2022 Auburn football will not have the Heisman winner, the Maxwell Award winner, the Chuck Bednarik Award winner, the Jim Thorpe Award winner, the Davey O’Brien Award winner, the Outland Trophy winner…
You get the picture.
It’s been a tough season for the Tigers, who are in the midst of a 3-game losing streak that could have easily been a 5-game losing streak had Missouri not choked away a Week 4 matchup between two SEC also-rans twice on September 24. They have no standouts anywhere on the field, and it’s not the fault of those players in all cases.
In fact, in one case, it has little to do with his own performance. Tank Bigsby, who ranks in the top 5 in yards after contact in the nation, is No. 42 in total rushing yards with 524 — this after amassing 179 rushing yards against Ole Miss on October 15.
Bigsby, because of his tenacity under difficult circumstances and sticking with the team after flirting with the transfer portal last winter, was named the No. 1 candidate to be the MVP of 2022 Auburn football by Saturday Down South’s Glenn Sattell:
"“The junior running back ranks 12th on Auburn’s all-time rushing list with 2,457 career rushing yards. He churned out 179 yards on Saturday against Ole Miss to pass Tigers Michael Dyer (2010-11) and Stacy Danley (1987-90) on Auburn’s all-time list and is just 37 yards behind Kerryon Johnson (2015-17) as he moves up the ladder.”"
Auburn football may have turned a corner against Ole Miss
While Auburn football fell to 9-11 overall and 4-11 against Power Five opponents on Saturday, they may have turned a corner with Robby Ashford’s post-Tank Bigsby sideline argument showing, leading the Tigers to being down a touchdown in the fourth quarter before Jaxson Dart and Quinshon Judkins slammed the door shut for Ole Miss.
Ole Miss and Georgia are top 10 teams that wind up in the College Football Playoff, and there is only one more opponent (Alabama) at that caliber for the rest of the season. Auburn has a legitimate chance to upset two SEC opponents, take care of business in the Jordan-Hare finale against Western Kentucky, and become bowl eligible.
Will that save Bryan Harsin’s job? Time will tell. Guessing at this point is hard since there’s no AD in place and the program may not be keen on adding Harsin’s buyout to a running tab of former coaches. JABA baby.