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23
Auburn
The coach is trimmer and the defense as beefy as ever, but
the Tigers must deal with weighty concerns on offense
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With Craig gone, Carter will be carrying a heavy load in a
more diverse
attack.
(Bruce L.
Schwartzman)
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When he
takes the field this fall, Tigers coach Terry Bowden will look
much as he did five years ago during his first season at
Auburn. Last February,
Bowden began following a high-protein diet in which he ate only
meat, eggs and cheese, and by July he had lost 46
pounds to reach his Auburn inaugural weight of
160.
Bowden's team will also look much as it did in 1993, when
the Tigers held opponents to
17.5 points per game and finished 11-0. Though no one is
guaranteeing a perfect record this season, the defense
should be the equal of that '93 unit. "We have our
best defense in five years," Bowden says, "and
defense wins
championships."
Though Auburn lost linebackers Takeo Spikes and Ricky Neal
and occasional starting safety Martavius Houston from last
season, the defense remains loaded with experience. Nine
starters are back, led by senior linemen Jimmy Brumbaugh
and Charles Dorsey,
who combined for eight sacks last
year.
The D's load will be heavy, at least early in the season,
as redshirt sophomore quarterback Ben Leard grows into the
starter's role. Playing behind now
departed
Dameyune Craig, the
6' 3" Leard threw just two passes in '97. That's not to
say
he
hasn't been tested, having battled the
Tigers defense in practice for two
years.
If Leard excels, some of the credit will go to Craig, who
took his designated successor under his wing in the summer
of '97. The two often got together to watch extra film or
just grab dinner and talk. "He was preparing me,"
Leard says. "He dropped in
little bits of information that will help me so I won't have
to go through some of the hard times he went through."
Craig has moved on to the Carolina Panthers, with whom he
signed as an undrafted free agent in the spring, but the
two still speak to each
other
frequently.
Bowden, too, will help ease Leard
into the job by shifting the focus of the
attack. "We ran an offense last year that
put incredible pressure on one player: Dameyune,"
Bowden says. "We'll go back to running some things
that will spread the pressure
around."
Auburn averaged just 73.8 rushing
yards last fall, a figure Bowden wants to see increase
considerably this year. The player he'll be counting on is
sophomore
Demontray Carter, who emerged from spring practice as the starting
tailback. After plans to redshirt Carter in '97 were
scrapped because of Auburn's struggling running attack, he
played in the final seven games and finished third among
Tigers backs,
with 233 yards rushing. He was fumble prone and lacked
upper-body strength, but since the end of last season he
has put on 15
pounds.
The return of receiver Robert Baker, who was academically
ineligible in '97, was the team's best news at the outset
of the spring, but the joy was short-lived. A week into
drills, Baker was arrested for cocaine
trafficking; he was sentenced in May to 15
years in prison. That leaves little depth in the wideout corps
other than senior Karsten
Bailey, who led the team in receptions last season, with 53, and
sophomore Clifton Robinson, who had 15
catches.
Luckily, no one expects the Tigers to win games by running
up the score. "As long as they give us something,
that's good by me," Brumbaugh says. "If our team
wants to have a great season, it lies on the defense. I'd
rather the game be on my shoulders
than on someone
else's." —Dana Gelin
Fast Facts
1997 record: 10-3 (6-2, tied for 1st in SEC
West)
Final ranking: No. 11 AP, No. 11 coaches'
poll
| 1997 Averages | Offense | Defense |
| Scoring | 26.6 | 19.4 |
| Rushing Yards | 73.8 | 114.2 |
| Passing Yards | 273.5 | 229.6 |
| Total Yards | 347.3 | 343.8 |
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Pivotal Players
Ben Leard
will be the first quarterback other than Dameyune Craig to
start for the Tigers since Patrick Nix in
1995.... Free safety
Brad Ware, a junior, led the team in
interceptions last season with
four....
Rob Pate earned freshman All-SEC honors at strong safety and will
take over the spot full time following Martavius Houston's
dismissal from the team for an unspecified rules
violation.
Key Games
Schedule strength: 1st of
112
Sept. 19 vs. LSU
Tigers battle Tigers for a jump on the SEC West. Auburn
won 31-28 in Baton Rouge in '97 and took the
division.
Oct.
3 vs. Tennessee
Auburn looks to avenge its 30-29 loss in the '97 SEC title
game. This time
there's no Peyton Manning to deal
with.
Bottom Line
Leard and Demontray Carter must play big and the D must
overcome the loss of Takeo Spikes
for the Tigers to contend for the SEC
title.
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