AUBURN | I’ve been thinking a lot about Marlon Davidson lately. He was terrific representing Auburn in Hoover a couple of weeks ago and again Sunday night after practice.
The fact that Gus Malzahn has trusted Davidson to speak to the media twice already, the maturity he’s shown answering all manner of questions and the hard work he’s put in during the offseason reshaping his body has me thinking he’s poised for a huge senior season.
I’ve mentioned this on the board and on podcasts before, but for those that missed it, Davidson is the best high school defensive linemen I’ve seen in person. Granted, I don’t get out to as many high school games as I used to, but he made a huge impression on me when I saw him as a junior at Carver playing relentless, dominating the line of scrimmage and making plays in the backfield. We saw that as a freshman and at times throughout his Auburn career, but a string of injuries has really held him back (in my opinion) from consistently showing his ability and fully reaching his potential. He also strikes me as a more mature person on and off the field, taking on a leadership role with this year’s team and dedicating himself to eating healthier and training with more intensity and intent.
All that leads me to believe Davidson is on the verge of putting together a special season at Auburn. That’s not to take away from what he’s already achieved — starting 39 of 40 games since arriving is a heck on an accomplishment in and of itself — but I don’t think it’s unreasonable to suggest he could double his tackle-for-loss (4.5) and sack (3.5) totals from a year ago.
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Losing wide receiver Anthony Schwartz for any portion of the season would be a blow to Auburn, without question. If you were to list the top five playmakers on offense, the sophomore would have to be included. His seven touchdowns were the second-most on the team last year, and that came as a true freshman after enrolling at Auburn late last summer. Schwartz has the kind of speed that can change a game in an instant and that’s hard to replace.
However, Auburn does have some talented and experienced players that can step up including junior Eli Stove, who missed most of last season returning from a knee injury. Stove scored three rushing touchdowns his first two seasons including a memorable 78-yard sprint on the first play of the Arkansas game in 2016. Seth Williams is the leader of this receiving corps, which also returns Will Hastings from injury and adds graduate transfer Zach Farrar. I think it will be important for a veteran like Sal Cannella or Marquis McClain, or a young player like Matthew Hill or Shedrick Jackson to step up their play this fall to give whoever wins the quarterback job some more reliable targets and to help fill the void until Schwartz returns.
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Got to give credit to this staff once again as they continue to exceed expectations on the recruiting trail. It’s not that Auburn isn’t expected to or doesn’t need to sign a top 10-15 class in 2020, it’s just that considering the circumstances of coming off an 8-5 season and Gus Malzahn being on the hot seat, this group is getting it done and winning some key battles against quality Power 5 schools. This past week it was secondary coaches Wesley McGriff and Marcus Woodson who secured the commitment of two top defensive backs in JUCO corner Marco Domio and safety Chris Thompson Jr. Both will probably play right away next season. The recruitment of Thompson was especially impressive considering his offer list, which included Alabama, Clemson, LSU and Ohio State, and how hard in-state power Texas was pushing for him. Auburn’s class could see a further boost this week with potential decisions from Rivals100 running back Cartavious Bigsby (Friday) and 4-star safety Ladarius Tennison (soon).
Bigsby would be a big recruiting win for Carnell Williams. Kodi Burns has already secured an outstanding receiver class, Travis Williams a big-time linebacker class and J.B. Grimes has filled some important needs along the offensive line. History tells me Rodney Garner will add some more talented players to his defensive line class, which could put AU in position to ink most of its 2020 class in December.
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On today’s musical journey we’ll go back 32 years to Aug. 3, 1987 (I was a student at Auburn) when Def Leppard released their fourth studio album Hysteria. It’s the band’s best-selling album with more than 25 million sold worldwide and included seven hit singles. The name of the album and of the hit song under the same name was inspired by drummer Rick Allen, referring to the media coverage of his 1984 car wreck in which he lost his left arm. The album took nearly three years to record with Allen’s accident and subsequent rehab as he learned to play with one arm. It was also the final record to feature lead guitarist Steve Clark, who passed away on Jan. 8, 1991 due to an overdose of prescription drugs and alcohol. Def Leppard is still active, recently touring with Journey.
