3/25/24 Football articles

aubiefifty · March 25, 2023

What to expect from WKU transfer Gunner Britton on Auburn's offensive line

Nathan King

3–4 minutes

AUBURN, Alabama — Jeffrey M'ba dealt with an ankle injury late last season and ended up missing Auburn’s Week 12 win over Western Kentucky, so he watched his defensive line unit from the sideline.

But when he went back with his room the following day and reviewed the film, he remembers being blown away by Gunner Britton and the Hiltoppers’ offensive line, saying their performance stacked up with many he saw earlier in the season in the SEC.

“When I watched the game and watched the O-line, I was amazed,” M’ba said this week. “It was one of the best O-lines I think we played.”

A large reason for that — quite literally — was Britton, WKU’s monstrous offensive tackle who ended up transferring to Auburn this offseason. The 6-foot-6, 305-pound Britton quickly settled in this spring as the Tigers’ primary option at right tackle.

And one of his former teammates wasn’t surprised to hear Britton is making a strong impression on his new SEC squad.

“He was like my brother,” now-former Auburn defensive lineman Marcus Bragg, who transferred from Western Kentucky last offseason, said at pro day this week. “... We went head-to-head every day trying to make each other better. He was one of my close friends.”

Even though Bragg joked it’s a “no-brainer” that he won more one-on-one battles in the trenches during their time together at Western Kentucky, the pass-rusher said Britton is a tricky offensive tackle to solve — one whose skill set isn’t predicated just on size and strength.

“He learns from his mistakes,” Bragg said. “Once he sees why he lost, he goes back and corrects it. The next rep, he comes back and you can’t do it again.”

Rated as the No. 6 offensive tackle on the transfer market, Britton started all 14 games for WKU last season — the first six games at right tackle, and the remaining schedule at left.

With 45 career games played, pass protection has been Britton’s calling card. Per Pro Football Focus, he allowed a QB pressure on only 1.7 percent of his snaps last season, good for the fifth-best rate among all FBS tackles.

“I was like, wow,” Bragg said when he saw Britton landed at Auburn. “My brain exploded. That’s just crazy. I wish I could be here with him.”

Two other transfers seem to be in line for starting roles at Auburn, at least three weeks through spring practices, as Dillon Wade (Tulsa) and Avery Jones (East Carolina) have received the bulk of first-team work at left tackle and center, respectively.

Auburn finished its second spring scrimmage Friday evening and will return to action Monday for its 10th practice day. Hugh Freeze’s first spring on the Plains will culminate with the A-Day game April 8 (1 p.m. CST, SEC Network+).

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aubiefifty · March 25, 2023

si.com

Auburn Twitter was HYPE to land four-star running back J'Marion "Phat" Burnette

Andrew Stefaniak

~2 minutes

Take a look at what Auburn Twitter had to say about landing J'Marion "Phat" Burnette.

Auburn landed class of 2024 running back J'Marion "Phat" Burnette, which brought a ton of excitement to the Auburn fan base.

It was a matter of when, not if, with Burnette as it seemed for a long time he wanted to play his college ball on the Plains, but the commitment makes everything official.

Burnette is a big bruiser of a running back, standing six-foot-one and weighing 210 pounds. No one is stopping this kid in short-yardage situations.

Burnette is the number 153 player in the class of 2024, according to 247Sports.

Coach Hugh Freeze is on his way to making a really special class of 2024 class that now is ranked 18th in the nation thanks to four four-star commits.

The hope and expectation for this class is that it will finish in the top ten when everything is said and done.

aubiefifty · March 25, 2023

Zion Puckett is becoming a mentor to younger DB’s at Auburn

Published: Mar. 22, 2023, 4:58 p.m.

3–4 minutes

Zion Puckett vs. Mercer

Auburn safety Zion Puckett (10) makes a play on the ball in the first half of the Tigers' season-opening win against Mercer on Saturday, Sept. 3, 2022, in Auburn, Ala. (Todd Van Emst/AU Athletics)Todd Van Emst/AU Athletics

By

Nubyjas Wilborn | nwilborn@al.com

Zion Puckett has witnessed much change since his 2019 arrival at Auburn. He was a freshman during Guz Malzhan’s final season as Tigers’ coach, played through Bryan Harsin’s 19-game tenure, Cadillac Williams as interim coach, and now in his fifth season is here for Hugh Freeze’s first campaign.

Puckett appreciates Freeze’s effort in recruiting and relationship-building skills. He sees Freeze as the right man to lead Auburn toward success.

“I love Coach Freeze,” Puckett said. “I feel like his drive in everything he tells you and everything he brings to the table is something that’s really true. He loves his players, and it’s all about recruiting with us.”

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Puckett had opportunities to leave via the transfer portal or to try his luck with the NFL Draft. He decided to stay at Auburn because he believes the program can return to its winning ways.

“I would say the best thing that I’ve been through is, through the storm, I would say, just going through adversity, overcoming it, not thinking about transferring. I just feel like that helped me a lot with being here and strengthening my faith in God.

Puckett posted 45 tackles, two pass breakups, a quarterback sack, and forced one fumble. He’d like to add some interceptions and help the team create more turnovers without overly focusing on it. He believes the big plays will come if the unit is focused.

“It’s probably not a point of emphasis,” Puckett said. “I think the main thing is assignment, alignment, and executing, and then the plays will fall in your hands. As long as you do your job, the production will go up.”

Despite a losing season in 2022, there was joy for Puckett in watching Cadillac Williams become interim head coach at Auburn. Puckett has ambitions of getting into coaching once his playing career is over. Seeing Williams become the first Black man to coach in the Iron Bowl inspired Puckett’s endeavors.

“I feel like, going down the road, I might be a coach somewhere,” Puckett said. “I feel like I can impact children and also other people around me the right way. I feel like once you see something like that, the first time in history here, I feel like it’s something that gives you a drive because you know it can be done. Once you see something done once, you know everybody else can do it.”

Nubyjas Wilborn covers Alabama Media Group.

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aubiefifty · March 25, 2023

247sports.com