3 position coaches that need to shine for Auburn football to have success in 2023

Auburn football coach Hugh Freeze can only be stretched so thin.

He's said it since he got hired in November: He has way too many off-the-field responsibilities to invest all of his time into on-the-field issues. That's why he picked former Tulsa coach Philip Montgomery to be his offensive coordinator, and it's why he's handing off the bulk of play-calling responsibilities to him.

"I want to be clear: Philip was called and hired to call the plays, and that's what we're going to do," Freeze said at SEC Media Days last week. "But there's also going to be suggestions from a lot of other people, including me. And he knows that. But he's challenged with calling them."

Beyond Montgomery, here are three other assistants that can help the Tigers return to a bowl game in 2023.

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OL: Jake Thornton

Auburn's offensive line has been an issue for years. It's why the Tigers went out and added nine players at the position this offseason, headlined by the acquisitions of transfers Gunner Britton (Western Kentucky), Avery Jones (East Carolina) and Dillon Wade (Tulsa). Connor Lew, a four-star interior lineman who flipped to Auburn from Miami on Early Signing Day in December, has drawn heavy praise from the coaching staff, too.

To put this offseason's haul into perspective, it took the Tigers the 2020, 2021 and 2022 recruiting cycles to land nine total offensive linemen. This staff matched that in less than a year.

Auburn's best asset on offense is its stable of running backs, a group that features Jarquez Hunter, Damari Alston, South Florida transfer Brian Battie and four-star freshman Jeremiah Cobb from Montgomery Catholic. For the Tigers to get the most out of their backs, offensive line coach Jake Thornton needs to get the most out of his linemen, helping them make holes for the playmakers to run through.

WR: Marcus Davis

Wide receivers coach Marcus Davis has his work cut out for him in his first year back on the Plains.

The Tigers had two receivers log more than 300 yards last season in Ja'Varrius Johnson (493) and Koy Moore (314), and running back Tank Bigsby led the team in receptions with 30. Those numbers are primed to rise with the installation of Freeze's offense, but Davis, a former Auburn receiver himself, will still need to have an impact.

Along with the returners such as Johnson, Moore and sophomore Camden Brown, the Tigers brought in four transfers this offseason, starting with Cincinnati's Nick Mardner in January and finishing with Caleb Burton III (Ohio State), Shane Hooks (Jackson State) and Jyaire Shorter (North Texas) in the second portal window.

Shorter, who led the nation in yards per catch in 2022 with 27.2, has often dealt with injuries throughout his career, and that's something Davis will have to account for: "We're going to have to manage Shorter some," Freeze said. "I think he's a receiver who can help us, but we've got to manage him a little bit."

LB: Josh Aldridge

Another position group that added some key transfers, linebackers coach Josh Aldridge has to establish his position's depth chart.

Aldridge explained to reporters in April that he wants five to six LBs rotating in and out of the game. Ole Miss transfer Austin Keys appears to be in good shape to be one of the top players at the position, but it's to be determined how North Texas transfer Larry Nixon III fits into things, as he was added in May and has not yet participated in a full practice.

Aldridge will have four weeks to evaluate Nixon and his other players before the Tigers begin their season against UMass on Sept. 2.

Bonus: Kent Austin

Not a position coach, but special assistant to the head coach Kent Austin will likely play a big role in developing Auburn's quarterbacks. He's been with Freeze since 2019, and was most recently his co-offensive coordinator/QBs coach with the Flames.

Austin played quarterback at Ole Miss for five seasons before playing in the Canadian Football League for about a decade ahead of his coaching career, which started with the Ottawa Renegades and included a three-year stint as Cornell's coach from 2010-12.

"We've had successful quarterbacks, (and) I give a lot of that credit to the people who have helped me coach them like Dan Werner and Kent Austin," Freeze said in May. "Philip Montgomery joins that crew. I think that I've got some of the best quarterback coaches in the country that are with me."

Richard Silva is the Auburn athletics beat writer for the Montgomery Advertiser. He can be reached via email at rsilva@gannett.com or on Twitter @rich_silva18.

This article originally appeared on Montgomery Advertiser: Auburn football: Position coaches the Tigers need to shine in 2023