Auburn OC Philip Montgomery is one of the most interesting coordinator hires in the SEC
Auburn's two coordinator hires have almost gone unnoticed this offseason.
Offensive coordinator Philip Montgomery and defensive coordinator Ron Roberts arrived on the Plains with a decent amount of fanfare, but have received little to no national attention.
As we wade into the 2023 offseason, folks are starting to talk a little bit more about head coach Hugh Freeze's two choices.
Saturday Down South senior columnist Connor O'Gara joined McElroy and Cubelic in the Morning on WJOX 94.5 in Birmingham to discuss O'Gara's favorite coordinator hires in the SEC, among other things.
While O'Gara loves Kentucky's Liam Coen, who is returning for his second stint with the Wildcats, Auburn's Montgomery may be a more interesting hire.
"I'm kind of fascinated by Philip Montgomery at Auburn," O'Gara said. "I think that's a move that has gone - it's been swept under the rug because we think 'alright, Hugh Freeze, offensive minded guy, he's kind of going to be running the show there,' but it's probably going to be Philip Montgomery calling the plays there to a certain extent, right? And I think that's one of those moves where if he gets to work with Robby Ashford, that's fascinating."
Ashford showed flashes of potential in this first season as an Auburn Tiger, but statistically wasn't impressive in a variety of areas as a passer - he finished last among SEC starters in yards per attempt (6.39) and completion percentage (49%) and was sixth in the league in turnover worthy play rate (8.75%).
He did, however, finish second among SEC quarterbacks in total rushing yards and is in prime position to take a step forward behind an improved offensive line.
Working on his accuracy and timing may be the most important thing for Ashford this offseason - if he wants a shot at the job, he's going to have to find more consistency to meet Freeze and Montgomery's expectations.
Thankfully, Montgomery may be the perfect hire to unlock that potential.
"I remember talking to RGIII (Robert Griffin III) about this back in October," O'Gara said. "He called the first start Robby Ashford had in that game against Mizzou. And he came away from it saying 'if Robby Ashford could ever work with someone like Philip Montgomery' - who RGIII got to work with at Baylor - 'then he could be the perfect guy to kind of maximize his potential as a thrower, and get him to understand his progression.' And don't ya know it, that's who he ends up with."
Nobody's saying Robby Ashford is Robert Griffin III - who won the Heisman at Baylor in 2011 - but the pairing of Ashford and Montgomery in a Hugh Freeze offense does give intrigue.
"If Hugh Freeze does end up saying 'alright, I'm going to see what I have in Robby Ashford in year one,' that's a move that I think is really, really interesting given the skill set, and given the background of what he's capable of," O'Gara said.
Related Stories
Five expectations for Auburn quarterbacks under Hugh Freeze
Auburn football's projected 2023 depth chart
Malik Autry commits to the Auburn Tigers
Hugh Freeze says QBs are hard to evaluate because of Auburn's offensive line play
Five-star PG Tahaad Pettiford commits to Auburn
Engage with Auburn Daily on Socials!
Follow Auburn Daily on Twitter
