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Auburn vs. Arkansas State: 5 Players to Watch

Updated Mar. 4, 2020 6:33 p.m. ET

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Sep 3, 2016; Auburn, AL, USA; Auburn Tigers players take the field for the game against the Clemson Tigers at Jordan Hare Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Shanna Lockwood-USA TODAY Sports

Moving into our preparation for the Arkansas State game this weekend, we’ll take a look at five key players to watch this weekend.

Arkansas State struggled mightily in their opener against Toledo, getting beat 31-10 in what was supposed to be a close game. I actually watched that game on Friday night and the Red Wolves are lucky the score wasn’t worse.

Auburn had a disappointment of sorts in its opener even though they only lost by six to the number two team in the country. While the defense played one of its best games in some time, the offense looked even worse than the 2015 version.

The competition won’t be nearly as difficult for Auburn this weekend, but Arkansas State still has a loaded roster with several transfers from big schools such as Alabama and Pittsburgh.

Both teams have a lot to work on after losses in their opening week, and several key players will need to step up for whoever is going to get their first win of the season.

Outside of Carl Lawson, Montravius Adams and Carlton Davis, no one on this team has proven anything yet. There is still a lot we need to see from several players on this Auburn football team.

Arkansas State is a worthy opponent who could upset a team like Auburn. But if certain key players just play to their potential, it should be an easy win for the Tigers.

Those are the players I would like to focus on this week. This is not necessarily a list of the top five players for Auburn this week, but these are guys I need to see have an impact on the game this week and going forward.

Sep 3, 2016; Auburn, AL, USA; Auburn Tigers quarterback Sean White (13) passes against the Clemson Tigers during the third quarter at Jordan Hare Stadium. Mandatory Credit: John David Mercer-USA TODAY Sports

Sean White

This is a pretty obvious choice, but we never really got to see Sean White get going against Clemson. His numbers were not very good, but I’m not going to solely blame that on him.

The play-calling in the game was pitiful, and White was never allowed to get in a rhythm. You tell a guy he’s the starter and then you pull him after one series. That had to mess with his confidence a little bit.

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I said in my matchup and predictions article that in order for Auburn to win this game Sean White will need to complete some short passes to open up the running game.

Sean White has already been named the starter, and Gus Malzahn admitted that the three-quarterback rotation against Clemson was a mistake. I think he lets Sean White get plenty of playing time in this one, and allows him to make some plays downfield throwing the ball.

I need to see if White is capable of executing a ‘good’ game plan for an entire game. Malzahn should give his some easy slants and out routes within 10 yards to build his confidence back up.

Arkansas State has a strong front seven that will put everyone in the box to stop that run. That should give White plenty of space to throw the ball.

Toledo’s quarterback was 23-of-31 passing for 371 yards and 3 touchdowns against Arkansas State last weekend.

I want to see White get 30 passing attempts, and I expect him to complete close to 20 of them for around 300 yards and 2 touchdowns. If that can’t happen against Arkansas State, I have little hope for this team the rest of the season.

Oct 15, 2015; Lexington, KY, USA; Auburn Tigers running back Kerryon Johnson (21) and half back Kamryn Pettway (36) celebrate against the Kentucky Wildcats in the first quarter at Commonwealth Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Mark Zerof-USA TODAY Sports

Kamryn Pettway

The sophomore running back was virtually invisible on Saturday as he received zero carries in the game.

Meanwhile, fullback Chandler Cox and wide receiver Stanton Truitt each received four carries against Clemson.

That was one of the more mind-blowing things that came out of the Clemson game to me. We heard all the talk about Kamryn Pettway being the backup running back, and then he doesn’t even get a carry in the game!?

Arkansas State does have a big defensive line, but Auburn’s offensive line should still be able to push them around.

This week I need to see Kamryn Pettway on the field in short yardage situations to see if he can get that one or two yards for the first down.

Maybe the reason we didn’t see him in the Clemson game is because we were always in third-and-long situations?

That shouldn’t be the case against Arkansas State, and Kamryn Pettway should get those short yardage carries.

The lack of depth at running back is obvious, so it’s important in a game like this that we see what some of these guys can do. Not only should Kamryn Pettway get some carries in this game, but I would like to see what freshman Kam Martin and Malik Miller can do as neither of them got a carry against Clemson either.

I need to know that we are going to be fine at running back, and seeing Kamryn Pettway get some touches against Arkansas State should ease those concerns.

Nov 7, 2015; College Station, TX, USA; Auburn Tigers wide receiver Marcus Davis (80) makes a reception for a touchdown during the first quarter against the Texas A&M Aggies at Kyle Field. Mandatory Credit: Troy Taormina-USA TODAY Sports

Marcus Davis

Someone needs to step up at receiver. I don’t really care who it is, but we need to see someone become a factor at wide receiver for Auburn against Arkansas State.

I’m going to choose Marcus Davis because he’s the senior and should be the leader of this group.

He caught five passes for 56 yards against Clemson with a long of 21 – that’s actually a lot better than I remember.

Still, I would like to see Marcus Davis come up with some big catches against Arkansas State Friday night. Especially on third own where Auburn was just 3-of-17 on the night.

Toledo’s top receiver, Cody Thompson, also had five catches in week one against Arkansas State, but his catches went for 174 yards and a touchdown.

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Auburn doesn’t have the quarterback that will light it up down field, but I would expect Marcus Davis to have close to 10 catches and 100 yards in this game.

The Tigers are in desperate need of a reliable pass catcher, and I believe they have one in Marcus Davis. Hopefully Gus Malzahn will open up the passing game a bit more against Arkansas State, giving Davis more opportunities.

I would also like to see him pick up some yards after the catch. I don’t remember too many times in the Clemson game where an Auburn receiver caught a pass, broke a tackle and picked up 10-plus extra yards.

Against Arkansas State I would like to see Marcus Davis assert himself as a reliable third-down receiver, and someone that can create a big play after the catch.

Nov 14, 2015; Auburn, AL, USA; Auburn Tigers defensive lineman Carl Lawson (55) walks on the sidelines during the first quarter against the Georgia Bulldogs at Jordan Hare Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Shanna Lockwood-USA TODAY Sports

Carl Lawson

I know, I mentioned that guys like Carl Lawson don’t have to prove anything in this game, but I’d still like to see him make some plays.

While the defensive line was good against Clemson, they still didn’t record a sack in the game.

That doesn’t mean they didn’t get in the backfield and be disruptive, but they still weren’t able to bring down DeShaun Watson.

The Arkansas State starting quarterback, Chad Voytik, is a good runner, but he’s not nearly as elusive as DeShaun Watson. He was brought down for a sack three times by the Toledo defense last week.

Carl Lawson had just three assisted tackles against Clemson, so I look for him to be hungry in this game.

Some Auburn fans may not know this, but Carl Lawson hasn’t had a sack in over a year. His last one came in the Louisville game at the start of the 2015 season.

We’re expecting big things from Carl Lawson this year, and it needs to start against Arkansas State this weekend. If he has any hopes of being a first round draft pick in the NFL, he has to be able to get to the quarterback on a more frequent basis.

I expect Carl Lawson to have a big game against Arkansas State and end his drought of not getting a sack. Not just for us, but for himself, I think he really needs to make sure he comes out of this game with a sack.

Sep 3, 2016; Auburn, AL, USA; Auburn Tigers linebacker Deshaun Davis (57) reacts after blocking a pass by Clemson Tigers during the first quarter at Jordan Hare Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Shanna Lockwood-USA TODAY Sports

Deshaun Davis

To a lot of people’s surprise, redshirt sophomore Deshaun Davis got the start at middle linebacker over veteran Tre’ Williams against Clemson.

Not only did Davis get the start, but he had a solid game recording 5 tackles, 0.5 tackles for a loss, 1 pass break-up and 2 quarterback hurries.

Many people thought Tre’ Williams was the obvious choice at middle linebacker. Williams did receive a lot of playing time picking up four tackles, but T.J. Neal was the odd man out.

Neal let his frustrations know on Twitter after the game. He is the most experienced linebacker on the team, but yet guys like Davis received more playing time.

If Davis got the start over Williams or Neal, then there must be a good reason why.

Maybe the coaches see something special in Deshaun Davis, and I hope he shows us that this weekend.

Linebacker was a big question mark coming into the season, but the group played pretty well against Clemson.

I want to see more of Davis against Arkansas State to see why the coaches are so confident in him at linebacker over Neal.

Davis was just a 3-star recruit out of high school who was redshirted his first year on campus. Last season he only saw the field on special teams, while backing up an experienced group at linebacker.

Clearly he’s made a lot of improvement during his two years at Auburn. I believe the coaches know what they’re doing in giving him the start, I just want to see it for myself.

This weekend should be a great chance for Davis, and some of the other linebackers, to assert themselves.

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