3/5/23 Articles

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Ex-Ole Miss stars heap praise on 'phenomenal' new Auburn OL coach Jake Thornton

Published: Mar. 04, 2023, 12:00 p.m.

4–5 minutes

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1. Auburn Football

‘There were holes everywhere’: Ex-Ole Miss stars laud ‘phenomenal’ new Auburn OL coach Jake Thornton

AUBURN, AL - February 02, 2023 - Auburn Offensive Line Coach Jake Thornton during a media availability at the Woltosz Football Performance Center in Auburn, AL. Photo by Austin PerrymanAustin Perryman / AU Athletics

Zach Evans spent just one year at Ole Miss, but the former five-star recruit relished his opportunity at running back with the Rebels — and Jake Thornton was a big reason why.

Thornton, who was hired this offseason as Auburn’s offensive line coach under Hugh Freeze, spent two years in the same role at Ole Miss, where he helped Lane Kiffin’s offense produce one of the nation’s best rushing attacks in both 2021 and 2022.

Read more Auburn football: Former Auburn offensive lineman Tashawn Manning reflects on transfer decision, winding road to NFL Combine

Tank Bigsby believes he’s “the best” running back in this year’s NFL Draft

Former Auburn players share silver lining of experiencing coaching changes as they prepare for NFL Draft

“It was great; there were holes everywhere,” Evans said Saturday at the NFL Combine Indianapolis. “We just had to pick and choose.”

Evans and fellow Ole Miss running back Quinshon Judkins did just that. Evans put together the best season of his college career running behind Thornton’s offensive line, rushing for 936 yards and nine touchdowns on 6.5 yards per carry. Judkins was the SEC Freshman of the Year while running for 1,565 yards and 16 touchdowns on 5.7 yards per touch.

With that tandem and Thornton’s offensive line, Ole Miss finished last season with the nation’s No. 3 rushing offense (256.5 yards per game), which was the most outside of the service academies that run option-based offenses. The Rebels also finished 10th nationally in yards per carry (5.43).

“Coach Thornton was awesome,” former Ole Miss offensive line Nick Broeker said. “He was the man. He just helped me develop so much, not only on the field but off the field. I give a lot of credit of my success this last season because of him.”

Broeker was a three-year starter for Ole Miss on the left side of the line, including each of the last two years under Thornton. He started games at both left tackle (all 13 in 2021) and left guard (all 13 in 2022), and he earned second-team All-America honors as a senior last fall.

The 6-foot-4, 305-pounder credited Thornton’s approach to teaching the intricacies of offensive line play for Broeker’s development the last two years and cited him as a big reason why he’s in Indianapolis this week for the NFL Combine.

“I think just the way he’s able to teach it — not just knowing it but being able to send the messages to us and being able to help explain it to us,” Broeker said of Thornton’s biggest strength as a coach.

RELATED: Timing of finding out about Hugh Freeze’s interest in Auburn job “kind of hurt,” former Liberty wide receiver says

According to Broeker, Thornton is the type of coach who will set aside extra time to meet with players individually or put them through extra drills so they can get sufficient reps to boost their understanding of the system, and not just specific to their position. Broeker said that thanks to Thornton’s approach, he had a better understanding of every position along the offensive line, as well as what the quarterback, running backs and tight ends were doing on a given play.

“He’s phenomenal,” Broeker said.

Both Broeker and Evans expect more of the same from Thornton at Auburn, where he is undertaking an offensive line rebuild on Freeze’s staff. The Tigers lost their top-three tackles, their starting center and two veteran guards who started games last season. Meanwhile, they signed three high school offensive linemen in the 2023 class, a top JUCO transfer and a trio of experienced players at center and tackle in the transfer portal.

“He’ll do really well,” Broeker said. “I think no matter where Coach Thornton goes, he’ll be real successful just because of how hard he works and just how he is.”

Tom Green is an Auburn beat reporter for Alabama Media Group. Follow him on Twitter @Tomas_Verde.

If you purchase a product or register for an account through one of the links on our site, we may receive compensation.

Edited March 5, 2023 by aubiefifty

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al.com

 

Auburn's Tank Bigsby believes he's 'the best' running back in the NFL Draft

Published: Mar. 04, 2023, 9:14 a.m.

4–5 minutes

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1. Auburn Football

Auburn’s Tank Bigsby: ‘I feel like I’m the best’ running back in the 2023 NFL Draft

Auburn running back Tank Bigsby (4) leaves Mississippi State defenders in his wake on a touchdown run during the second half of an NCAA college football game in Starkville, Miss., Saturday, Nov. 5, 2022. Mississippi State won 39-33 in overtime. (AP Photo/Rogelio V. Solis)AP

Tank Bigsby isn’t short on confidence as he prepares to take the stage inside Lucas Oil Stadium this weekend at the NFL Combine.

The former Auburn star is one of 26 running backs in Indianapolis this week for the NFL’s annual scouting event, and while some draft analysts have Bigsby as a top-five or so player at his position and a potential third-round pick, the former SEC standout believes he stacks up more favorably to the rest of the class.

“To be honest with you, I feel like I do everything,” Bigsby said Saturday morning. “I feel like I’m the best, if you ask me.”

Read more Auburn football: Former Auburn players share silver lining of experiencing coaching changes as they prepare for NFL Draft

Timing of finding out about Hugh Freeze’s interest in Auburn job “kind of hurt,” former Liberty wide receiver says

Former Auburn kicker chimes in on NCAA’s proposed change to “icing” rule

Bigsby will have a chance to try to sway the opinions of analysts and NFL personnel alike when he takes the field Sunday for workouts and position drills. The 6-foot, 213-pounder is eager to show he’s an all-around running back worthy of an early pick in next month’s NFL Draft.

Two areas he’s particularly looking forward to showcasing on the field at Lucas Oil Stadium are his 40-yard time and his ability as a pass-catcher. When asked how he thinks he’ll fare in the 40, Bigsby confidently said he expects to post a top-three or top-five time among the running backs in Indianapolis this week—a group that includes former Texas star Bijan Robinson, Alabama’s Jahmyr Gibbs, UCLA’s Zach Charbonnet and Texas A&M’s Devon Achane, among others.

“There’s a lot of things guys question about me, the ability they don’t know, but I can’t wait until tomorrow to show everyone and have fun out there, just let everything out,” Bigsby said.

While Bigsby wants to quiet any concerns about his straight-line speed, he seemed more eager to show what he can do as a route-runner and pass-catcher. It’s an aspect of his game he believes was underutilized during his three seasons at Auburn, when he had just 62 catches for 448 yards and no touchdowns.

“I didn’t really get to run routes at Auburn, but I will show a lot of guys tomorrow that I could run routes and catch the ball,” Bigsby said. “I feel like that’s where they’re saying I can’t catch the ball and I can’t run routes and stuff like that.”

A former four-star recruit who signed with Auburn in 2020, Bigsby was the Tigers’ top running back during each of his three seasons on the Plains. He had 834 yards and five touchdowns while averaging 6 yards per carry as a freshman, when he was named the SEC Freshman of the Year during the pandemic-impacted 2020 season. His numbers took a step back as a sophomore, when he averaged just 4.9 yards per carry but became Auburn’s first 1,000-yard rusher since Kerryon Johnson in 2017, finishing with 1,099 yards and 10 scores. His junior year provided a bit of a bounceback, as he averaged 5.4 yards per carry and ran for 970 yards and 10 touchdowns.

Bigsby, who said he admires and tries to study Minnesota running back Dalvin Cook’s style and skillset, managed those numbers despite playing behind an offensive line that has had its share of struggles over the years. Now he wants to prove what he can do at the next level and demonstrate to teams this week why they should invest an early-round pick on him.

“I want to be known as Tank,” Bigsby said. “I want to be known as me. I want to be known as one of the greatest when I’m done. I want to do things guys never did and work my butt off until I get there.”

Tom Green is an Auburn beat reporter for Alabama Media Group. Follow him on Twitter @Tomas_Verde.

If you purchase a product or register for an account through one of the links on our site, we may receive compensation.

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al.com

 

The most interesting thing each Auburn player said at the 2023 NFL Combine

Updated: Mar. 05, 2023, 8:10 a.m.|Published: Mar. 05, 2023, 7:00 a.m.

8–10 minutes

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The NFL Combine is a weeklong expedition for information. For NFL teams, it’s about learning as much as they can about draft prospects—from formal and informal interviews to players’ medical testing to the on-field workouts at Lucas Oil Stadium.

After all, if a franchise is going to invest its resources, millions of dollars in most cases, in a player, it’s going to want to make sure it has dotted all the I’s, crossed the T’s and done its due diligence on a prospect.

Read more Auburn football: Ex-Ole Miss players laud “phenomenal” new Auburn offensive line coach Jake Thornton

Former Auburn offensive lineman Tashawn Manning reflects on transfer decision, winding road to NFL Combine

Tank Bigsby believes he’s “the best” running back in this year’s NFL Draft

For the media gathered in Indianapolis this week, it was also about digging up information. Some of its useful and insightful, some of it mundane, like when a player is asked a handful of times within a short span whether he has met with Team X or Team Y yet, and whether that meeting was formal or informal. Still, the week of interviews can provide some interesting nuggets on the players in attendance, so AL.com compiled the most interesting thing each of Auburn’s six players at the NFL Combine said during their time on the podium at the Indiana Convention Center this week.

Here’s what we learned:

Tank Bigsby, running back

The former Auburn running back was a three-year starter on the Plains after signing with the Tigers in 2020. During his three seasons, he ran for 2,903 yards and 25 touchdowns, averaging 5.4 yards per carry and wrapping up his career and finishing seventh on the program’s all-time rushing list.

His three seasons weren’t a walk in the park, however. His freshman year took place during the pandemic-impacted 2020 season, which ended with Gus Malzahn getting fired. His sophomore year saw his effectiveness take a hit, even as he became Auburn’s first 1,000-yard rusher since Kerryon Johnson in 2017, and the Tigers closed on a five-game losing streak. That offseason, the school launched an inquiry into then-coach Bryan Harsin, who survived to see the season but was fired on Halloween after a winless October and an overall losing record on the Plains. Then Cadillac Williams took over as interim coach and brought some life back to the program.

“Well, you know, going through Auburn three years, I’d say no year was easy,” Bigsby said. “It grew me as a man, you know. I overcame a lot of things with my teammates. It showed me what a brotherhood is when guys are in that mud together and you get out. You got to grab each other’s arms, and you got to pick each other up. So, it showed me a lot. Leaning on each other and just helping each other—coaches, we’re all leaning on each other and trying to come out of a hole, a deep hole. Some of that we did come out of toward the end.”

RELATED: Former Auburn players share silver lining of experiencing coaching changes as they prepare for NFL Draft

Derick Hall, edge

Derick Hall is a fierce weapon off the edge, relying on a combination of speed and power that made him one of the SEC’s most effective pass-rushers the last two seasons. But the 6-foot-3, 254-pounder also has a more polished side to him off the field.

Hall this week discussed his passion for construction (he was in the Construction Club at Gulfport High in Mississippi). He credited his former teach Dave Huffman, who taught construction technology for Gulfport’s STEM Institute and nourished Hall’s interest in building things like tiny houses. It’s a skill Hall said he even used to make money off while back home on break during his college career. Hall also dished on his musical background, which includes some choir experience.

“That was the kind of thing that was forced on me a little bit,” Hall said. “It wasn’t nothing that I wanted to do. My family, they all sing. My mom, she sings, and my sister, so I was kind of just pushed into that role. I always — I did band in middle school; I played the tuba and stuff like that, which had nothing to do with singing. But yeah, they kind of pushed me to that singing role, and I kind of enjoyed it a little bit, to be honest with you.”

Colby Wooden, defensive line

Colby Wooden could be a Day 2 pick in next month’s NFL Draft, but before he ever picked up a football, baseball was his first sport. Though, that didn’t last too long, he explained this week.

“Coming up, my first sport was baseball, then I got hit in the mouth and said, ‘Know what? This ain’t for me,’” Wooden said. “So, I chose a more violent sport — football. After football, I chose basketball for like two years, but then that was too much running for me, so I stuck with football.”

How exactly did Wooden manage to get hit in the mouth playing baseball? He said he wasn’t paying attention and was caught looking at third base when the ball came his way and smacked him in the face.

“I don’t know what I was doing,” Wooden said.

Owen Pappoe, linebacker

Owen Pappoe stole the spotlight in Indianapolis this week with his showing during workouts at the NFL Combine, proving again why he earned the nickname The Freak back in eighth grade. Pappoe ran a 4.39 in the 40-yard dash, which was the best time among all linebacker at the combine. He then put up 29 reps of 225 pounds on the bench press, which was again tops among his position.

Pappoe was a four-year starter at Auburn after signing with the program as a five-star recruit and top-25 overall player in the 2019 class, but he didn’t start playing football until the seventh grade. He hadn’t even watched much football to that point; basketball and soccer were the sports of choice in his household. Both of Pappoe’s parents are from Liberia on the west coast of Africa, so those sports were more familiar. Football was a foreign concept to them — and something his mother is still learning, even as Pappoe prepares for the NFL Draft.

“My dad gets it a lot,” Pappoe said. “My mom still — she calls quarterbacks the pitcher sometimes. It’s kind of funny. Stuff like that, saying ‘You scored a goal.’ It’s funny, but she’s getting it more and more each day.”

Anders Carlson, kicker

Anders Carlson was part of a near-decade’s long kicking dynasty at Auburn, where his older brother Daniel kicked from 2014-17 while becoming the SEC’s all-time leading scorer before the younger Carlson kicked for the Tigers from 2018-22.

Anders Carlson finished his career as No. 2 on Auburn’s career scoring list and in career made field goals, ranking behind his big brother in both categories. Prior to focusing on place-kicking, Carlson played soccer and basketball growing up in Colorado Spring, Colo., but he shared this week that if he could choose a sport to go pro in that wasn’t football, he’d choose golf.

RELATED: Former Auburn kicker chimes in on NCAA’s proposed change to “icing” rule

Carlson is an avid golfer, and he even played a round in Alexander City with several teammates and former Auburn coach Gus Malzahn last summer the day of Carlson’s wedding. (Carlson even noted at the time that Malzahn got a birdie on the 18th hole to close out the round).

While Carlson wouldn’t mind a professional golf career, he wanted to make one distinction.

“I’d be on the PGA, not LIV, just to be clear,” he said this week.

Eku Leota, edge

Eku Leota came to Auburn before the 2021 season after starting his career at Northwestern. Leota was a productive addition to Auburn’s edge group, which lacked depth beyond Hall, even though his time in an Auburn uniform was cut short due to a pectoral injury last season.

Still, Leota appreciated the opportunity to work alongside Hall and learn from the two-time All-SEC defender.

“When I first got there, it wasn’t a walk in the park; we were competing when I first got there,” Leota said. “Derick set the tone that we’re here to work. I’m happy that Derick took me under his wing and didn’t take it easy on me as a player.”

Tom Green is an Auburn beat reporter for Alabama Media Group. Follow him on Twitter @Tomas_Verde.

If you purchase a product or register for an account through one of the links on our site, we may receive compensation.

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[maryland tiger 640]

Congrats to all three! What a big accomplishment. Taylor Davis though!

 

 

 

 

Edited March 6, 2023 by maryland tiger