Jovon Robinson (29) in the 2015 Birmingham Bowl at Legion Field. Photo Credit: Marvin Gentry-USA TODAY Sports
AUBURN, Ala. — Former defensive captains Mike Kolen, Quentin Riggins, Karlos Dansby and Carlos Rogers were just a few of the 104 former Tiger stalwarts/former team leaders honored at halftime for their play on and off the field on a sunny yet windy day in front of a crowd of 45,723 at Auburn’s annual A-Day game.
Coincidentally, it was the defense — and standout kicker Daniel Carlson — that stole the show in the Blue team’s 19-10 victory over the White.
Auburn’s first-team D, sporting blue jerseys, bent a few times in Saturday’s scrimmage but it never broke in winning the day versus an array of quarterbacks, which included junior college transfer John Franklin III and incumbents Sean White, a sophomore, and Jeremy Johnson, a senior, who are all battling for the starting job.
Carlson, who handled the place-kicking duties for both teams, kicked five field goals, including a 52 and 55-yarder.
Veteran defensive end Carl Lawson, a junior, and sophomore linebacker Darrell Williams spearheaded an impressive defensive effort that held Auburn’s offense, whether it was the first or second team, in check for most of the afternoon.
Lawson, the game’s defensive MVP, would have been credited with at least two sacks if the Tiger QBs weren’t protected with orange non-contact jerseys. He was a load for Auburn’s offensive linemen to handle.
The same could be said for Williams, who combines with fellow linebacker Tre’ Williams to from a new one-two punch in the heart of Auburn’s base nickel defense. The former Hoover High School product tied for the team lead with six tackles. He also had a sack.
True freshman Marlon Davidson, an early enrollee, started at one end spot opposite Lawson and performed well. Senior defensive tackle Montravius Adams, redshirt freshman cornerback Jamel Dean, senior safety Rudy Ford and sophomore outside linebacker/end Jeff Holland, who was wearing No. 26 instead of the No. 4 he wore last year, were also standouts on defense.
Franklin, a junior, opened up the game with the second-team offense and completed his first six pass attempts. He finished 7 of 11 passing for 61 yards and a score, a play in which senior receiver Marcus Davis made a great adjustment on the ball for a 40-yard TD. Franklin’s running skills, an important reason why he was signed by Auburn, were put on hold due to the restrictions on hitting the quarterbacks.
“I really hate the ‘orange jersey’ thing,” Tre’ Williams said. “I wanted to hit them.”
White, who opened with the first-team offense and was the sharpest of the three quarterbacks when he took to the air, completed 8 of 14 passes for 125 yards, but he had a costly fumble inside the red zone in the first quarter. White connected with Davis on a 50-yard pass play in the first quarter and with walk-on C.J. Tolbert, a former Dadeville High School product, on a couple of nice gainers in the second quarter to set up Carlson field goals.
Tolbert finished 13 carries for 34 yards.
Johnson, who like White had a fumble in the red zone, found Roc Thomas in the end zone for an 8-yard TD pass midway through the third quarter to push the Blue’s lead to 19-10. It was the last score of the game.
Expected starter at tailback, Jovon Robinson, a senior, was the leading rusher with a game-high 83 yards. He was the co-Offensive MVP along with Marcus Davis, who had three catches for 88 yards.
H-backs Chandler Cox and Kamryn Pettway, who were used primarily as blockers last year as freshmen, also got to show what they could do running the ball. Cox had a 71-yard run. Pettway tallied 77 yards on seven carries.
“I think we have a bright future as a 1-2 combo,” Pettway said about he and his teammate. “I feel like we bring a lot of versatility to the offense this year. We can run the ball and block. As freshmen, we mostly blocked. We were young, so we didn’t know too much. I think we’re learning. We’ll mature a lot this year.”
Auburn will wrap up its spring practice on Tuesday.
