Auburn football: Jarrett Stidham looks ready to break school passing records
By Rob Maxwell
The Auburn football team got a huge lift when Jarrett Stidham transferred to the program prior to the 2017 season and he had the second-best single-season as a passer in Auburn history.
That’s right, Stidham threw for 3,158 yards, which is second only to Dameyune Craig, who threw for 3,277 yards in 1997.
With Stidham returning for his junior season, expectations are high for the Auburn offense. Not only is Stidham back, but a host of talented receivers — the best group that Gus Malzahn has had as Auburn football coach — give the Tigers one of the most formidable passing attacks in the SEC.
But what should we really expect from the Auburn quarterback in 2018?
Another 3,000-yard passing season? What about 3,500 yards or 4,000 yards? Are those numbers reasonable to expect or ridiculous? All signs point to Malzahn and offensive coordinator Chip Lindsey airing it out more in 2018 than in 2017 and with an unproven running attack, that might be the case.
This is just the second time Malzahn has seen his quarterback return for back-to-back seasons since he took over the program in 2013. Nick Marshall started at quarterback that season and returned the following season to run the offense.
In 2015 and 2016, Sean White and Jeremy Johnson took turns running the offense to various levels of success (or failure, depending on how you look at it). Stidham was a breath of fresh air last season and his return makes Auburn one of the favorites in the SEC as well as a top-10 team entering the 2018 season.
Let’s take a look at how some of Auburn’s best passers performed the season before their big years before projecting what Stidham will do for the Tigers.