Auburn hopes 'moving depth chart' helps in the long run
The 2020 college football preseason is far from ordinary, but Auburn is trying to make the most of the hand it’s being dealt.
The Tigers were on the mend, with no new COVID-19 cases last week after being without 16 players in practice following nine positive COVID-19 cases on the team (and subsequent contact tracing) in late August.
They weren’t as fortunate in their testing results this week, finding two new positive results. Auburn’s number of total players unavailable practice is now at 10, with five of them presumed starters, Gus Malzahn said.
But there may be some silver lining, the head coach thinks.
“I’ll say this: I do think we’ve developed more depth than we’ve had in the past in fall camp,” Malzahn said on a Zoom call with reporters after Auburn’s scrimmage Saturday. “And that’s just part of this process that’s presented itself.”
More so than during the team’s previous two scrimmages, Malzahn put an emphasis on his starters and immediate backups Saturday — the “1s and 2s.” A few of those starters were new faces, thus, their backup spots were subsequently occupied by players further down the depth chart, as well.
“We’ve had a whole bunch of guys out like I’ve told you in the last month,” Malzahn said. “So when you’ve got guys out, specifically starters out, it gives other guys opportunities. So on the positive end of it, our other guys got more reps than they’ve ever got. And if you’ve got a veteran guy that has a lot of experience and was not able to practice because of a COVID-related issue, then it’s going to give you an opportunity to develop more quality depth, especially the ones you’re talking about with your 1s. There’s been some positives.”
Auburn would of course prefer all its players be healthy and available for every practice and game this season. But Malzahn and the Tigers recognize that, realistically thinking, coronavirus-related issues are going to arise. Some will be small, and some will keep starters away from the team for more than two weeks.
When the latter occurs, Auburn’s coaches think they’ll be prepared after a few run-ins with COVID-19 within the team’s ranks over the past few months.
“We've had a moving depth chart every day,” Auburn defensive coordinator Kevin Steele said this week. “And that could be looked at as a negative. But it's going to happen all season long. That's just the way it's going to be. So it's forced us to make sure that we're developing everybody, not just the first two, first two-and-a-half groups. I mean, you always develop, but you had time on your side for some of that, though.
“We don't have time on our side now. You could wind up having to play a third team guy in a SEC football game quick.”
To aid programs in their depth-chart shuffling during a bizarre 2020 season, the NCAA last month passed a blanket waiver, granting all players an extra year of eligibility. Essentially, this season is a freebie, which figures to allow Auburn to play much of its talented 2020 class immediately.
“We told the freshmen, ‘You all have got to be ready to play,’” Malzahn said. “So they’ve all gotten reps. Not having to worry about four games, the redshirt, that really takes a lot of the other stuff off. But this is a unique year. Not just for freshmen; everyone has to be thinking that they’re going to get to play this season.”
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