Evaluating special teams positions

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Auburn continues to evaluate special teams positions

By Giana Han

4-5 minutes

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Before Auburn’s football players were allowed to start their 60-play scrimmage Saturday, they first had to go through special teams scenarios.

Saturday was supposed to be a critical day for several position groups to start figuring out their lineups. Auburn’s special teams was among those groups.

The Tigers may be set at kicker with Anders Carlson, the player who kicked the winning field goal in the Iron Bowl, but they a lot of blank spaces next to his name.

“We’re still working through the holding, ok?” coach Gus Malzahn said. “And we’re still working through the punters.”

At the end of the 2020 season, Auburn’s punter Arryn Siposs announced he was leaving early for the NFL Draft, a move that surprised his team. Siposs was Auburn’s most experienced punter, and he still had a year of eligibility left. However, he also had a goal to play in the NFL, and he was 27 years old. He decided it was time to go for his dream.

Since Siposs played in every game, the next most experienced punter on the team was quarterback Bo Nix, who Malzahn had punt several times in 2019. Heading into 2020, Auburn has four others contending for the job— Oscar Chapman, another punter from Australia, junior Aidan Marshall, sophomore Crimmins Hankinson and freshman Marshall Meyers.

Chapman, like Siposs, trained with Prokick Australia before heading to Auburn. He arrived on campus but had to quarantine before practicing He hit the field last week.

Marshall was also recently added to the roster, although he has worn the Tigers uniform before. Marshall started in 2017 and in the beginning of 2018 but lost the job to Siposs. He left the team, but he stayed enrolled as a student at Auburn and decided to return for the 2020 season.

Meyers, a freshman who graduated from Opelika High School, has the least experience with college ball because Hankinson transferred from Gardner-Webb University.

When Siposs decided to leave, he also left the holding position vacant. He, along with Sage Ledbetter who graduated, generally held for the kicker. Backup quarterback Cord Sandberg is a possibility, but Malzahn said they’re still figuring that out.

“We’ll take a look at that,” Malzahn said. “This week will be real critical now that we’re getting into our game planning, what that looks like.”

Auburn was also working through its returners during Saturday’s scrimmage. Christian Tutt handled punt returns last season and will likely continue to do so. He averaged 13 yards per return, and his longest was 41 yards.

Multiple players returned kickoffs for Auburn last season, but Noah Igbinoghene took the bulk of them. Igbinoghene declared early for the draft, so Shaun Shivers, who returned four kicks last season, is the most experienced on the team. Shivers has looked like he can handle the job so far.

“He’s been a really good bright spot on special teams,” Malzahn said.

However, Malzahn is also giving some other guys a chance. Wide receiver Eli Stove has experience and has been given practice reps, as has running back Mark-Antony Richards, who is coming off of an injury. Last season, Matthew Hill, a former wide receiver who is transitioning to defensive back, also returned a kick for 22 yards.

Now that the scrimmage is over, Auburn is turning its attention to its first game. It will continue to iron out what its special teams looks like as it prepares to face Kentucky on September 26.

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Having an unsettled holder position less than 2 weeks before kickoff is a bit unsettling.