AUBURN | Tank Bigsby is emerging as one of the nation’s most talented freshmen. Two of Auburn’s other running backs are returning from injuries.
Gus Malzahn made it clear during Tuesday’s press conference that the Tigers’ 47 pass attempts in the loss at South Carolina last Saturday is not how he views this offense moving forward.
“Really, just getting back to playing good, hard-nosed, blue-collar, physical Auburn football. That’s really my mind-set,” Malzahn said.
“We talked about balance. Really, what stands out to me is the last two weeks we’ve rushed for over 200 yards. So that’s really a plus … Something we can build upon. The thing about it, when you’re playing good teams, you’ve got to be able to do both.”
Bigsby has rushed for 303 yards and a touchdown on 50 carries in four games this season. He had 146 yards against Arkansas and followed that up with 111 on just 16 carries at USC.
He’s the first AU freshman to rush for back-to-back 100-yard games against SEC opponents since Michael Dyer in 2010.
“Just how physical he's running,” said Malzahn about what stand out about Bigsby. “I mean, he looks like an Auburn running back to me. He's running with great passion, and that's a good thing. That kind of fits to being able to run the football effectively. He's broken tackles.
“Our offensive line really took that next step I felt like last week running the football with some zone and some gap.”
The running back position could be fortified this week with the return of Shaun Shivers from an injury and the return of D.J. Williams to full health. Shivers started against Kentucky but hasn’t played since, although he did make the trip to South Carolina and participated in pregame warmups.
Williams has battled separate shoulder and toe injuries since fall camp, which has limited his ability despite playing in three of AU’s first four games. He’s rushed for 109 yard on 20 carries.
“Shaun Shivers is one of our team leaders. You talk about a guy that had a phenomenal fall camp and really had a really good first half against Kentucky and then got hurt. That'll definitely help when he gets back. He's in a great spot,” Malzahn said.
“(Williams) had a good week of practice. Like I've said before, he's a veteran guy that has been in the heat of the battle in some big games. So to have all three of those guys. And then I want to say Mark-Anthony Richards. I think he had probably his best week of practice that he's had since he's been here. He battled some injuries early, too. I think we're starting to get healthier in the running back room.”
Auburn plays at Ole Miss Saturday at 11 a.m. CT on SECN.
