AU FOOTBALL 12 to 1: Will the Tigers’ vocal leader please stand up?

Editor’s Note: As a daily running feature, Auburn beat reporter Andrew Gribble will pose a question surrounding the Auburn football team as it heads into fall practice, which kicks off Wednesday, Aug. 5. He’ll do the best he can to predict an outcome, though he does not vouch for his accuracy.

Who will become the mouthpiece of this year’s Auburn team?

Gene Chizik admittedly keeps everything close to the vest. That can make a reporter’s job difficult at times, but it’s something you have to respect.

We can’t all be covering Lane Kiffin.

But Chizik’s lack of desire for the sexy quote hasn’t rubbed off on the Auburn players. Not yet at least.

This spring proved that Auburn is loaded with plenty of affable personalities and, as you can always expect with players growing older and more mature, we should expect even more to emerge this season.

Players and coaches will tell you that there are two types of leaders: the ones that lead in a more typical vocal fashion and the ones that lead by example. The ones that lead vocally tend to be great with the media, while the silent ones would prefer to be watching game film rather than sitting down with reporters.

Really, though, leaders can emerge through their contact with the media.

Take a player such as graduated wide receiver Rod Smith for example.

Times were tough last year for Auburn players and with every passing loss, the interviews became even more of a struggle. Players, understandably, did not want to talk about the internal turmoil and fewer became available to the media as the season progressed.

Smith, though, loved the limelight. He brought a smile and a good sense of humor to every interview, no matter how bad things got. He spoke for the team and entertained us reporters enough to take the burden off some of his more soft-spoken teammates.

Even though Smith wasn’t having the senior season teammates may have expected, his constant contributions in this facet of the game had to mean something.

Smith is gone, but there are plenty of candidates to step up in his place.

Defensive end Antonio Coleman and tight end Tommy Trott handled this past week’s Media Days like professionals. Coleman, in particular, seemed to love every minute of it, no matter how hard or ridiculous the questions were. This was a far cry from last year, when Coleman admittedly carried the mounting losses with him 24/7, which sometimes translated into terse interviews.

The starting quarterback typically speaks for a team to reporters, but Auburn currently doesn’t have one. Until that changes, quarterback interviews will continue to resemble psychological examinations.

Middle linebacker Josh Bynes emerged as a leader on defense last season and certainly looked the part — at least when he stepped into the interview room — this past spring.

A wild card candidate for this largely make-believe position is excitable linebacker Eltoro Freeman.

In multiple interviews this past spring, Freeman absolutely loved it. He spoke openly about his past and spoke passionately about his current opportunity at Auburn. His teammates seemed genuinely excited about the energy Freeman brought to the field.

A strong fall camp will almost guarantee Freeman’s spot as a starter, which will present even more opportunities to lead Auburn on the field and in the interview room.

Andrew Gribble covers Auburn University sports for the Opelika-Auburn News. He can be reached at 737-2561 or .