2016 Auburn Tigers Football

The 2016 Auburn Tigers football team represented Auburn University in the 2016 NCAA Division I FBS football season. The Tigers played their home games at Jordan–Hare Stadium in Auburn, Alabama and competed in the Western Division of the Southeastern Conference (SEC). They were led by fourth-year head coach Gus Malzahn. They finished the season 8–5, 5–3 in SEC play to finish in a tie for second place in the Western Division. They were invited to the Sugar Bowl where they lost to Oklahoma.

Before the season

Previous season

The 2015 Auburn Tigers began the season as the preseason pick to win the SEC Championship and a berth in the College Football Playoff. There was also hype about junior QB Jeremy Johnson who sat behind Nick Marshall in 2013 and 2014, being a Heisman Trophy candidate. The hiring of Will Muschamp as defensive coordinator was a major success for the Tigers after Ellis Johnson was let go after a 55-44 defeat in the 2014 Iron Bowl.

The Tigers' season began with some shocking surprises. In a week one showdown against Louisville in the Chick-fil-A Kickoff Game, Auburn built a 24-0 lead, but Jeremy Johnson threw three interceptions and the Cardinals came back from 24-0 before finally falling to Auburn 31-24. Auburn suffered key injuries to Carl Lawson, Tray Matthews, Roc Thomas and Jovon Robinson. This with starting corner TJ Davis out with acl and Joshua Holsey sitting out. A week later, Auburn played against FCS foe Jacksonville State, Auburn again had a rough outing from both Jeremy Johnson and the Tigers' defense. The Tigers would fall to 2-2 and 0-2 in SEC play after being defeated by LSU and Mississippi State. The Tigers defeated San Jose State and then got their first SEC win of the season at Kentucky.

After beating the Wildcats, Auburn would go on to lose four out of their remaining six regular season games. Those consisted of home losses to Georgia 20-13, Alabama 29-13, Ole Miss 27-19, and a 4 four overtime loss on the road at Arkansas 54-46. Auburn's two only wins in that time were against Idaho and Texas A&M. Auburn finished the season with a 6-6 season and earned a trip to the 2015 Birmingham Bowl against Memphis. The Tigers beat Memphis 31-10 in Birmingham, giving coach Gus Malzahn his first bowl win and the team's first bowl win since 2011.

Following the season, defensive coordinator Will Muschamp left the program to become the head coach at South Carolina, joining him were Travaris Robinson, Lance Thompson, JB Grimes moved on as well to join Cincinnati's coaching staff.

Kevin Steele was hired to be Auburn's new defensive coordinator, and assistants Wesley McGriff, Travis Williams, and Herb Hand were added to the staff.

The offseason saw numerous transfers including: RB Roc Thomas, TE Chris Laye, OL Jordan Diamond, OL Will Adams, DE Gimel President, LB Javiere Mitchell and S Tim Irvin.

Following the season OL Avery Young and OL Shon Coleman chose to forgo their remaining eligibility by entering the 2016 NFL Draft.

Auburn picked up transfers in Baylor RB Kameron Martin, Illinois LB TJ Neal and Miami, OH CB Marshall Taylor.

Texas RT Darius James and Ohio St CB Jamel Dean now available after sitting out 2015.
On August third 2016 Senior running back Jovon Robinson was dismissed from the team.

Returning starters

*QB – Sean White - Redshirt Sophomore
* H Back – Kamryn Pettway- Redshirt Sophomore
* H Back- Chandler Cox- Sophomore
* WR – Marcus Davis- Senior
* LT – Austin Golson- Redshirt Junior (played center in 2015)
*LG – Alex Kozan- Redshirt Senior
*RG – Braden Smith- Junior
* Buck – Carl Lawson- Redshirt Junior
* NT – Montravius Adams- Senior
* DT – Dontavius Russell- Redshirt Sophomore
* NB – Rudy Ford- Senior
* DB – Joshua Holsey- Redshirt Senior
* CB – Carlton Davis- Sophomore
* FS – Stephen Roberts- Junior
*SS – Tray Matthews- Redshirt Junior
* PK – Daniel Carlson- Redshirt Sophomore
* P – Kevin Phillips- Redshirt Junior

Depth chart

* Quarterback
** 13 Sean White – RSO 6' 204
** 5 John Franklin III – RJR 6'1 176
** 6 Jeremy Johnson – SR 6'5 234
** 16 Devin Adams – RJR 6'4 248 (walk on)
** 15 Tyler Queen – RFR 6'4 241 (injured)
** 1 Woody Barrett – FR 6'2 238 (likely redshirt)
* Running back
** 21 Kerryon Johnson -SO 6'1 211
** 36 Kamryn Pettway – RSO 6'2 242
** 9 Kamryn Martin – FR 6' 177
** 32 Malik Miller – FR 5'11 229 (injured)
* H-Back/Tight end
** 27 Chandler Cox – SO 6'1 236
** 85 Jalen Harris – RFR 6'5 258
* X Receiver
** 80 Marcus Davis – SR 5'10 181
** 3 Nate Craig Myers – FR 6'2 209
** 4 Jason Smith – RJR 6'1 188
* Y Receiver
** 83 Ryan Davis – SO 5'9 172
** 33 Will Hastings – SO 5'9 179 (kicker/walk on)
** 19 Marquis McClain -FR 6'3 219
* Z Receiver
** 10 Stanton Truitt – RSO 5'10 188
** 12 Eli Stove – FR 6' 177
* F Receiver
** 8 Tony Stevens- SR 6'4 212
** 82 Darius Slayton – RFR 6'2 202
** 11 Kyle Davis -FR 6'2 213
* Left Tackle
** 62 Darius James – RJR 6'5 320
** 75 Deon Mix – RJR 6'4 312
** 58 Bailey Sharpe – RFR 6'5 293
* Left Guard
** 63 Alex Kozan – RJR 6'4 310
** 67 Marquel Harrell – RFR 6'3 318
** ?? Brodariuss Hamm – FR 6'5 325 (likely redshirt)
* Center
** 73 Austin Golson – RJR 6'5 314
** 52 Xavier Dampeer – SR 6'2 310
** 64 Kaleb Kim – RFR 6'4 290
* Right Guard
** 71 Braden Smith – JR 6'6 310
** 57 Mike Horton – RFR 6'3 325
** 66 Tyler Carr – RFR 6'6 316
* Right Tackle
** 70 Robert Leff – RSR 6'6 300
** 98 Prince Tega Wanogho – RFR 6'8 292
* Buck
** 55 Carl Lawson – RJR 6'2 258
** 4 Jeff Holland – SO 6'4 250
** ? Nick Coe – FR 6'6 270 (likely redshirt)
* Defensive tackle
** 95 Dontavius Russell – RSO 6'4 309
** 90 Maurice Swain – RSR 6'3 316
** 79 Andrew Williams – RSO 6'4 297
** 99 Tyler Carter – RFR 6'3 288 (walk on)
** ?? Tashawn Manning -6'5 270 (likely redshirt)
* Nose tackle
** 1 Montravius Adams – SR 6'4 315
** 94 Devaroe Lawrence – RSR 6'4 308
** 5 Derrick Brown – FR 6'5 335
** 93 Antwaun Jackson – FR 6'2 303
** 62 Jauntavius Johnson – RFR 6'2 318 (injured)
* Defensive end
** 3 Marlon Davidson – FR 6'3 273
** 9 Byron Cowart – SO 6'3 277
** 10 Paul James III – RJR 6'4 271
* Will Linebacker
** 41 Montavius Atkinson – RFR 6'2 211
** 17 TJ Neal – SR 6'2 238
** 10 Paul James III – (injured)
* Mike Linebacker
** 57 Deshaun Davis – RSO 5'11 238
** 30 Tre' Williams – JR 6'2 236
** 42 Tre Threat – FR 6'2 242
* Sam Linebacker
** 49 Darrell Williams – SO 6'2 231
** 46 Richard McBryde – RFR 6'2 226
** 47 Cameron Toney – RJR 6'2 234
* Nickle
** 23 Rudy Ford – SR 6'1 203
** 15 Joshua Holsey – RSR 5'11 197
** 41 Montravius Atkinson
* Boundary Corner
** 6 Carlton Davis – SO 6'1196
** 24 John Broussard – FR 5'9 172
** 20 Jeremiah Dinson – SO 5'10 180
** 18 Jayvaughn Myers – FR 6'1 176 ( will redshirt)
* Free Safety
** 14 Stephen Roberts – JR 6'0 183
** 23 Rudy Ford
** ?? Daniel Thomas – FR 6'1 193
** ?? Marlon Character – FR 6'0 185 (will redshirt)
* Strong Safety
** 28 Tray Matthews – RJR 6'2 207
** 11 Markell Boston – RSO 6' 200
** 13 TJ Davis – RSR 6'1 197
** 48 Stephen Davis Jr. – FR 6'4 215 (injured)
* Field Corner
** 12 Jamel Dean – RFR 6'3 210 (injured)
** 31 Javaris Davis – RFR 5'10 182
** 15 Josh Holsey – RSR
** 22 Marshall Taylor – SR 6'3 191 (injured)
* Place Kicker
** 37 Daniel Carlson – RSO
** 39 Ian Shannon – RFR
* Punter
** 91 Kevin Phillips – RSR
** 39 Ian Shannon
* Holder
** 29 Tyler Stovall – JR
** 5 John Franklin III
* Long Snapper
** Ike Powell
** Zack Wade
** Clarke Smith (walk on)
* Punt Returner
** 80 Marcus Davis
** 83 Ryan Davis
* Kick Returner
** 23 Rudy Ford
** 21 Kerryon Johnson
** 9 Kamryn Martin
** 10 Stanton Truitt

Spring game

The annual 'A-Day' was held on April 9. 45,723 fans came to see the Tigers perform, making this the lowest attendance for 'A-Day' in the Gus Malzahn era. The Blue team defeated the White team by the score of 19−10.

Schedule

Auburn announced its 2016 football schedule on October 29, 2015, consisting of 8 home and 4 away games in the regular season. The Tigers hosted SEC foes Arkansas, LSU, Texas A&M, and Vanderbilt, and traveled to Alabama, Georgia, Mississippi State, and Ole Miss.

The Tigers hosted all four of their non–conference games: Alabama A&M from the Southwestern Athletic Conference, Arkansas State and Louisiana–Monroe from the Sun Belt Conference, and national title runner-up Clemson from the Atlantic Coast Conference. The 2016 season was the first season the Tigers played eight home games since 2013, when Auburn went 12−2 and appeared in the 2014 BCS National Championship Game.

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Game summaries

Clemson

The Tigers opened the season with a home contest against the 2015 national runner-up Clemson. This is considered a rivalry game for both schools. Clemson came into the game ranked number 2 in the country while Auburn was unranked. Auburn took an early lead on a long field goal by Daniel Carlson. Clemson, however, responded with a drive of its own, which resulted in a touchdown on 4th down and goal from the 1-yard line. Clemson would lead 10-3 going into halftime and add another field goal in the 3rd quarter to make the score 13-3 going into the 4th quarter. Auburn cut the lead on another field goal by Daniel Carlson, but once again Clemson responded with another touchdown. Auburn would score a touchdown with just over 3 minutes to play in the ballgame. Auburn would then stop Clemson on the ensuing possession, but 2 hail mary attempts by Auburn were broken up in the end zone in the last 10 seconds of the ballgame and Clemson held on for the 19-13 victory. Auburn would fall to 0-1, making this the first opening game loss for Auburn with Gus Malzahn as coach.

Arkansas State

The second game of the season was also the second non-conference opponent for the Tigers. They played Arkansas State out of the Sun Belt Conference. Auburn scored first but Arkansas State quickly answered with a long pass play that set up a touchdown to tie the game at 7. Auburn scored next and never looked back scoring 31 unanswered points. At halftime, the Tigers lead 38-7. The final score was 51-14. Sean White had 3 touchdowns, more than he had in all his past Auburn games combined. The game was Auburn's best offensive performance, according to many writers, since the 2014 season. Overall, this was a very impressive victory for Auburn, and for Gus Malzahn, who used to coach at Arkansas State in 2012. Auburn also remains unbeaten against the Sun Belt Conference after this win.

Texas A&M

The third game of the season is the first conference game for Auburn. SEC Western Division opponent Texas A&M comes to Auburn to play that game. Auburn beat the 25th ranked A&M last year 26-10. Auburn has yet to beat the Aggies at Auburn. Auburn has been out scored 104 to 59 at home by A&M.

LSU

The fourth game of the season was a rivalry game against the LSU Tigers.

The game would end with a controversial win. After an illegal shift was called against LSU with one second to go, LSU would go on to score what was initially called a touchdown as time expired before being reviewed and determined that time expired prior to the snap, negating the touchdown and giving Auburn the 18-13 win.

This was Auburn's first SEC victory without scoring a touchdown since 2008, when they won 3-2 against Mississippi State. Daniel Carlson was 6-6 on field goals in the game, including a 51-yard field goal. Auburn held LSU star running back Leonard Fournette to less than half the yards they allowed him in 2015. It was Auburn's first home conference win since October 25, 2014 against South Carolina.

Louisiana–Monroe

The fifth game of the season was the annual homecoming game. The Louisiana–Monroe Warhawks came to Auburn for their tenth game ever against the Tigers. The last time the Warhawks and the Tigers clashed, the result was a 31−28 Auburn victory in overtime back in the 2012 season. However, this one went very differently. Auburn dominated from the start. The Tigers had their highest point total since 59 versus San Jose State in 2014. The defense also allowed the fewest points since 3 against Western Carolina in 2013. Auburn improved to 3-2 to go over .500 for the first time in the season.

Mississippi State

The sixth game of the season was the first road game for the Tigers. They played at Mississippi State where they had not won since 2010. However, Auburn easily won the game. After an early interception put the Bulldogs in good field position, the Tigers defense responded, holding Mississippi State to a field goal attempt that was no good. Auburn seized the momentum after that. Starting running back Kerryon Johnson got hurt early in the game, but Kamryn Pettway took over the game with a 169-yard performance including 3 touchdowns. Also, the Auburn defense scored a touchdown when Carl Lawson forced a fumble which was picked up by Montravius Adams and returned 13 yards for a touchdown. Auburn led 35-0 at halftime. The Tigers slowed down in the second half, only attempting one pass on offense. The final score was 38-14. It broke a two-game losing streak to the Bulldogs and improved Auburn's record to 4-2 and 2-1 in the SEC. The win also propelled Auburn into the AP Poll the next week, as the Tigers were ranked #23.

Arkansas

After their only bye week of the season, Auburn played Arkansas in the seventh game of the year. In the 2015 season, the Tigers lost a heartbreaker in Fayetteville, falling 54−46 in four overtimes. The Tigers avenged that loss in a very big way, dominating the Razorbacks from the start. The Tigers had over 500 yards of rushing, the Razorbacks only had 25. It was Auburn's biggest margin of victory over an SEC opponent since 1970. The Tigers also built their lead in the overall series, now leading it 14−11−1.

Ole Miss

The eighth game of the season was a trip to Oxford, Mississippi to face Ole Miss. In an offensive shootout, Ole Miss quarterback Chad Kelly set the Ole Miss school record for most passing attempt and most passing yards in a single game. However, Auburn had just as much success rushing as Ole Miss had passing. Kamryn Pettway had a career-high 236 yards. The key play came late in the game with Auburn leading 33–29 and Ole Miss driving down the field for the go-ahead touchdown. Ole Miss tight end Evan Engram dropped a pass which would have likely resulted in a touchdown. On the next play, Auburn defender Josh Holsey intercepted quarterback Chad Kelly's pass and returned it the Ole Miss 30 yard line. That set up a Kerryon Johnson touchdown that made it a two possession game, ultimately sealing the win for Auburn. Auburn became bowl eligible with their 6th win of the year. Auburn now leads the overall series 30−11−0.

Vanderbilt

The ninth game of the season is against SEC Eastern Division opponent Vanderbilt. The last game, which was in the 2012 season, was a 17−13 Vanderbilt victory. Vanderbilt leads the all-time series 21−20−1.

Georgia

The tenth game of the year is the annual Deep South's Oldest Rivalry game against Georgia. In the last meeting, Georgia won by the score of 20−13 in the 2015 season. Georgia has a slim lead in the series, which has been played since 1892, 56−55−8.

Alabama A&M

The eleventh game will be the final home game for Auburn making it Senior Night. Alabama A&M and Auburn have only played once before with the Tigers winning that game 51−7 in the 2012 season. That win gave the Tigers the overall series lead of 1−0−0.

Alabama

The final game of the regular season is the annual Iron Bowl clash with Alabama. In the last meeting, which was in the 2015 season, Alabama won 29−13 on their way to a national championship. Alabama leads the all-time series 44−35−1. Auburn has not beat Alabama in Tuscaloosa since 2010.

Oklahoma

The Tigers were selected for the Sugar Bowl to play Oklahoma. The Sugar Bowl usually takes the highest-ranked SEC team, but because the SEC champion, Alabama, was in the playoff, the Sugar Bowl chose Auburn. It will be the first time Auburn and Oklahoma have played since the 1972 Sugar Bowl, for the 1971 season. The Sooners won that game 40–22 and thus have a 1–0–0 series lead.

Rankings

References

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