Bryson Washington’s first game in an Auburn uniform comes with a built-in storyline, but the new Tigers running back isn’t turning it into anything bigger than that.
Washington transferred from Baylor this offseason, and in Week 1 he’ll line up against the same program where he led the Bears in rushing last season in Waco, Texas. He’s eager to see familiar faces, but he says the mindset stays the same.
“I’m most definitely looking forward to it, playing my old team,” Washington said, “but I look at it as just another game, so we just got to go handle that.”
Getting to this point took more than a transfer decision. Washington said he arrived at Auburn dealing with injuries and had to work his way back toward full health before the season. By the end of spring, he felt close to 100%, and he pointed to the coaching staff for sticking with him through the process.
“I’ll say when I first got here, I was out of shape,” Washington said. ‘I wasn’t where I wanted to be at, like my size, weight-wise. So, I’ll just say I took a big step getting back lean to my body mass, and then the coaches just constantly poured into me, believing in me to just take the step to be better in the offense and just learning the offense.”
That work has put him in position to matter in a deep Auburn backfield. Jeremiah Cobb is set to open the year as the starter, but Washington has made himself the leading candidate for the No. 2 spot in a rushing attack built to lean on the ground game under Alex Golesh.
And he’s not the only one in that room with something to offer. USF transfer Nykahi Davenport and sophomore Omar Mabson II bring their own skill sets, giving Auburn a group that’s more varied than crowded.
“One thing I can say is every back in the room is different. We all got our different styles, different things that we’re great at, but I’ll say the competition is making each other better,” Washington said, “and that’s what we rely heavily on, just keeping pushing each other and making each one of us better.”
Add dual-threat quarterback Byrum Brown to the mix, and Auburn’s rushing attack looks rebuilt and ready to work alongside a receiver group the program brought in this season.
For Washington, that means Baylor will see a different version of the player it once had. He said the rest of Auburn’s backs have already helped sharpen his game ahead of his junior season.
“I think it’s very beneficial,” Washington said. “Every back has a different trait, but it’s like a great trait. It’s nothing like that or anything, but you’re going to get something different from every running back that gets in the rotation.”
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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 🡒]
Auburn Camp May Have Changed One Newcomers Role In A Big Way
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Womacks camp stood out for another reason, too. After dealing with a legal issue over the summer, the matter was handled internally by the program and he stayed on the practice field throughout camp. Auburn now has to decide how much of that momentum carries into the fall, but his standing, like the others who rose over the past few weeks, suggests camp may have done more than just get the Tigers ready to practice. It may have changed how they plan to use several newcomers once the games start for real. [Read more 🡒]
Sylvester Smith-Reed Just Gave Auburn Fans A Powerful Reason To Care
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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 🡒]