Auburn’s safety room is already shaping up as one of the most crowded spots on the roster, and South Florida transfer Fred Gaskin III is trying to carve out his place in the middle of it.
Safeties coach Tim Banks said after Tuesday’s practice that the group functions like “the quarterbacks of the defense,” and Gaskin said he welcomes that kind of load. At USF, he was the one making the calls. That role has been harder to reclaim at Auburn, but he said the extra work this summer has helped him settle in.
“I’m used to making the calls. So of course, when I came in, it was tough for me not being able to be that communicator how I was,” Gaskin said.
“But being focused throughout the summer, getting those extra meetings, getting those extra film hours, you know what I’m saying? Being able to get back into that role the way I was.”
Gaskin arrives with real production behind him. Last season, he was a first team All-AAC selection after posting 49 tackles, two interceptions, two pass breakups and a forced fumble for the Bulls.
Now he’s trying to earn snaps in a room that includes AnQuon Fegans, Kaleb Harris, Champ Anthony, Eric Winters and Sylvester Smith-Reed. Gaskin said the group has made the transition easier by pulling him in off the field as well as on it.
“Man, those guys are very accepting,” Gaskin added. “Since I came, they took me in.
They’ve took me out, around the city. They’ve invited me to their homes, like Champ, a lot of those guys.
We always try to keep the guys together. Our big thing is how close we are, so we can play better, play more connected on the field, being able to be on the same page.
That’s a big thing in our room right now.”
Banks said Auburn plans to have six safeties ready on game days, with the group rotating in and out depending on the scheme and the series.
He also said Gaskin has looked more comfortable as fall camp has gone on. The adjustment to the SEC pace has been there, but Banks said the transfer has taken a noticeable step forward.
“You can see he’s a step faster now, coming from the spring to the summer and now in the fall, as the game has slowed down for him,” Banks said. “A lot of times it’s learning a new language, right?
He understands what a half-technique is and curl flat. We have to learn it through a different language; sometimes it’s a little slow for him.
He’s been really good the last couple days.
“I’ve known Fred for a long time. I remember him in high school.
He’s a great competitor, he’s good with the ball in his hands. I knew it wasn’t going to take him long.
So far, he’s coming along.”
Auburn will go full pads Wednesday as it builds toward its first scrimmage inside Jordan-Hare stadium on Friday.
In Other News...
Auburns New Era Is Already Turning Heads Across The SEC
Alex Golesh has barely settled into his new job at Auburn, but the early signs of his reset are already drawing attention around the SEC. After a stretch of instability that saw the Tigers cycle through six head coaches across a run of losing seasons, Golesh arrives with the kind of conference background that gives his voice some instant credibility, and he is wasting little time trying to change the feel of the program.
One of the clearest examples has come during fall camp, where players are staying together in a hotel as part of Goleshs effort to build a different culture. SEC analyst Paul Finebaum has already signaled support for the approach, seeing it as a positive step for a program trying to steady itself. For Auburn, the real test is still ahead, but the new staffs message is being noticed well beyond Tuscaloosa and the Plains. [Read more 🡒]
Kodi Burns Is Changing What Auburn Demands From Its Receivers
Kodi Burns is back at Auburn, and his message to the wide receiver room has been plain from the start of fall camp: catching passes is only part of the job. The new wideouts coach is pushing a more physical, versatile standard for a group that figures to be deep in Alex Goleshs offense, where keeping tempo means leaning on a heavy rotation and asking plenty of players to be ready for meaningful snaps.
For Auburn, the shift matters because the role of a receiver is becoming about more than route running and production on the stat sheet. Burns has already drawn praise from players like Keshaun Singleton and DeShawn Spencer, who say his impact has shown up in their development on and off the field, and the broader challenge now is clear - earn trust by doing the dirty work, adapt to multiple assignments, and prove you can stay on the field when the tempo starts picking up. [Read more 🡒]
Former Auburn Staffer Just Surfaced Inside Alabamas Program
A familiar football family is showing up around Alabamas practices, with Dave Wommack and Dominic Studzinski both spending time around the program. Dave Wommack, a retired defensive coordinator, has been around as a resource at practices and games, while Studzinski has been helping in the weight room even though he is not listed on the staff directory.
The connection runs deep, stretching back to their shared coaching days at Ole Miss in 2012 and 2013, when the same circle of personnel worked together in the South. For Auburn fans, the name attached to Studzinski may stand out even more because of where he worked before, making his quiet presence in Tuscaloosa the kind of detail that tends to get noticed long before it gets officially explained. [Read more 🡒]