What we heard on Day 4 of Auburn football spring practices

Alex Golesh gave an honest assessment at the start of Week 2 of spring ball. Here's more on that and all we've gathered so far.

(Austin Perryman/Auburn Tigers)

AUBURN — Alex Golesh said the first three days of spring practices for his Auburn football team went so well that he felt like he was “waiting for a bomb to go off.”

And, sure enough, it didn’t take but halfway through the fourth practice for the explosion to happen.

The Auburn head coach said he loved what he saw last week from the Tigers, in terms of their “energy, intent and attention to detail.” It came as somewhat of a surprise to Golesh, as Auburn is still very much in the early stages of building a brand-new team.

But Tuesday’s practice, the second one in shells, was not where it needed to be. And Golesh made the players very aware of that issue.

“Right around Period 7, a bomb went off, which was good,” Golesh said after practice. “We needed it. Challenged them, fought through a little bit. Still looking for real leaders to push through those moments when it gets hard. And we're going to continue to create really hard situations and force them to fight through them.

“I think the coaches are doing a really good job of setting a standard. And I know I've said it before, but when the players start to be the ones that enforce the standard, we'll get somewhere.”

Golesh said the energy picked up after the calling-out, and the Tigers finished the practice — one that had more situational football such as third-down work and a two-minute drill — on a much higher note. But that start still stuck with Golesh.

“I thought today was probably our worst day that we've had in the sense of energy, detail,” Golesh said. “I thought they flew around. I thought they were intentional in trying to finish the right way, but I wasn't super fired up today.”

These kinds of ebbs and flows are natural during football practices, especially ones that are several months before the start of the season. Everything can’t be perfect all the time. Even in this day and age of revenue-sharing and NIL, it’s important to remember that these are still college kids. Inconsistency is natural to the product.

On top of that, almost everything is new to this roster. A majority of the players are in the early days of spring ball at a new school, a new level and a new conference. All but two of the assistant coaches are back. There are new schemes, new plays and new ways of doing things at practice.

“I think, mentally, there’s a lot going on,” Golesh said. “There's a lot install-wise in these first, really, six days. Situational football added, guys are thinking. It's happening fast.”

While media members won’t get their second viewing window of practices until Thursday morning, we’ve got to hear a lot about what’s going on with Auburn football so far in the spring over the last week. That included several more player interviews, along with a second time with Golesh, on Tuesday morning.

Here’s a rundown of what we’re hearing about the Tigers as the second week of spring football practices are now fully underway on the Plains:

• The early word on Auburn’s offensive line has been positive, especially given what it’s gone up against in practice as a virtually brand-new unit. Golesh said Tuesday “we're throwing a lot at the offensive line, and I’ve been really pleased with how through four days where they are, how they've sustained.” DJ Durkin and his defense, which returned some familiar faces up front, haven’t held back when testing this offense in spring ball. Considering Golesh said before the start of spring practices that he would be “praying” for his offensive line, it’s noteworthy that he’s “pleased with how far they've come through four days.”

• Having said that, Auburn is putting a lot of stock in Michigan State transfer offensive tackle Stanton Ramil and his ability to get back to full strength. Golesh said last week that Ramil is recovering from an offseason surgery — he missed several games due to injury last year with the Spartans — and is fighting to get back on the field by the end of the spring. The Tigers are confident that they’ll be 100% up front by summer, though. Ramil is widely expected to start in 2026.

• Here is the view of the offensive line from Auburn’s other projected starter at tackle, James Madison transfer Jo Simmons: “One thing about the OL is that chemistry is the biggest part. Just the fact that we had the OTAs and now spring ball has given us a chance to mesh and gel and get to know each other. Getting the pads on is helping, because you’ve got to play with each other. I think we’re developing that. It’s going to take time, but I think we’re getting there.”

• Arkansas State defensive tackle transfer Cody Sigler continues to get a ton of praise for his work since he arrived on campus. Golesh: “If you were to say one guy that keeps showing up on tape as belonging here — and not just belongs here, but stands out — that dude has come in through winter workouts and through four days on a straight-up mission to go win the job. … High motor, high energy. Cody is what you want defensively.