What Auburn must do to reach College Football Playoffs

Going into the 2015 season many thought Auburn had a legitimate chance of winning the SEC and making it into the four team College Football Playoff. Well, those dreams quickly came to an end once the season started, but it’s not hard to imagine the Tigers being right back in the discussion for 2016.

There is a reason so many people were high on Auburn going into this season, and it’s because they have the talent. Gus Malzahn and his staff continue to bring in some of the best talent in the country, including their 2016 recruiting class.

The ability is there for this team to win games, the coaching staff just has to figure out a way to deploy the talent they’ve brought in.

First and foremost, they have to find a quarterback. One of the main reasons everyone thought Auburn would be a great team in 2015 was because of the hype of quarterback Jeremy Johnson. The reason Auburn wasn’t as successful in 2015 was because of the poor quarterback play of Johnson and Sean White.

It became pretty apparent throughout the season that Malzahn’s offense isn’t quite as effective without a dual-threat quarterback. Johnson and White’s lack of running ability allowed defenses to key in on the running backs, and when either quarterback dropped back there was no threat of them taking off.

John Franklin III and Woody Barrett both come in as dual-threat quarterbacks who could compete for the job right away. Franklin is a junior college transfer, so he might have a leg up just because of his experience. Barrett would be an incoming freshman, but he might be the most talented of the group long term.

If either Franklin or Barrett can get a grasp of the offense right away it could change the whole complexion of the offense. The running game is already great, but a quarterback that can run as well will help Malzahn’s offense become what it once was.

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The second part of the equation is finding some receivers that can catch the football. Johnson and White certainly weren’t prolific passers this year, but their wide receivers didn’t help them much either. Ricardo Louis was Auburn’s top receiver by far in 2015 with 46 catches for 716 yards and three touchdowns, and he’ll be gone next year.

Marcus Davis will be team’s top returning receiver with 30 catches for 181 yards and a touchdown in 2015. Jason Smith will also be back after catching 13 passes for 203 yards and 2 touchdowns this past season. Meanwhile, prospective incoming freshman Kyle Davis and Eli Stove may have to step in right away to help out.

Auburn could possibly be breaking in a new quarterback with very inexperienced wide receivers, but somehow they have to make it work if they’re going to compete in 2016.

Lastly, Kevin Steele has to build a top 30 defense. 2015’s Will Muschamp defense finished the year ranked 69^th in the country giving up 27.3 points a game. That average needs to be subtracted by a touchdown a game.

Steele got some exciting news when defensive lineman Carl Lawson decided to return for his senior season instead of entering the NFL Draft. With a healthy Lawson the Tigers defense played one of its best games of the year in the Birmingham Bowl when they shut down the usually high-flying Memphis offense.

Hopefully Steele can build on that foundation and put together a much improved defense in 2016 that’s capable of keeping them in games. Of the things that need to happen for Auburn to reach the playoffs next year, Steele putting together a top 30 defense actually seems the most likely to happen.

As that other school gets ready to take on Clemson in the National Championship Game on Monday, January, 11, it’s not too crazy to think about the fact that Auburn could be in that same position a year from now.