Anthony Schwartz has seen Bo Nix at his highest and lowest.

The junior receiver has been close with Nix since he arrived on campus as a star-studded true freshman, and he watched the Tigers’ QB1 make some inspiring plays and endure some humbling mistakes in his true freshman season. Much has been made by Auburn’s staff and players in the offseason about what a year of experience will mean for Nix’s development, especially being thrown into the fire against an SEC gauntlet as a 19-year-old kid. The expectations are that Nix will take a step forward in his maturation as a QB this season, meshing with new offensive coordinator Chad Morris in a marriage that could take Auburn’s offense to the next level.

But what Schwartz saw out of his friend Saturday against Kentucky didn’t look like just one season of growth. To him, Nix performed like a veteran.

“I just saw a different guy. … I felt like he was a three-time starter,” Schwartz said Sunday evening on a Zoom call with reporters. “Now, he’s like a professional quarterback, not panicking, getting through his reads and just being able to throw the ball under pressure. Throwing accurate balls. He was throwing dimes yesterday.

“I don’t think there was one that wasn’t a great pass yesterday."

To kick off his second act as Auburn’s leader under center, Nix completed 16-of-27 passes against the Wildcats, amassing 233 yards and landing three touchdown strikes in the Tigers’ 29-13 win over UK.

 

Minus throwaways, Nix hit an adjusted completion rate of 69.5%, and his quarterback rating of 168.4 is the best of his career against a ranked opponent by a significant margin.

The reigning SEC Freshman of the Year admitted that it was tough getting into a flow in Morris’ new system in the early going, since Kentucky was succeeding in its plan to control the clock and the tempo of the game. Nix and company only saw the field for 9 minutes in the first half compared to Kentucky’s 21, and only ran 24 plays through the first two quarters.

Out of the break, Nix appeared more comfortable pushing the ball down the field, though he was improved in that area from last season throughout Saturday’s win.

“Coach Morris did a good job in the second half,” said Nix, who went 10-for-16 with three touchdowns in the third and fourth quarters. “He really could figure out what they were doing, and we got in a good rhythm. Our defense shortened the field for us. So overall in that second half, we really came alive.”

The sophomore climbed the pocket, escaped when the pressure caved in and made three completions of 15 or more yards while on the run. Sure, some suboptimal tendencies from Nix’s freshman year occasionally reared up, but his teammates observed more “poise” than last year when plays weren’t exactly going as planned.

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(Photo: Jason Caldwell/Inside The Auburn Tigers, 247Sports)

“When the pressure came, he didn't panic,” Schwartz added. “He didn't try to unnecessarily roll out. He just sat in there and got the throws. He had one throw where he threw the ball 40 yards off his back foot, which is amazing. I didn't even realize that. I think he was very locked in and very poised."

Pro Football Focus graded Nix as the best downfield passer in the nation — an area the quarterback said in the offseason he aimed to improve greatly in — from Saturday’s slate of games, ahead of fellow SEC QBs Mac Jones and Kyle Trask.

When pushing the ball 20 yards or more, Nix hit on 4-of-5 passes for 104 yards.

Don’t forget about the former dual-threat prospect’s legs, either. Nix averaged nearly 7 yards a pop on scrambles and designed QB runs, leading Auburn’s running game with 34 yards.

And he had two pooch punts for a total of 77 yards; both landed inside Kentucky’s 10-yard line. In recognition of his multifaceted performance, Nix on Monday made the Week 4 “honor roll” for the 2020 Paul Hornung Award — presented annually to the nation’s most versatile player.

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He’ll need a similarly stellar showing this Saturday at No. 4 Georgia. The Tigers haven’t won in Athens since 2005, but they’re convinced a new-and-improved Nix has the tools to lead AU to a win against anybody.

“... I think that [Nix] still has a lot to improve,” Schwartz said, “which I think is scary for other teams.”