Editor’s note: This is the third part in a weeklong series looking at five Auburn players to watch this spring.
AUBURN, Ala. -- When starting right tackle Patrick Miller missed three games in the middle of the season because of off-field issues, it could have hurt the continuity on Auburn’s offensive line. It could have affected the chemistry. Instead, the line only got better and Miller never started another game, even after returning from the suspension.
Redshirt freshman Avery Young started in place of Miller on Oct. 12 against Western Carolina and never looked back. In his eight starts to close out the regular season, Auburn averaged 394 yards per game on the ground. He was given an opportunity and he took advantage of it.
Now, with Greg Robinson leaving early for the NFL, Young is the most talented and most experienced offensive tackle on the roster. The only question mark going forward isn’t whether or not he’s going to play; it’s whether or not he can stay healthy.
A former ESPN 150 recruit, Young started for Auburn as a true freshman before a shoulder injury forced him to miss the rest of the season and take a redshirt. This season, he played through an ankle injury he suffered in his first start and broke his hand on the first play of the VIZIO BCS National Championship game. Still, he played through it.
“He’s a tough guy,” Auburn coach Gus Malzahn said. “He’s a great competitor. He had a pretty bad ankle injury midway through the year and battled through that. He’s very athletic and a great kid.”
Young is expected to be fully healed by the time spring practice begins, but there are questions about where he’ll line up.
The interior of Auburn’s line is set. Veteran Reese Dismukes is back at center, and he’ll have Alex Kozan and Chad Slade returning on either side of him. However, the void left by Robinson is a big one, and there’s no clear-cut favorite to win the job. Shon Coleman, who backed up Robinson, is next in line, but Malzahn said Miller, who previously started at right tackle, and Robert Leff will also be in contention this spring.
The player to watch is Young. If he really is the best offensive tackle on the team, the coaches might give him a shot at left tackle and move Miller back to right tackle.
“We haven’t gotten there yet,” Malzahn said after the season, when asked about Young moving to left tackle. “As we get done with recruiting, we will start thinking more personnel-wise.”
Regardless of which tackle spot he occupies, Young should begin the year as a starter and will be counted on as one of the anchors of the offensive line. The unit was the key to Auburn’s success last year and will be again this year.
