New running backs coach Cadillac Williams regularly uses his undefeated 2004 season at Auburn as motivation for his unit.

Williams racked up nearly 4,000 yards on the ground and ran for 45 touchdowns in the orange and blue. But it's not the personal accolades that Williams drills into his players.

“He wants us to have leadership — the leadership that they had when he was here,” senior running back Kam Martin told reporters Friday after the team’s second scrimmage of the fall. “That’s the thing he preached about all the time."

Williams’ running mate over 15 years ago was Ronnie Brown, who also boasts a decorated Auburn career that led to a stint in the pros. Back then it was common to hear Auburn referred to as “Running Back University,” seeing as both Brown and Williams were selected in the top 5 of the 2005 NFL Draft.

And Auburn’s leading rusher from a year ago is gung-ho on that kind of recognition and respect for the running back room returning this season.

“All them coming together, you know what I’m saying?” JaTarvious Whitlow said of the depth at running back this year. “RBU's back, that’s all I got to say. RBU is back.”

His position mate concurred.

“I agree with it,” senior Kam Martin said. “… We just have to keep working hard, taking care of the small things, and you know, August 31, we’ll see. But I feel like with Coach Cadillac back, him just straining us every day — we don’t take no off days in that room. And we’re holding each other accountable. So that’s the main thing.”

Auburn has the depth to back up Whitlow’s claim, but not the numbers. Last season the Tigers experienced their worst rushing output of the Gus Malzahn era. Whitlow, fellow sophomore Shaun Shivers and Martin gradually improved as the year progressed, but behind an offensive line that was shaky at best, as they failed to get a back over the 1K mark for the first time in nine seasons.

This season may yield the most stacked running back room in recent memory for the Tigers. Whitlow's, Shivers' and Martin’s production returns from a year ago; true freshman D.J. Williams is expected to receive a respectable workload right off the bat; redshirt freshman Harold Joiner has impressed with his blend of size and speed this camp; senior Malik Miller has proven to be a reliable option on third down as a pass-protector; and Mark-Antony Richards figures to be a talented athlete as a former top-100 recruit.

“DJ’s a baller. Like today, man, he’s a bowling ball,” Martin said of how the running backs performed Thursday. “He was breaking a lot of tackles, scored him a touchdown in the red zone. Even Harold Joiner, man. Harold Joiner’s a baller. You’ve got Worm (Shivers). Malik Miller made some big plays today. I made some big plays. Today was a big day for the offense.

“You’ve got guys that can do it all. Me and Worm are the speed backs. You’ve got Harold that can run wide receiver, running back. Then you’ve got DJ, a downhill runner, he can do it all. And then even when Mark was healthy, he made plays. I feel like our running back room is going to be real good.”

Malzahn reiterated that the offense “flashed” improvement in the second scrimmage after being held almost totally in check during the first. While Thursday featured mostly positive feedback among his group as Cadillac Williams continued to spread the wealth, an unnamed tailback did put the ball on the ground. Though he did keep possession by falling on the pigskin, fumbles remain unavoidable red flags for Malzahn.

“We've got some talented running backs. All those guys we've got can help us win, but the first game, who do we trust?” Malzahn said of sorting out the running back depth chart. “Who's going to hold onto the ball? That's the No. 1 thing. So, that's really what I've been stressing, what Cadillac's been stressing."

As of now, there’s no reason to think Whitlow won’t be the most “trusted” running back for Malzahn come Week 1 against Oregon. The former 2-star prospect, who accumulated just five offers from Auburn, Tulane, Jacksonville State, UAB and Georgia State, isn’t getting all the looks as the first-team back this camp to provide more reps for the newcomers. But that doesn’t mean he hasn’t improved his game.

“Boobee's gotten a lot better,” Martin said of Whitlow’s development. “Boobee's a great guy, first off. He works hard, and I feel like Boobee's gonna have a special year. It's just, Coach Cadillac, he demands a lot of us, he wants us to work hard, hold each other accountable. And so I feel like this year is gonna be a big year for him.”

Just 25 miles down the road from Auburn, Whitlow didn't have to think much about his play style at LaFayette High School. He was simply quicker and more athletic than most defenders he faced every Friday night. That led to nearly 4,500 yards from scrimmage and 59 total touchdowns to his name his senior season.

In his first year tested as a true running back, he still led Auburn with 787 yards on the ground last season.

Cadillac Williams said last month that with some minor tweaks to his game, Whitlow could have reached 1,000 yards, and then some after leaving “yards on the field” in 2018.

Those adjustments are being made this fall, and Whitlow is already seeing results.

“He really just told me one basic thing: Keep your shoulders squared and they’ll miss,” Whitlow said. “That opened my vision a whole lot. That’s just one simple thing, and I know there’s more steps to it, but that’s just one thing that progressed my game, you know what I’m saying? Him telling me that, it’s just patience, patience, patience. Trust your line. Trust your line. Patience. That’s all it is.

“I’ve progressed a lot, still got some work to go though. I’m still going to keep working on it, still trusting my line and just building that trust, building that trust. That’s the main thing with me — just building that trust.”