AUBURNCamp start: Aug. 4Opener: Sept. 4 against Arkansas State at Jordan-Hare Stadium (7 p.m. EDT, Fox Sports Net)Fun fact: Auburn scored 433 points last season under offensive coordinator Gus Malzahn, which was just shy of the school-record 438 scored by the 1995 Tigers. It more than doubled the 208 points scored by the 2008 Tigers.
The Auburn Tigers discovered last season how strained a defense can become when trying to play a 4-3 scheme with two healthy linebackers.
Josh Bynes and Craig Stevens were in for all 115 defensive plays during Auburn’s 38-35 overtime win over Northwestern in the Outback Bowl, when the Tigers employed five defensive backs. Auburn wasn’t overly deep in the secondary by the end of last season, either, as cornerback Neiko Thorpe and free safety Daren Bates, a true freshman, played every bowl snap as well.
“I had to keep standing, because every time I would try to sit I cramped up,” Bynes said. “I’ve never been through a game like that in my life.”
Auburn’s defensive stamina in the bowl was admirable, but the depleted Tigers gave up a staggering 621 yards. They also wound up allowing 358 points last season, the most in school history.