By now, Rod Smith knows to expect the questions.
It’s been almost eight months since Tony Franklin was hired as Auburn’s offensive coordinator, bringing his pass-heavy version of the spread offense with him. But Tigers fans keep asking Smith for his impressions of the scheme.
It’s a constant stream of queries for Smith, Auburn’s most experienced wide receiver.
“I don’t think I’ve had a day yet without people asking me how the new offense is going,” said Smith, a senior from Snellville, Ga. “There’s definitely a buzz.”
The questions about Franklin’s system aren’t the only questions Smith has had to face. After spring practice, a few fans wondered whether Smith was ready for the new offense.
He doesn’t blame them.
Smith had a rough introduction to the spread during the spring.
Under former coordinator Al Borges, Smith was Auburn’s most productive and most consistent wideout. Over the past two seasons, he had 78 catches for 1,157 yards and nine touchdowns, by far the highest totals for any AU receiver.
Not bad for a former walk-on who broke into the starting lineup as a sophomore and earned a scholarship in 2007.
But making the switch to the spread was easier said than done. Smith struggled to adapt to the new scheme; while reserves Terrell Zachery and James Swinton made moves up the depth chart, Smith was fighting to keep his job.
He rallied in the A-Day game, finishing with four catches for 43 yards. But he was far from content.
“I’ve been telling people, I wasn’t satisfied with myself after the spring,” he said. “I know I can make way more plays than I did in the spring.
“It’s a learning process for me, getting into the offense, going 100 percent. I feel like I’m at that stage where I can get back to how I felt in the last offense, being comfortable like that.”
That’s been Smith’s focus this fall. And it’s paying off.
“I’m definitely more comfortable from where I was in the spring to where I am now,” he said.
If Smith can find the form that made him Auburn’s leading receiver in 2007, Auburn’s offense becomes more dangerous. Whoever wins the competition to become AU’s starting quarterback — sophomore Kodi Burns and junior Chris Todd will compete throughout two-a-days — will need help from Smith, who owns the Tigers’ most trustworthy set of hands.
And Smith, who can’t wait to make a mark in his final collegiate season, knows the spread is just the scheme to help him do it.
“Being in a passing offense, that’s a wide receiver’s dream,” he said. “You can’t ask for much more than that.
“Last year we ran the ball a lot. We passed the ball a little bit. All the receivers are excited about coming out — we know we’re going to have the ball in the air a lot.”
cmickle@oanow.com | 737-2561
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