The Auburn Tigers have dismissed redshirt freshman running back Dontae Aycock from the team for a violation of a team rule, the University announced Friday.
Aycock was redshirted in 2009, but was expected to factor into the Tigers' running back rotation in 2010.
Aycock, a 5-foot-10, 210-pound running back from Chamberlain Senior High School in Tampa, Fla., was a three-star recruit in Auburn's 2009 recruiting class according to Scout.com. He was an All-State quarterback in high school, throwing for 1,491 yards and 17 touchdowns, and rushing for 1,406 yards and 28 touchdowns as a senior.
Mario Fannin, a senior with 972 career rushing yards, will head into fall practice as the Tigers' No. 1 running back. Sophomore Onterio McCalebb, who wowed Auburn fans with his speed and quickness early in 2009, will also factor in to the mix as the change-up back. Aycock was expected to fill in at both rolls for the Tigers in 2010.
With Aycock now gone, incoming freshman Michael Dyer is expected to figure prominently in the Tigers' running back plans. Dyer, Scout.com's No. 2 high school running back last season, rushed for 1,984 yards and 19 touchdowns as a senior, and 2,710 yards and 28 touchdowns as a junior.
Aycock's dismissal certainly thins Auburn out at running back, but if there's any position where the Tigers can withstand attrition, it's at running back. If Dyer is as good as many expect him to be, the impact of Aycock's absence will be minimal.
Fannin, McCalebb and Dyer all have different skill sets. If there's any label that can be placed on offensive coordinator Gus Malzhan, it's that he's creative. Having three guys like Fannin, McCalebb and Dyer in the backfield gives him plenty of weapons to unleash on opposing defenses.
Barrett Sallee covers the SEC for www.CollegeFootballNews.com. He can be
