AUBURN NOTEBOOK: Dunn, Knox shrug off Tuberville rumors

For defensive tackles coach Don Dunn, it’s all “junk.”

The rubbish the longtime assistant refers to is the swirling rumors surrounding Tommy Tuberville, the coach he has assisted for 14 years, dating back to their time at Ole Miss.

“I don’t have time to worry about that stuff,” Dunn said. “You might want to call my wife and ask her because I’m sure she’s tired of hearing about it.”

With Auburn dropping its fourth straight game last weekend at Ole Miss to fall to 4-5, and with Monday’s news that Phillip Fulmer would not return to Tennessee next season, talk of Tuberville’s future continues to grow.

One outlandish rumor that grew a set of legs this week came after a number of Internet message boards “reported” that Tuberville would resign Thursday and assume the vacant head coaching position at Clemson by Sunday.

Dunn said he’s been too cooped up at the Auburn practice facility to even lend an ear to false reports and rumors.

“We’re here from 5 in the morning until midnight,” Dunn said. “We ain’t got time to listen to all of that. What’s the use of it? It’s out of our hands.

“Life’s too short for me to worry about all that junk. I’m worried about our players and getting Auburn football back in the win column. We need a win.”

If Tuberville were to be fired or walk away from the program altogether, the assumption would be that most, if not all, of Auburn’s current assistants would follow him or be looking for new jobs. Even if Tuberville remains, it’s not a lock by any means that all of his assistants would be retained.

That thought hasn’t even popped into the mind of wide receivers coach Greg Knox, who has also been with Tuberville since his days with the Rebels. Knox said he had “no doubt” that he would be back for next season.

“If you’re going to worry about what everyone says about you, then you’re going to have a miserable life,” Knox said. “You’ll be miserable. So we can’t worry about what people say on the outside. We just control what we do on the inside.”

New look
Due to the similarities in the two teams’ uniforms, Auburn will do something a little different this homecoming.

To eliminate confusion, the Tigers will wear their white road jerseys, while the Skyhawks will wear orange.

D-line maintenance
Zach Clayton and Mike Blanc will start at the defensive tackles positions Saturday against UT Martin, while it is hoped Sen’Derrick Marks and Tez Doolittle can rotate in, Dunn said.

“We’ll see how healthy we are,” Dunn said. “Hopefully we get to play ‘em all.”

Marks (ankles) and Doolittle (groin) did not go through many contact drills in practice this week, Dunn said. Blanc, who had X-rays early in the week on his sore hand, will wear a cast during the game, Dunn said.

On the offensive side, wide receiver Rod Smith (hip pointer) will be a gametime decision, Knox said. Right guard Byron Isom (concussion) is healthy, Tuberville said, but sophomore Mike Berry has done so well in his absence that Isom has had a tough time getting back in the lineup.

Byrum to kick?
Tuberville may have tipped his hand Thursday as to whom he will go to on field goal attempts.

“I think Wesley Byrum might have turned a corner,” Tuberville said. “We’ve got to get him out there on the field some to see if he’s improved, but I think his technique is much improved.”

Tuberville also said that he would like to use both Clinton Durst and Ryan Shoemaker on punts Saturday.

Robert Dunn and Chris Slaughter will continue to rotate on punt returns, Tuberville said.

Tailback by trade, fullback for now
Tristan Davis came into his senior season as a tailback, but he will finish it as a fullback.

Davis has fallen out of the mix at tailback and now serves as the team’s fullback when Auburn runs its offense from the “I” formation.

“We will play him in the one-back position in our spread,” Tuberville said. “When we’re in our two-back, he’s more of a fullback guy. He’s a little bit bigger, a little bit more physical.

“He’s done a pretty good job.”

‘Embarrassed’
In its last three games — all losses — Auburn’s defense has allowed a combined 692 rushing yards. The Tigers rank 10th in the SEC in rushing defense.

As expected, Dunn isn’t exactly thrilled about his unit’s struggles.

“It’s embarrassing. It’s frustrating because I know we’re better than that,” Dunn said. “It really ticks me off. I hate to give up a point. I hate to give up a yard.”

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