Auburn Football: Profiling Tigers WR Position for 2012 Season

As fall approaches, the Auburn Tigers are going about the tough task of summer workouts and team led drills. The Tigers most glaring question offensively is the future of the passing attack, and the wide receiver position is critical to this season’s success. 

Profiling the Tigers receiver position for 2012 involves a lot of new names, but some proven leadership is found among the Tigers ranks. 

Auburn must find options in the passing game outside of Emory Blake and Philip Lutzenkirchen. The good news for the Tigers is that there is a host of talent on the roster, and with a new offensive scheme that will allow for some route choice, the Tigers should soar above last year’s numbers. 

The 2011 Auburn passing attack finished the season as the No. 105 most dangerous unit in the country—a far cry from the numbers that anyone around the program expected at the start of the season. For Auburn to jump in the rankings this fall, the receiver play has to come a long way.

Here is a look at what the Tigers will have at the receiver position for the 2012 season. 

Known Game Changers

Over the past three seasons, two Tigers have become well-known names in the college football world for their strong play and game changing abilities in the passing game. Both Emory Blake and Philip Lutzenkirchen have made some of the most memorable moments happen for Auburn football in the past.

Philip Lutzenkirchen gave us the “Lutzie” with his touchdown dance that defeated Alabama in 2010 and made SportsCenter with his one handed touchdown catch against Ole Miss last season. 

On top of highlight dance and ridiculous one handed catches, Lutzenkirchen holds the record for most touchdowns for a tight end at Auburn—by seven. He will be a force for the Tigers this fall in the passing game, and is a known game changer. 

Emory Blake is another player that has built a strong name for himself with his play. Blake caught a crucial touchdown in the 2010 Iron Bowl and in the 2011 BCS National Title game.

When Blake fell to an injury last fall, the Tigers passing attack took a dive. Blake is a crucial piece of this year’s squad—and opposing defenses know it. 

Despite the acknowledgment of the talents that are held by Blake and Lutzenkirchen, by season’s end, new faces will have entered the highlight reel picture for the Auburn team. 

Newcomers to Watch

The Tigers have recruited extremely well since Gene Chizik has arrived on the Plains, shoring up talent at every position on the field. 

Receiver has been no different, but there have been no “breakout” type seasons that have occurred for Auburn since the Terrell Zachary and Darvin Adams 2009-10 tandem appeared from virtually nowhere. 

Auburn has seen young players contribute in the past—guys like Quan Bray in 2011—and the Tigers staff is not afraid to toss young players onto the field if they feel that the player is ready to make a debut. 

Auburn has Ricardo Louis and JaQuay Williams making the transition to the Plains this season. They also have tight end Darrion Hutcherson joining the Tigers roster this fall. Hutcherson has the size and athleticism to make an immediate impact despite the full lineup found at tight end for the Tigers. 

One name that has not made it to the field yet but would have if he would have avoided injury last season is Sammie Coates. Coates will be a rising redshirt freshman and has earned a lot of praise in his time with the Tigers. 

If one receiver breaks out this year from virtually nowhere, it will be Coates. Even though he isn’t technically a newcomer—he has had one year on campus—most casual fans don’t know the name just yet. By the end of 2012, Coates will be recognizable as one of the elite members of this Tigers receiving corps. 

Same Faces, New Expectations

Auburn is not short on talent this season at receiver—they are short on production from valued players. 

Names like DeAngelo Benton and Travante Stallworth have battled injuries and inconsistencies on the field despite being big name recruits when arriving on the Plains. Trovon Reed is another name that sticks out as an underperforming Tigers receiver. 

The Tigers are not rebuilding the lineup at receiver this season—they are simply tweaking the process in hopes of breeding new results. The Tigers will need for both Stallworth and Benton to step into leadership roles this season as the expectations are sky high with the new Scot Loeffler-led offense. 

The same faces need to produce new results for this receiving corps to be special and for the Tigers passing attack to be even mediocre this season. Guys like Reed, Benton and Stallworth need to make this their season.

New Scheme, New Opportunities

The Auburn Tigers are entering a new offensive era this season as Gene Chizik brought in Scot Loeffler to head up the Auburn offense. 

The Tigers had previously ran a spread option offense under the direction of Gus Malzahn that called for limited route running options for the receivers. Typically, the Malzahn offense looks for one window and one route, if the window is closed, too bad. 

With Loeffler, the Tigers will have option routes. Auburn’s receivers will have the opportunity to create windows and work with the quarterback to find holes in defenses so that the Tigers offense will become less predictable and have more opportunity to adjust to opposing defenses. 

Giving the receivers the option to find holes adds responsibility, but it is a change that will bring positive results once the fall begins. 

Predicting Top Performers

Looking at the Auburn receiving corps there are few names that are easy to place a stamp of approval on. The Tigers were terrible at the position a year ago outside of Emory Blake. Look for Blake to have a career year—likely finishing with more than 1,000 receiving yards. 

Quan Bray and Trovon Reed are two others that appear to be on the cusp of breakout performances. With both flying around from the slot position, there are a number of play options for the Tigers to utilize to get the ball in their hands. 

Sammie Coates is the fourth receiver that will make the biggest impact this season. DeAngelo Benton will be good and so will Travante Stallworth, but Coates is simply on another level. Coates could finish the season as one of the most talked about pass catchers in college football—he is that electric. 

Expected Depth Chart

With previews come depth chart predictions. Here is what to expect from the Tigers lineup when September 1st hits:

Boundary:

Emory Blake, Sr.;Sammie Coates, RsFr.; Jaylon Denson, So. 

Field:

DeAngelo Benton, Sr.;Travante Stallworth, Sr.

Slot:

Quan Bray, So.; Trovon Reed, So. 

Tight End:

Philip Lutzenkirchen, Sr.; Brandon Fulse So.; C.J. Uzomah So. 

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