Auburn’s linebacker room has gone from crowded to fragile in a hurry, and the Tigers are now trying to piece things together as the season moves into its final stretch.
The biggest hits have already landed. Xavier Atkins was dismissed from the program in October, Bryce Deas had surgery last week, and then De’Marcus Riddick and Elijah Melendez both got banged up against Arkansas. Neither player left for good, but both were clearly operating below full speed.
That opened the door for Shadarius Toodle and Michael Matthews-Canty, and both took advantage of the extra work. Toodle, especially, made his presence felt in a big way against Arkansas, piling up 11 tackles, 4.5 tackles for loss and three sacks. Auburn head coach Alex Golesh said Wednesday that Melendez and Riddick got off to a slow start this week, but he still sounded encouraged about where that group is headed.
“The hope is that we’ll have them at full strength by the end of the week,” Golesh said. “But they’ve been all in on trying to get back and trying to get right. We’ll see how it looks here in the next 48 hours, but I feel good about that group.”
Golesh also pointed to Toodle’s growth, noting that it was good to see the freshman linebacker with more “umph” in his step this week. Even with the added responsibility, Golesh said Toodle has handled the heavier load well.
The injuries also raise a bigger question about who will handle the green dot, the helmet communication link to the defensive play caller. Golesh said Auburn has built that flexibility into the room all along.
“All those guys through practice, through spring, through fall camp, they’ve all had it in,” Golesh said. “That’s the one thing that [DJ Durkin] and Brad [Wilson] and those guys do a really good job with is, they all demand that everybody knows everything in that room so that they can be interchangeable.”
That preparation matters this week because Mississippi State’s up-tempo offense won’t leave Auburn much breathing room. If the Tigers are still short-handed at linebacker, communication could get stressful in a hurry on Saturday.
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