Auburn football: 2023 4-star Georgia OT a ‘big target’ for Will Friend

The 2021 Auburn football OL will be under a microscope this coming season. With a group of mostly seniors and grad students making up the front five, it’s now or never for this unit to figure it out and provide adequate enough protection for whoever is under center this season.

If it’s Bo Nix, a repeat performance of last season will force the third-year signal-caller to once again be forced to make things happen on the run. While his feet produced seven touchdowns and 388 yards on the ground, Nix needs to be showing off the arm that had him designated as a 5-star dual-threat QB coming out of high school.

On the other hand, if TJ Finley ends up pushing Nix off the starting post, the success of the OL will be even more crucial. Finley has less mobility than the Pinson, Alabama native, and needs adequate protection to perform from the pocket.

While Auburn football’s star RB Tank Bigsby performed well in his freshman season with underwhelming protection, any hopes of taking home the Heisman Trophy will be reliant on having enough openings to burst through the gap and outrun secondaries for his trademark game-breaking runs.

The OL will be crucial moving forward whether it is Nix, Finley, Dematrius Davis, Holden Geriner, or even 5-star QB recruit Dante Moore, who visited the Plains in hopes of securing a class of 2023 commitment.

Luckily OL coach Will Friend is doing his due diligence to fortify the front five for Auburn football by recruiting 4-star OT Bo Hughley. Friend garnered rave reviews from the #68-ranked 2023 recruit nationally and has kept contact with him off the field.

The Langston Hughes High School product came away from his visit with the Tigers having made quite the impression:

"“I loved it,” Hughley said. “I did an unofficial visit and I really loved the campus and the coaching staff. They really made it feel like home.”"

If he can one day actually make the Plains his home, the ceiling for the OL will instantly be elevated.