BY WIL CREWS
SPORTSCREWS@
OPELIKAOBSERVER.COM
AUBURN —
Auburn High School varsity head football coach Keith Etheredge entered his third season with the Tigers with a rebuilt roster and high expectations.
“We’ve got great kids, and it’s going to be a growing process,” Etheredge said. “Just excited to have this group. A lot these guys have D1 offers, maybe not off talent but off work ethic and doing this the right way.”
Auburn finished with a 12-2 record in 2022 and made it all the way to the AHSAA 7A State Championship last season before losing, 24-49, to Thompson High School in Jordan-Hare Stadium. To reach, and even exceed, the success levels of last season, the Tigers will have to replace four all-state players from last year’s team, along with the starting and backup quarterback and three other AHSAA All-Stars.
Shouldering a large portion of the burden of making up for lost production this year will be senior wide receiver Ean Nation; junior quarterback Jackson Killgore; the only returning starting offensive lineman, senior Jaylin Foster; defensive back Jaylin “Pete” Davis; tight end Griffin McLean; kicker Towns McGough; and two transfers from Lee-Scott Academy, the AISA 3A 2022 State Champions, among others.
“You’re going to see a lot of faces,” Etheredge said. “We have some young guys that may not be ready right now, but they are going to be really good.”
Nation broke the Auburn High School football record for most receptions in a season (75), Jake White and Andrew Hahn from Lee-Scott will fill in at wide receiver and running back/corner, respectively, and Killgore has already impressed his fellow players and the coaching staff with the strides he has taken this summer to get better.
“We have had a great summer as far as passing camps go, and [Killgore] had a lot to do with that,” Etheredge said. “We have seven of eight guys who can play [wide receiver]. And I was really worried at the end of last year because coach Harsin leaving Auburn, and then of course Davis [Harsin’s son] was our guy, and we lost him too. But Jackson has been unbelievable. He has really stepped up and become a leader. He’s a gamer. He’s a kid that thrives under the lights.”
As one of the premier football programs in the state of Alabama, Auburn High regularly finds it difficult to fill out its schedule. This year, the Tigers’ non-region opponents include Hoover and 5A defending state champion Ramsay.
“Those are two pretty good road games,” Etheredge said. “You get to see what you got. Every year I want to play good football teams. I think that our kids want the challenge.”
Reflecting on last season’s state championship loss, Etheredge said returning to that moment, and hopefully reaping a different, victorious result ultimately comes down to cutting down on mistakes and playing to the last whistle.
“We want to get over that hump if we stay focused and we stay healthy,” he said. “The progress has been there the entire time, I think, from the time I got there to right now. We have made tremendous strides and have built on that every year. These guys are hungry to get back to where we were last year and right a wrong. We want to bring that first state championship to Auburn High School.”
AUBURN HIGH TIGERS
SCHEDULE
– Aug. 25: @ Hoover
– Sept. 1: vs. Enterprise
– Sept. 8: @ Dothan
– Sept. 15: @ Jeff Davis
– Sept. 22: vs. Percy Julian
– Sept. 29: @ Ramsay
– Oct. 6: @ Opelika
– Oct. 13: OPEN
– Oct. 20: vs Central Phenix City
– Oct. 27: vs Prattville
– Nov. 3: @ Smiths Station