If you go look at preseason lists, there is one name that is missing, consistently. That is Jarquez Hunter. With him poised to be the number 1 back for Auburn Football this coming season, why is Jarquez Hunter still being overlooked?
Last season, in his duties as the Robin to Tank Bigsby’s Batman, Jarquez was a force. He averaged 6.4 yards per carry, good enough for 3rd in the SEC. Extrapolating that forward, Jarquez could be the most effective running back at Auburn in quite some time.
But plenty is changing from the run-heavy scheme that interim-head coach and current Associate and Running Backs coach Cadillac Williams put in place over the final month of the season. Without any true idea of what a Hugh Freeze and Philip Montgomery hybrid offense will look like, there will be questions about Jarquez’s potential production even if there are none about his talent.
His yards per carry probably is going to go down this because he’s going to get more touches. […] The question for me is, how many yards is that offensive line going to be able to generate for him?
– Ike Jones on The Morning Drop
Behind returning freshman stud Quinshon Judkins and the SEC’s 2022 leading rusher Raheim Sanders, Jarquez stands to be the 3rd best RB in the SEC in 2023. But reps as RB1 may give him the opportunity to push him past either of those guys as they also undergo significant changes at OC, QBs, or both. Will Auburn’s new offense allow Jarquez to shine for Auburn in 2023?
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