Auburn Tigers head football coach Hugh Freeze, offensive line coach Jake Thornton, and quarterback Jackson Arnold -- and by extension, the rest of the AU backfield -- need to be on their toes against the Baylor Bears in Waco this Friday.
As AL.com's Peter Rauterkus explained, Dave Aranda's pass rush waits for no man -- and the odds are good that it'll be improved from a bottom-half unit last year.
"One of the biggest concerns for Auburn during preseason camp was the offensive line, especially in pass protection," Rauterkus wrote.
"You could look at it as Auburn’s defensive line impressing, but the offensive line still had room to improve. On paper, the unit should be on par with or better than it was last season.
"Fortunately for the Tigers, Baylor’s pass rush wasn’t elite in 2024, ranking 80th in the country in sacks. But that was last year, and one of the hallmarks of Dave Aranda-coached defenses is their ability to pressure the quarterback.
"Offensive lines don’t always click right away, and it can take time for the unit to move as one. Auburn can’t afford that against Baylor."
Auburn, for the most part, has the best thing for a position group's chances of success: continuity. The Tigers also strategically spent on blindside potential first-round NFL draft prospect, ex-Virginia Tech Hokie Xavier Chaplin, in the Transfer Portal.
If there's any game where Chaplin would struggle this season, though, it'd be the team's opener. Rauterkus's concern about the group clicking are legitimate with a new signal-caller under center, with new cadence from Arnold to go with it.
Freeze and Thornton will have a major spotlight on them this Friday. If protection is inadequate, the talent Freeze has strongly lauded can't be blamed. It's not a talent issue at that point.
Arnold has a straight up target on his back. How many times he gets hit is on that front five.