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Tuesday, October 31, 2017

Rushing Through Amen Corner

Auburn's RB tandem healthy for Amen Corner. Photo via OANews.com
***Editors note: Kamryn Pettway has a broken scapula and is out indefinitely per Gus Malzahn.
"It's that one-two punch." said one guy. Another stated: "It's difficult to scheme against. Every week they put in new plays, and only one has been in enough games to get some kind of idea what play might be run." 

This is what a healthy Kamryn Pettway and Kerryon Johnson bring to the offense for Auburn as they prepare for "Amen Corner."

This is the second half of the Bye Week assessment of our Auburn Tigers. Here at ATB we have looked at the Special Teams, the Offense, and the Defense.

Now, let's have a look at our Running Backs and the ever changing Offensive Line. First, I'll post the rushing stats through 8 games:

Rushing                   Games      Attempts     Gain   Loss   Net   Avg     TD  Long    avg/g
Kerryon Johnson       6            137                752     29     723   5.3      14    60      120.5
Kamryn Pettway        5              76                313       8      305   4.0       6     38        61.0
Kam Martin                8              33                268       4      264    8.0      1     61        33.0
Eli Stove                      8              13                195       0      195  15.0      0     45        24.4
Malik Willis                4               12                170     14     156  13.0      1     67        39.0
Malik Miller               8               28                117       2      115  4.1        0     9          14.4
Jarrett Stidham         8               54                194    119      75   1.4        2     18          9.4
Devan Barrett            8              11                  63       2        61    5.5        0     13          7.6
Noah Igbinoghene    8               1                   11       0         11   11.0      0     11          1.4
Devin Adams             1                2                  6          0         6       3.0      0      5            6.0
Total                            8             372               2089   187     1902  5.1     24    67      237.8

Opponents                8              307               1213   218       995   3.2      5    70      124.4  

Secondly, I'd like to post the national rushing positions of our next 4 opponents. 

7th.   Alabama  377 attempts, 2,390 yards and an average of 6.34 per carry.
10th. Georgia    378 attempts  2,272 yards with a 6.01 yards per carry.
40th.  ULM        319  attempts  1,541 yards with an average of 4.83 yards per carry.
42nd. Texas A & M  347 attempts 1,528 yards with an average of 4.4 yards per carry.

In Comparison, Auburn stacks up nicely at 19th in the country. 

It's no secret Auburn is throwing the ball more this season. Mix that with what should be a potent rushing attack, and the table is set for an interesting finish to the season. 

With depth at Running Back, and Wide Receiver the best it's been since maybe 2004, the offensive line is where the biggest concern looms large.  

Austin Golson has proven he can play anywhere, although it would be great if he could settle in at one spot. Here's to hoping the Offensive Line remains healthy through the finish. Some reports of Darius James practicing this week are welcome news as well. 

Coach Lindsey utilized many formations including putting Tackles outside of Tight Ends on the line. I wonder what he may have dialed up in his Bye Week. One thing is sure, the next 4-5 games are an opportunity for our Tigers to show the world what they can accomplish.

The players are saying the right things. One example is: "You can't win 5 in a row, if you don't win the first one."  This tells me they won't let up on anyone again. The team is focused and determined. Now they must take that attitude to the field, and perform well. I believe they can, and will.

WAR EAGLE!


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