Jackson Arnold's use of feet last week was somewhat unexpected, but it was something Auburn desperately needed entering the season. It did establish the Tigers as a potentially top team this season and set up a reputation for Arnold that is starkly opposite to what it was the previous season.
For Ball State head coach Mike Uremovich, it is not something that he would be worried about too much. Auburn's next opponents don't exactly see Arnold's impressive scrambling as a threat for their defense.
“Good thing for our defense, we run our quarterbacks a ton. So they’ve had to prepare for that all spring and all camp," Uremovich said in his pre-game presser.
Although Arnold's name was not mentioned anywhere, the jab was not-so-subtle, especially since it was in his press conference previewing Auburn.
And the tirade of digs did not end there.
“It is different defensively when there’s a guy back there that can’t move very well. You can get away with a lot more things because you’re not worried about someone to account for him," Uremovich added.
Arnold will be answering that on Saturday night.
Even Hugh Freeze left no room for doubt in explaining that Arnold is ready to do what it takes to win.
“It totally depends on what’s needed to win. That’s always been my philosophy of offensive football. What is it for this game that’s going to help us win the football game? If that’s needed and that’s what the game calls for, I think he’s very capable and willing to do that.," Freeze said in his press conference previewing Ball State.
"So it’s all about the flow of the game and how that’s going. Some of those were called runs, some were pulling it down and using his legs. We’ll go into every game being willing to do that, for sure," the Tigers head coach continued.
After Uremovich's comments, it will be interesting to see what defensive strategy they apply to stop Arnold's passes and run game since they are coming off a 31-0 shutout loss against Purdue.
Auburn plays Ball State on Sept. 6 in the Tigers' first home game of the 2025 season.