The hopes and dreams of any Auburn football fan hoping for the best season since 2013 are a collective burden that Tank Bigsby will carry the majority of the load for.
No, the Tigers are not projected to be a College Football Playoff contender, so a National Championship appearance is somewhat of a distant fantasy.
But thinking AU could surprise a ton of experts–who have predictions ranging from an 8-4 finish to falling into the bottom half of the SEC West–is something that is made possible because of the second-year leap Bigsby is expected to take.
No wonder then, that in assembling the “Best SEC Offense”, Pro Football Focus included Bigsby in their backfield:
Big Ten vs SEC
— PFF College (@PFF_College) July 16, 2021
Which offense would be more impossible to stop? pic.twitter.com/SuuucFO6e5
The tweet from PFF was looking to spark debate between SEC faithful and those up north backing the Big Ten.
One thing notable about the SEC’s team is that every single non-Tank player on the list will be suiting up for an opponent during the upcoming 2021 slate. Georgia visits the Plains October 9th, armed with the best OL in the SEC and LSU transfer Arik Gilbert, who de-committed from Florida to join the Bulldogs after ditching the Bayou via the transfer portal.
The next week, Auburn football will head to Fayetteville, Arkansas to take on the Razorbacks and their own star receiver Treylon Burks. Then, two weeks later, potential 2022 NFL Draft potential overall #1 pick Matt Corral leads Ole Miss into battle at Jordan-Hare Stadium.
This list is refreshing because of the lack of an Alabama Crimson Tide player. After a historically dominant 2020 season, Alabama is no longer the consensus top dog in the conference. That would be Georgia, who have elite talent–including potential NFL hopefuls QB JT Daniels and RB Zamir White–all over the field.
The top dog at RB is a Tiger, though.