Auburn’s wide receiver room has spent the first two weeks proving the Tigers don’t need the names everyone expected to carry the load.
With turnover everywhere in that group this offseason, Auburn still has piled up 529 receiving yards through two games and is averaging 11.3 yards per catch. The production has come from a different cast than many projected, with Keshaun Singleton leading the team at 131 yards and Jeremiah Koger right behind him at 123.
That matters even more when you stack those numbers against the exits. Both have more receiving yards right now than Horatio Fields, who has 113 at Ole Miss, and Cam Coleman, who has 119 at Texas after leaving Auburn. Other former Tigers have yet to make much noise elsewhere: Malcom Simmons has one catch, a 64-yard touchdown, after settling in as a third option at Texas Tech, while Florida’s Eric Singleton Jr. and Minnesota’s Perry Thompson have not posted stats for their new teams.
Then there’s Chas Nimrod, the senior who has slid into the role of steadying voice in the room. He’s third on the team with 93 receiving yards and brings SEC experience from his start at Tennessee with Auburn coaches Alex Golesh and Kodi Burns. With Florida coming to town for Auburn’s SEC opener on Saturday, Nimrod said his message to the group is simple.
“No, I just try and instill confidence in them. Like you’re here for a reason, don’t look at the man across from you and don’t let a name or a logo scare you or anything,” Nimrod said on Tuesday.
“Our coaches believe in you and brought you here for a reason, so you’re here for a reason and go out there and show them why you’re here. There’s no reason to be scared.
People think like, ‘Oh this is the SEC.’ No, you’re in the SEC too for a reason so go out there and play confident and do your thing.”
Koger has been one of the biggest early surprises in the offense. He’s averaging 17.6 yards per catch on seven receptions and has become the main source of Auburn’s downfield explosives so far. Golesh has already pointed to the sophomore’s development, while also noting he wasn’t nearly as consistent in preseason camp as he has been in the first two games.
Byrum Brown has seen the growth up close, too. The Auburn quarterback said Koger is starting to carry himself like a veteran in the receiver room and traced part of that leap to the work he put in after last season.
“Being with him from last year and just over the offseason and everything, he really challenged himself in the offseason when it came to pushing himself when we were doing warrior Wednesdays and then just in the runs and everything,” Brown said. “That helped him a lot and his mindset a lot.
That’s also helped him be more explosive so he’s just coming off the ball, and his body is developing more. He’s developed very well.
You see flashes of him really coming off the ball and you can tell when he’s more mature and grown, he’s going to be - he’s already a problem - but he’ll be a pretty big problem.”
Auburn has also kept the ball mostly clean. The Tigers have only four dropped passes so far, though Singleton has been responsible for three of them despite leading the team in receiving yards. His drop in Week 1 against Baylor came on a designed screen, and Golesh made it clear after the game that it didn’t meet the standard for his up-tempo offense.
“The expectation is we catch the ball. But I felt like those guys did a solid job. Got to keep not dropping the ball,” Golesh said.
Auburn and Florida are set for a 6 p.m. kickoff on ESPN.
In Other News...
Former Auburn WR Could Change How Dangerous Florida Looks Saturday
Eric Singleton Jr.s return to Auburn is suddenly one of the more important storylines to watch heading into Saturday. The former Tigers wideout, now at Florida, has been limited in practice after suffering a left ankle injury in the Gators season opener, and he already sat out the second week of play. For Auburn, the matchup gets a little cleaner if Singleton is unable to go, because he has been one of the more productive receivers in college football throughout his career and gives Florida a dimension the Tigers will have to account for.
Florida has enough around its passing game to keep Auburn honest, but Singletons status could shape how dangerous the Gators look if the game tightens up. Even being available in a limited role would matter, because his ability to stretch coverage and create separation changes the way defenses have to play. Auburn will keep an eye on the injury report, and Florida will be hoping one of its most dynamic targets can get close enough to full strength to make a difference. [Read more 🡒]
Auburn Heads To Florida With One Big Question About Its Identity
Auburn heads into Week 3 looking like a team still trying to settle its football identity, and the trip to Florida offers a clean test of where it stands. The matchup carries plenty of similarity on paper, with both teams leaning on physical play, but ESPN analyst Cole Cubelic sees the Gators holding an edge in that department, especially on offense. Auburn, meanwhile, has had its strongest moments on defense, helped by the return of key edge rushers, even as the offense continues to search for steadier footing.
The line of scrimmage may tell the story, particularly for an Auburn rushing attack that has not yet found the consistency it needs. If the Tigers are going to leave Gainesville with a better sense of who they are, the offensive line will have to answer a lot of the questions that have followed it through the opening weeks. Against a Florida team built to make games feel uncomfortable, Auburns margin for error looks slim, and its identity may be just as dependent on how it handles the trenches as on anything else. [Read more 🡒]
Baylor Suddenly Has A Breakout Star Chasing A Historic Pace
Gavin Freemans move from Oklahoma State to Baylor has already changed the look of the Bears passing game. Through two games, the senior has become a steady target in the offense, piling up catches at a pace that has him sitting atop college football in receptions and helping Baylor get off to a strong start with wins over Auburn and Prairie View A&M.
Freemans early surge has put him on a track that is hard to ignore this early in the season, especially for a Baylor team looking for reliable production through the air. If he keeps drawing that kind of volume, the conversation around his year could shift quickly from a hot start to something much bigger, with record-setting territory suddenly in view. [Read more 🡒]