system.
Da’Shawn Womack rounded out the group after turning in a strong camp on the edge. He didn’t have the injury setbacks that affected some of the others, and his name kept coming up as one of Auburn’s top performers among the edge rushers.
The Ole Miss transfer brings three years of SEC experience after starting his college career at LSU. His stats at LSU and Ole Miss never jumped off the page, but he was a steady force off the edge for the Rebels last season.
Womack was arrested over the summer on a charge of reckless endangerment, but Golesh said the punishment was handled internally, and he never missed any practice time. After his camp, he’s expected to start up front for the Tigers this season.
In Other News...
Former Auburn QB Is Back In The Spotlight For A Strange Opener Plan
Jackson Arnold is back in the opening-week conversation, and this time it comes with a twist that should sound familiar to anyone who followed his winding college career. Dan Mullen said Arnold will start UNLVs season opener against Memphis, a notable nod for the former Auburn and Oklahoma quarterback after his path has already carried him through more than one high-profile stop.
Mullen also hinted that Alex Orji will be involved early, which points to something unusual even by college footballs standards: a game plan built around two quarterbacks right out of the gate. For Auburn fans who watched Arnolds development up close, the setup adds another layer of intrigue to a player whose next chapter was already worth tracking, even before the opener plan got this complicated. [Read more 🡒]
Sylvester Smith-Reed Just Gave Auburn Fans A Powerful Reason To Care
Auburn got a meaningful off-field update from senior safety Sylvester Smith, who has changed his last name to Smith-Reed to honor his late grandmother, Miranda Reed. She died four months ago, and Smith-Reed has already made it clear that the upcoming season will be played with her memory in mind, adding a personal layer to what was already an important year for one of the Tigers veteran defenders.
Smith-Reed has also continued to bring the kind of physical style Auburn has come to expect from him during preseason scrimmage work, which makes the name change feel tied to more than sentiment alone. For Auburn, it is a reminder that the season is about more than depth charts and position battles, with one of its seniors carrying both a new name and a very personal source of motivation into the fall. [Read more 🡒]
Auburn Is Doubling Down On A Practice Tool Changing Player Development
Auburn is keeping one of its more modern player-development tools in the building, extending its subscription with Monarc to continue using the Seeker, a robotic quarterback that has become part of the programs practice routine. The machine is built to create unlimited reps with game-like passes, punts and kicks, and it can vary velocity up to 75 mph while tracking player positions to deliver the ball with precision.
For a program trying to sharpen every position group, the appeal is obvious: more work, more consistency and less wasted time between reps. Auburn football general manager Andrew Warsaw has praised the Seekers versatility and its value in development, and the renewed commitment suggests the Tigers see it as more than a novelty, but the start of how far they plan to lean into it is still the interesting part. [Read more 🡒]