Healthier People are Happier People Staying active keeps us healthier and socializing makes us happier. That’s why Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Alabama is proud to sponsor athletics across the state. Learn more about getting healthier and happier at AlabamaBlue.com/Happy.Make escape part of your winning game plan. Escape every day at Wind Creek Casino and on the Casinoverse app. Aruba • Atmore • Bethlehem Chicago Southland • Curaçao Montgomery • Wetumpka (866) 946-3360 | WindCreek.com ©2023 Wind Creek Hospitality.4 TABLE OF CONTENTS 5 .................................................................... 2023 Schedule 6 .................................................................Scouting Auburn 8 ............................................................Scouting Texas A&M 10 ....................................................................Auburn Roster 12 ..............................................................Texas A&M Roster 14 .......................................... Opponent Outlook: Texas A&M 16 .............................................................. Auburn Traditions 18 ..................................................................... Depth Charts 20 .............................................................. Stat Comparisons 22-24 .......................................... Let’s Work: Eugene Asante 28-30 ........................................... Head Coach Hugh Freeze 32-36 ........................................................ Assistant Coaches 38 .................................... University News: Facilities Updates 40 .............................................................Auburn University 42 ..................................................Auburn Board of Trustees 44 ..........................................................University President 46 .......................................................... Director of Athletics 48 ............................................... Through the Lens: Samford 50 ............................ University News: Securing Our Elections 52 .................................... Meet the Coaches: Jeremy Garrett 54 .......................................... Jordan-Hare Stadium Diagram 56-57 .............................. Jordan-Hare Stadium Parking Map 60 .................................................. Heisman Trophy Winners 62 ................................................................... All-Americans 64 ....................Auburn Being Auburn: Memorable Moments 66 ..............................................Postseason Trophy Winners 68-69 .........................................................Tigers in the NFL 73 .....................................................On the Plains: Luke Deal 75 ...................................... University News: Auburn at Work 77 .................... Cheerleaders, Tiger Paws and Marching Band 79-90 ........................................................... Auburn Players 91 ............................ University News: Everybody Loves Aubie 93 ......................................................... Undefeated Seasons 95 .................................University News: Alabama Extension 97 .................................................Southeastern Conference 99 ...................................Olympic Sports Update: Equestrian 103-104 ......................................... Auburn Sports Properties Cover: Eugene Asante TABLE OF CONTENTS AUBURNTIGERS.COM2023 AUBURN SCHEDULE 5 AUBURNTIGERS.COM THE RIVER REGION'S OFFICIAL BROADCAST PARTNER OF AUBURN ATHLETICS IF YOU'RE NOT THERE, LISTEN HERE 9.2 UMass Auburn, Ala. Jordan-Hare Stadium 9.16 Samford Auburn, Ala. Jordan-Hare Stadium 10.28 Mississippi State Auburn, Ala. Jordan-Hare Stadium 9.9 Cal Berkeley, Calif. California Memorial Stadium 10.21 Ole Miss Auburn, Ala. Jordan-Hare Stadium 10.14 LSU Baton Rouge, La. Tiger Stadium 9.23 Texas A&M College Station, Texas Kyle Field 11.4 Vanderbilt Nashville, Tenn. FirstBank Stadium 9.30 Georgia Auburn, Ala. Jordan-Hare Stadium 11.11 Arkansas Fayetteville, Ark. Donald W. Reynolds Razorback Stadium 11.18 New Mexico State Auburn, Ala. Jordan-Hare Stadium 11.25 Alabama Auburn, Ala. Jordan-Hare Stadium Blue - Home Orange - Away 2023 AUBURN SCHEDULE6 SCOUTING AUBURN HEAD COACH Hugh Freeze (Southern Miss, 1992) Auburn Record ...............................................................3-0 (1st Season) Career Record ........................................................78-48 (13th Season) Texas A&M ..................................................................................................3-2 AUBURN (3-0, 0-0) Sept. 2 ............................UMASS ..................................................W, 59-14 Sept. 9 ............................at Cal .......................................................W, 14-10 Sept. 16 ..........................SAMFORD ...........................................W, 45-13 Sept. 23 .........................at Texas A&M ............................................11 a.m. Sept. 30 .........................#1 GEORGIA .....................................2:30 p.m. Oct. 14 ............................at #12 LSU ......................................................TBA Oct. 21 ............................#15 OLE MISS ..............................................TBA Oct. 28 ...........................MISSISSIPPI STATE ...................................TBA Nov. 4 .............................at Vanderbilt .................................................TBA Nov. 11 .............................at Arkansas ....................................................TBA Nov. 18 ............................NEW MEXICO STATE ..............................TBA Nov. 25 ...........................#13 ALABAMA ............................................TBA SEC OPENER n Auburn (3-0, 0-0) visits Texas A&M (2-1, 0-0) for the 2023 SEC opener for both squads on Saturday, Sept. 23, at Kyle Field in Bryant-College Station, Texas. ESPN will televise the 11:00 a.m. CT matchup. n In all-time SEC play, Auburn holds a 335-268-18 mark (.554) back through 1933. In SEC games played in Auburn, the Tigers are 144-66-6 (.681) all-time; away from Auburn, the Tigers are 191-201-12 (.488) overall. n In SEC openers, the Tigers are 52-32-5 (.612) all-time and are 25-5 over the last 30 SEC opening games, including a 17- 14 overtime win over Missouri last season. n The Tigers are 46-38-6 (.544) all-time in their SEC road openers and have won 20 of their last 27 SEC road debuts; Auburn lost 42-10 at Georgia last season in its first SEC road game. SERIES HISTORY n Texas A&M leads the all-time series with Auburn 8-5. The teams first met in Dallas in 1911, a 16-0 Texas A&M victory, and also played in Dallas at the end of the 1985 season, when the two schools met in the 1986 Cotton Bowl on New Year’s Day (a 36-16 Texas A&M win). Prior to the 2018 Auburn 28-24 win at Jordan-Hare Stadium, the visiting team had won every matchup since Texas A&M joined the SEC in 2012. IN SEPTEMBER n Auburn is 187-60-5 (.751) all-time in the month of Septem- ber; the Tigers are 120-23-1 (.837) all-time at home in Sep- tember, and 67- 37-4 (.633) away from Auburn in that month. Since 1970, the Tigers have had a winning record in the month of September in 46 of 53 seasons. n The Tigers are 10-1 all-time in games played on September 23, 1-1 in SEC games and 4-1 away from Auburn on that date. KICKOFF COVERAGE n Hugh Freeze, the 31st head coach in Auburn football histo- ry, is 3-0 in his inaugural season with the Tigers. n With 123 yards rushing and 282 yards passing against Sam- ford, Payton Thorne is the first Auburn quarterback since Nick Marshall vs. Mississippi State in 2014 to rush for 100 yards and pass for 200 yards in a game. n The 10 points allowed by the Auburn defense at California were tied for the fewest the Tigers have allowed against a Power 5 opponent since defeating Arkansas 34-3 in 2018 (also 10 vs. Texas A&M, 2022, and at Arkansas, 2019). n Auburn is 11-12-1 in the state of Texas all-time, but the Tigers have won seven of their last eight games in the Lone Star State. n Jaylin Simpson is one of seven FBS players averaging an interception per game this season. He’s the first Tiger with intereptions in three consecutive games since Jerraud Powers in 2007 (vs. Tennessee Tech, Georgia and Ala- bama). n The Tigers lead the nation in red zone defense (.429). They are second in the SEC in third down conversion percentage defense (.244; fourth nationally), first down defense (42; 11th nationally) and in pass efficiency defense (94.38; ninth nationally). n Against Samford, Auburn rushed for 222 yards and passed for 340 yards, the first 200/300 game for the Tigers since vs. LSU in 2020. SCOUTING AUBURN AUBURNTIGERS.COM Payton ThorneCommitted to playing with a purpose. We’re all about that gameday energy. At Alabama Power, we share your passion for the team— and your pride for where we live. We love big wins, but celebrate all victories that push our state forward. For over 100 years, we’ve been committed to proving what we accomplish together, on and off the field, makes us stronger. It’s Power for a Better Alabama. We proudly support the Auburn Tigers. alabamapower.com © 2023 Alabama Power Company8 SCOUTING TEXAS A&M HEAD COACH Jimbo Fisher (Salem, ‘90) Texas A&M Record ..................................................41-22 (6th Season) Career Record ......................................................124-45 (14th Season) vs. Auburn ......................................................................................................3-3 TEXAS A&M (2-1, 0-0) Sept. 2 ............................NEW MEXICO ...................................W, 52-10 Sept. 9 ............................at Miami .................................................L, 33-48 Sept. 16 ..........................ULM ...........................................................W, 47-3 Sept. 23 .........................AUBURN ....................................................11 a.m. Sept. 30 .........................vs. Arkansas ...............................................11 a.m. Oct. 7 ..............................#13 ALABAMA ............................................TBA Oct. 14 ............................at #23 Tennessee ........................................TBA Oct. 28 ...........................SOUTH CAROLINA ..................................TBA Nov. 4 .............................at #15 Ole Miss ............................................TBA Nov. 11 .............................MISSISSIPPI STATE ...................................TBA Nov. 18 ............................ABILENE CHRISTIAN ..........................11 a.m. Nov. 25 ...........................at #12 LSU ......................................................TBA WHAT TO WATCH FOR n Sophomore quarterback Conner Weigman registered the third 300-yard passing game of his career and second in as many weeks when he threw for 337 yards in the win over ULM. He boasted a school record (min. 20 attempts) 86.2 completion percentage in the win, finishing the day 25-of-29. n Weigman ranks 10th nationally, averaging 303 passing yards per game, while his eight touchdown passes and 326 yards of total offense are also among the top 15 in the country and top three in SEC. n Graduate wide receiver Ainias Smith recorded the fifth 100- yard game of his career after leading the team with 127 yards on seven catches. Smith has moved into the top 10 at A&M in receptions, receiving yards and touchdown catches, while also becoming the 20th Aggie in program history to tally 3,000 all-purpose yards in their career. n On the season, the Aggie offense ranks in the top-13 in the country in scoring offense (44.0 ppg), total points (132) and passing offense (337.3 ypg), while its 10 passing touchdowns on the year are tied for the ninth most in the nation. n The Aggie defense has shut down opponents on third down early this season, ranking third nationally and leading the SEC with a 20.6 opponent conversion percentage. Against ULM, A&M allowed just one third-down conversion on 12 tries. n Texas A&M also limited its opponent’s run game in the first two weeks of the season after holding Miami to just 77 yards on the ground in Week 2 and limiting New Mexico to 91 yards in the opener, marking the first time A&M has kept its opponent under 100 yards in consecutive games since the 2021 season. QUICK HITS n Sophomore wide receiver Noah Thomas went on a scoring spree in Week 1, catching a career-best three touchdown passes. His 24 points on the season tie him for ninth in the SEC, while his 8.0 points per game average is good for seventh in the league. n With a catch against Auburn, graduate wide receiver Ainias Smith would extend his streak of games with at least one catch to 31 games. It is the longest streak of games with at least one catch for an Aggie since Christian Kirk had a string of 39 games from 2015-17. n Sophomore wide receiver Evan Stewart has tallied over 100 receiving yards in each of the two games he has played in this season and currently ranks eighth in the SEC with 19 catches and 11th with 257 total receiving yards so far this season. n As a unit, the Aggie offense boasts one of the most successful scoring rates in the red zone, ranking 19th nationally and second in the SEC converting on 94.7 percent of its chances. A&M is averaging 21 first downs per game and is among the top five in the country with 48 passing first downs on the year. n Junior place kicker Randy Bond connected on all four field goal attempts against ULM, including a career-long 52-yarder in the fourth quarter, and he is 14-of-14 on PATs this season. He leads the SEC, averaging 11.7 points per game and is second in the leagues with 35 total points this year. Bond’s next point will put him at 100 for his career. n The Aggies are 27-7 (.794 win pct.) at Kyle Field under Coach Fisher. In the five seasons prior to Fisher’s arrival, the Aggies were 23-12 on their home turf (.657). n Quick starts have been a harbinger of Aggie victories in the Jimbo Fisher era. The Aggies are 32-5 when scoring first and are 30-2 when leading after the first quarter. n Graduate defensive back Sam Mathews was named the 12th Man ahead of the 2023 season, becoming just the fifth student-athlete in program history to hold the season-long honor. SCOUTING TEXAS A&M AUBURNTIGERS.COM Ainias Smith Please visit our website at www.vcom.edu/outcomes for a copy of our Outcomes Report. ©2023 Edward Via College of Osteopathic Medicine. All rights reserved. www.vcom.edu to become a physician? The Auburn campus of the Edward Via College of Osteopathic Medicine was created with a clear purpose to alleviate the physician shortage in Alabama. VCOM-Auburn constantly works to recruit students from rural and underserved areas. It is our hope that they will return home to serve their community and improve health outcomes across the state. Visit us online to find out how we are inspired to make a difference in our communities and beyond.Next >