Observations: Day 2 of 2026 Auburn Football Fall Camp
The Tigers made some good strides Thursday, including a strong day from the offensive line and a showcase of the defensive depth.
AUBURN — It’s just two days of fall camp. The shoulder pads aren’t even on yet.
Auburn will go into shells in a couple of days, then it will transition to full-padded practice early next week. Right now, there’s only so much you can learn about a team.
Still, Alex Golesh likes what he’s seeing from his Tigers.
“We're further ahead on both sides of the ball,” Golesh said Thursday. “That's what's so awesome. I said it the other day, but you got the summer (for scheme). So now you can work matchups, you can work a lot of different things. … The guys are learning what it really looks like. Learning how to take care of each other, but play hard.
“I'm good with where we are. We're nowhere near where we’ve got to be, certainly. We’ll get there.”
That sentiment was echoed by three of his top offensive players. Quarterback Byrum Brown said the Tigers were “rocking and rolling and cooking” in “two really good days.” Wide receiver Keshaun Singleton called it “pretty amazing.” Offensive tackle Jo Simmons said he’s seen “a massive step forward” from spring practices.
But, to modify an old saying, everyone’s doing well until they get hit in the mouth.
That will come in time. There’s been progress, though, in the areas the Tigers knew they could see without pads — playbook retention, effort levels, attention to detail, etc. There’s also work to be done in coming together as a team of largely newcomers.
“I think how you respond to situations builds trust more than probably anything else,” Golesh said. “We just talked after practice as a team. Man, the next step for us is when I come off the sideline, that I don't just go grab a water bottle and try to suck in as much oxygen as I can. Player-driven leadership is: Go tell the next guy what the heck is going on, go give him some encouragement.
“That builds trust. Guys doing the right thing over and over and over, on the field, off the field, builds trust. I think we're working there.”
And the work continues after the post-practice huddle breaks. Not only are the Tigers spending every moment together with the off-campus fall camp at Grand National, they’re making sure they do more on the field as well.
While post-practice interviews were going on Thursday, entire units were on the indoor field — pushing and pulling sleds, catching extra passes, repping technique.
“It's really good,” Brown said. “Everyone's on the same page. Guys aren't catching up or at a different spot. We came into fall camp ready to roll.”
Like the first day of camp Wednesday, media members were allowed to watch the first half-hour of practice Thursday morning and had a round of interviews — this time with Golesh and the previously mentioned players.
Here’s everything we saw and heard at the football facility Thursday, starting with a drill that showcased some of the depth that DJ Durkin loves to have on the defensive side of the football.
The first period of practice featured the entire defense rotating through a pursuit drill — where all 11 players work on getting set and lined up correctly, depending on what type of mock look they get from the managers and assistants on “offense.”
The defense runs through a play call, hits the ground to simulate having to hurry up after a tackle and then gets set for the next one at tempo. That process repeats several times downfield before the final step: Sprinting off the field, together.
Auburn mixed and matched with the three units we saw in this pursuit drill during this first period of practice. The defensive front, in particular, changed it up with some younger faces getting reps with the 1s, while projected starters such as Da’Shawn Womack and Cody Sigler repped with the 2s and 3s.
I would caution fans not to read into the pecking order too much here, other than seeing how Auburn might view certain players with a chance to get in the rotations. There are also some players, such as Newboy Fegans, Shamar Arnoux and Chris Murray, who are currently not fully participating in practices.
First unit