Auburn Football's Projected 2023 Depth Chart (updated 01/15)
The job that head coach Hugh Freeze and staff have done at talent accumulation in their short time on The Plains is already legendary.
As noted by Auburn Barstool, Freeze and staff have had the same number of offensive tackles commit to the program (four) than Auburn signed in total from 2017-2022. Other than the six offensive line commits Freeze has secured (one transfer, five recruits), he's brought in high-level transfers at linebacker, across the defensive line and EDGE, and continues to work on quarterback and wide receiver transfer options.
Let's take a look at a VERY early depth chart projection for this 2023 Auburn Tigers roster. Returning starters are in bold, with new additions to the roster in italics. For now, we have not included walk-ons.
Offense
Quarterbacks
Starter: Robby Ashford (redshirt junior)
Backups: Holden Geriner (redshirt freshman), Hank Brown (true freshman)
Targets: Oklahoma State QB Spencer Sanders, others
Verdict: With Zach Calzada entering the transfer portal (and TJ Finley expected to do so in the spring), there's virtually zero chance this is the final settled room. Look for Auburn to continue looking for a veteran transfer to either push Robby Ashford or start in their final year of eligibility. Auburn was connected to transfer QBs Grayson McCall of Coastal Carolina (withdrew from portal), NC State's Devin Leary (Kentucky), and Michael Pratt of Tulane.
Running Backs
Starter: Jarquez Hunter (junior)
Backups: Brian Battie (senior), Damari Alston (sophomore), Jeremiah Cobb (true freshman), Sean Jackson (redshirt sophomore)
Targets: Mississippi State RB Dillon Johnson (Washington)
Verdict: Probably the deepest position group on the roster, despite the departure of Tank Bigsby to the NFL Draft and Jordon Ingram to the transfer portal. Hunter actually finished with a higher yards per carry than Bigsby in 2022 and Alston, while not getting many touches, played in all twelve games and showed the burst and vision to be an impact collegiate player in short order. Auburn has pursued veterans in the portal, but only as complimentary pieces, owing to the lack of starting experience in the room. Expect Auburn to continue to explore options in the portal, but the core of the room is set.
UPDATE: Auburn has signed USF running back Brian Battie to the room; he is expected to be the starting returner and give Auburn veteran experience and depth.
Wide Receivers
Starters: X Camden Brown (sophomore), Z Koy Moore (junior), H Ja'Varrius Johnson (redshirt senior)
Backups: 2nd string of X Landen King (redshirt sophomore), Z Malcolm Johnson Jr. (senior), H Tar'Varish Dawson Jr. (redshirt sophomore); 3rd string of X Daquayvious Sorey (true freshman), Z Omari Kelly (sophomore), H Jay Fair (sophomore)
Targets: Georgia State WR Jamari Thrash (Louisville), Cincinnati WR Jadon Thompson (Louisville)
Verdict: Auburn lost senior Shedrick Jackson to graduation/NFL and Dazalin Worsham to the transfer portal, but there's a lot of talent in the room and by sheer quantity, this is one of the deepest positions on the roster. Auburn's reportedly still poking around veteran options in the portal, looking for a veteran possession receiver, but this room is close to set.
UPDATE: Auburn has signed wide receiver Nick Mardner, formerly of Cincinnati. He has one year of eligibility remaining.
Tight Ends
Starters: Rivaldo Fairweather (senior)
Backups: Luke Deal (redshirt senior), Tyler Fromm (redshirt senior), Brandon Frazier (senior), Micah Riley-Ducker (redshirt freshman)
Targets: Fairweather (transfer from FIU)
Verdict: Longtime tight end John Samuel Shenker has graduated, and the first transfer commitment of Hugh Freeze's tenure was the athletic Fairweather out of FIU. Standing at 6'5, Fairweather is easy to picture in the "Evan Engram" role as a detached pass-catching threat. Joining him are the RS SR duo of Deal and Fromm, capable of playing both in-line and in the backfield as an H-back. The 6'7 Frazier can't be discounted as a valuable option owing to the value of that frame in the red zone, and Riley-Ducker is an inexperienced but well-rounded option, capable of both blocking and receiving at a high level.
Offensive Line
Starters: LT Gunner Britton (super senior), LG Jeremiah Wright (senior), C Avery Jones (super senior), RG Izavion Miller (junior), RT Dillon Wade (junior)
Backups: Kameron Stutts (super senior), Jalil Irvin (super senior), Tate Johnson (redshirt junior), Avery Jernigan (redshirt junior), Colby Smith (redshirt sophomore), Garner Langlo (redshirt sophomore), EJ Harris (redshirt freshman), Connor Lew (true freshman), Clay Wedin (true freshman), Bradyn Joiner (true freshman), Tyler Johnson (true freshman)
Targets: Literally anybody with starting experience.
Verdict: The position, bar none, that needed the most work. YEARS of under-recruiting from high school, especially of tackles, caused a dire situation up front that forced Auburn to bring back an underwhelming group of super seniors just to have a complete line last season. The transfer portal additions of Wade (Tulsa) and Britton (WKU) give Auburn immediate competency at the tackle spot, while JUCO signee Izavion Miller is expected to kick inside for a year to RG before taking over for Britton at LT.
UPDATE: The Tuesday (1/10) signing of C Avery Jones from ECU gives Auburn their starting center for the 2023 season, as well.
Auburn now has 16 scholarship linemen, enough for a three-deep, and half of them signed with the new staff in the last six weeks.
Defense
Defensive coordinator Ron Roberts hasn't announced what type of defense he is running - his Baylor defenses closely resembled a 4-2-5 base, so we're going with that for now.
Defensive Line
Starters: NT Jayson Jones (redshirt junior), DT Marcus Harris (senior), DE Mosiah Nasili-Kite (senior)
Backups: 2nd string of NT Zykevious Walker (junior) OR NT Justin Rogers (senior), DT Jeffrey M'Ba (junior), DE Quientrail Jamison-Travis (junior), DT/DE Lawrence Johnson (senior). Other options in the room include Tobechi Okoli (redshirt sophomore), Enyce Sledge (redshirt freshman), Stephen Johnson (true freshman), Wilky Denaud (true freshman), Darron Reed (true freshman), Keldric Faulk (true freshman)
Targets: Nasili-Kite (Maryland), Johnson (Purdue), Caleb Lanks (Louisville), Kyon Barrs (Arizona)
Verdict: The departures of Colby Wooden and Derick Hall means Auburn loses its top two TFL and sack leaders from last season, but the beef up the middle in Jones and Harris is intact. Walker's return from the portal, as well as another year of M'Ba's development, bodes well for Auburn's depth in the interior. Nasili-Kite, Jamison-Travis, and Johnson's commitments give Auburn experience at the DE position, and all three players have the versatility to flex inside on passing downs. Expect Auburn to continue looking for another NT option in the portal, but this room is 90% of the way set with the two transfer additions.
UPDATE: Auburn has also added former Kentucky NT Justin Rogers to the room, giving the line a true nose guard (6'3, 332) for coach Ron Roberts's preferred 3-man front.
Edge Rushers
Starters: Elijah McCallister (super senior)
Backups: Dylan Brooks (redshirt sophomore), Brenton Williams (true freshman)
Targets: McCallister (Vanderbilt), Andre Carter (W. Michigan)
Verdict: The hardest hit room on the roster, outside of offensive line, was Edge. Losing Derick Hall and Eku Leota to the NFL as well as Marcus Bragg to graduation and Joko Willis to the transfer portal means Auburn needed depth in the absolute worst way. Expect Auburn to push hard here in the portal for underclassmen as McCallister, while talented, is only a stopgap and Auburn needs to find their long-term depth and future production.
Linebackers
Starters: DeMario Tolan (sophomore), Austin Keys (junior)
Backups: Cam Riley (senior), Wesley Steiner (senior), Eugene Asante (senior), Desmond Tisdol (senior), Kameron Brown (senior), Jake Levant (junior), Powell Gordon (redshirt freshman), Robert Woodyard (redshirt freshman)
Targets: Tolan (LSU), Ahmad McCullough (Maryland)
Verdict: Despite having plenty of numbers, the linebacker room is one of the most talent-deficient (and top-heavy) on the roster. Longtime starter Owen Pappoe is gone to the NFL. Riley and Steiner both struggled in 2022, with Steiner's snaps falling off precipitously later in the season. Asante appeared in only four games after transferring in from UNC, while Levant is a former walk-on that primarily played on special teams. Expect Auburn to look for more multi-year transfer options here, and for this to be a recruiting focus going forward.
UPDATE: Auburn has received a commitment from transfer LB Austin Keys of Ole Miss. It is expected that he will partner with DeMario Tolan as the starting LB duo for DC Ron Roberts' defense this fall.
Defensive Backs
Starters: CB Nehemiah Pritchett (super senior), CB D.J. James (redshirt senior), S Jaylin Simpson (senior), S Zion Puckett (senior), NB/S Donovan Kaufman (redshirt junior)
Backups: Craig McDonald (redshirt junior), Keionte Scott (junior), Marquise Gilbert (junior), Cayden Bridges (junior), Caleb Wooden (sophomore), J.D. Rhym (sophomore), Austin Ausberry (redshirt freshman), Terrance Love (true freshman), Sylvester Smith (true freshman), JC Hart (true freshman), Colton Hood (true freshman), Kayin Lee (true freshman), Tyler Scott (true freshman)
Targets: None
Verdict: Auburn's secondary, buoyed by the HUGE decisions of Pritchett and James to return, is full of veteran depth and experience. Keionte Scott got plenty of playing time in 2022, and it's a very talented recruiting class led by 4-stars CB Kylin Lee (an Ohio State flip), S Sylvester Smith, and S Terrance Love. Look for Auburn's defensive backfield to continue their dominance under coach Zac Etheridge and the returning Wesley McGriff for years to come.
Specialists
Starters: P Oscar Chapman (senior), K ALex McPherson (redshirt freshman), LS Kyle Vaccarella (redshirt freshman)
Backups: P Marshall Myers (sophomore), K Evan McGuire (sophomore), LS Reed Hughes (sophomore)
Targets: None
Verdict: P Chapman enters his (presumed) final year on the Plains, with the Aussie-style punter looking to confirm his NFL draft stock after being a Ray Guy semifinalist in 2022. With K Anders Carlson off to the NFL, the Carlson dynasty officially ends at Auburn. The Tigers won't miss a beat, though, with McPherson, the #1 K in the 2022 class, getting valuable experience in the final three games of the year (going 6-7 on FGs and 9-9 on XPs). With the graduation of long-time snapper Jacob Quattlebaum, Auburn turns over the reigns to Kyle Vaccarella, one of the most talented long snappers among those circles that discuss these things, and he should be a contender for the 2023 Patrick Mannelly Award.
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