Auburn football opponent preview: University of Massachusetts

LADIES AND GENTLEMEN!!!!!! WE ARE 12 WEEKS AWAY FROM THE FIRST AUBURN FOOTBALL GAME WEEK!!!!

It’s a wonderful time, folks. While all Auburn sports are finished, summer is fully here. And with the start of a new era around the corner, it’s time to start looking at the 2023 season.

This will be Part I of a twelve part series, each post detailing a team on Auburn football’s schedule.

This week, we will start with the first opponent of the Hugh Freeze era: the UMass Minutemen.

Lets talk about it.

UMass coaching staff

UMass head coach Don Brown is one of the most experienced and traveled coaches on the planet. He’s also regarded as one of the top defensive minds on the planet. Nicknamed “Doctor Blitz,” Brown will send every player on the field at any point in the game in hopes of disrupting your offense.

At offensive coordinator, the Minutemen employ Steve Casula. Connected with Brown while the two were at Michigan, he operates a smashmouth spread at UMass. This offense will look, in ways, similar to the offense that Auburn will run, though in reality they are completely different.

Defensive coordinator Kieth Dudzinski has been at UMass on three separate occasions. Nine seasons overall. He’s a UMass guy. He loves his university, and he keeps coming back.

This is a solid coaching staff. At most schools, they’d win a lot of games. At UMass, they’re lucky to win 4 a year.

UMass on offense

As I mentioned earlier, UMass runs a smashmouth spread. Primarily in 11, 20 and 12 personnel, this team looks to use a mixed tempo and RPOs off of the running game to get the ball into space. In passing situations, they have a handful of intermediate and dropback schemes.

This unit averaged just 266 yards TOTAL in 2022. Not good. Part of it is just a pure lack of talent. It’s UMass. No one goes there if we’re being honest.

Incumbent QB Brady Olson did not perform well last season, with 2 touchdowns and 8 interceptions. Behind him, true freshman Ahmad Haston, Clemson and Georgia Tech transfer Taisun Phommachanh, and redshirt senior Carlos Davis are challenging for the job. While Phommachanh is likely the most talented on the roster, my money is on Haston to take the job based on what I saw in the spring game.

UMass on defense

UMass actually was a solid defensive team last season. A lot of that is Don Brown’s brilliance. He’s an absolute machine at putting aggressive defenses together. It is a multiple scheme, with blitzes coming from everywhere. This is where UMass could give Auburn some mild fits early as the new-look spread attack gets settled.

Conclusion: Auburn football warmup

This game is gonna serve the exact purpose that it is supposed to: give the Tigers a warmup game before they hit the road for a PAC-12 After Dark™️ showdown in California. While UMass has some potential under Don Brown, Auburn is coming in with a top 3 transfer portal class and the man who should’ve been hired in December 2020 in tow.

It’s too early for predictions, but we should expect some fireworks from Payton Thorne, Jarquez Hunter, the now VERY talented receiving corps, and an upgraded offensive line.

War Eagle everybody.