Auburn offensive lineman Austin Troxell has high expectations for the Tigers' offense
Experience, health, depth, confidence.
Those were some of the words sixth-year offensive lineman Austin Troxell used when speaking to the media on Friday afternoon about his unit.
Troxell has appeared in 32 games during his five seasons with the Tigers, but due to injuries and unfortunate circumstances he's found himself more often than not on the sidelines.
Now that he's entering his final season healthy, Troxell is feeling good- not just about his own health, but the strength of the offensive line as a core.
"I'm feeling the best I have since I've been here," Troxell said. "I've played since 2018, here and there just a little bit. But being a starter, being out there for a full game, it's good just to get the feel and speed of the game."
Trox feels good, the team feels good, everything is good.
It just feels right now that fall camp has kicked off, signifying the start of the college football season (which officially starts in less than a month).
The vibes are immaculate, some might say. Well, for the most part.
Despite being one of the most experienced o-line units in the country, Auburn's line has faced some scrutiny heading into the season. The Tigers struggled to establish the run game in short-yard situations, and it killed drives. Per Justin Ferguson of The Auburn Observer, Football Outsiders ranked Auburn 107th in the FBS last season in “power success rate” (the percentage of third- and fourth-and-short rushing attempts that went for first downs).
"Short-yardage situations are on the offensive line. We took that personal. That's on thing we're going to put emphasis on- I mean we need to get better everywhere. But especially short-yardage, you've got to win situations."
Auburn averaged 161.2 rushing yards per game to go along with 4.73 yards per carry last season, both good for ninth in the SEC. Those are numbers than can and should improve given the situation.
Experience, health, depth, confidence. All signs point to some sort of step forward. How big that step is, we don't know.
If the Tigers can get most of their issues sorted out upfront the offense should progress. If running back Tank Bigsby can get going behind a reinvigorated line that has a stronger push on the ground, there's no telling what Auburn could do. "I think there's a high ceiling for this offense. We've got playmakers everywhere," Troxell said. "I expect us to have a really good year."
There's a confidence about the team, and even in the areas that nationally seem like problems, there is promise. "We're a confident group, we know what we're capable of," Troxell said. "There's a lot of things that we need to work on. But we're building the comradery of the unit and getting better every day."
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