2012 Auburn Tigers football team

The 2012 Auburn Tigers football team represented Auburn University in the 2012 NCAA Division I FBS football season. The team was coached by Gene Chizik, who was in his fourth season with Auburn. The Tigers played their home games at Jordan–Hare Stadium in Auburn, Alabama, and competed in the Western Division of the Southeastern Conference (SEC).

On November 25, 2012, Auburn Athletic Director Jay Jacobs fired head coach Gene Chizik and all of the assistant coaches after finishing the season 3–9 overall with a 0–8 record in Southeastern Conference play, the programs worst season in 60 years.

Previous Season
Auburn finished 2011 with a record of 8–5 (4–4 SEC) and won the Chick-fil-A Bowl over Virginia 43–24. During the month leading up to the bowl game defensive coordinator Ted Roof resigned to take a similar position at Central Florida before ultimately becoming the defensive coordinator at Penn State, and offensive coordinator Gus Malzahn resigned to become the head coach at Arkansas State, but remained with the Tigers through the bowl game. Star running back Michael Dyer was released from his scholarship and followed Malzahn to Arkansas State after violating undisclosed team rules prior to the bowl game.

Forthcoming Season
A shooting at an off campus party took the lives of former players Ed Christian and LaDarius Phillips on June 9 after they had planned to transfer. Current Offensive Guard Eric Mack was also shot but survived, he remains on the team, but has not participated in summer drills. Freshman QB Zeke Pike was arrested for public intoxication and was dismissed from the team. Pike will transfer to Louisville. Other transfers included CB Jonathan Rose and OG Thomas O'Reilly. DE Joel Bonomolo quit the team and linebacker Jawara White suffered a career ending neck injury. Transfers Corey Grant, Mike Blakely and Melvin Ray will be eligible to play this upcoming season.

New Coordinators
The Tigers played the 2012 season with new coordinators on both offense and defense. On offense, Scot Loeffler took control. Loeffler was previously the offensive coordinator at Temple University, and has served stints as an assistant coach at Michigan, Florida and the Detroit Lions. While serving as a graduate assistant coach at Michigan, Loeffler tutored future New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady.

The new Auburn defensive coordinator was Brian VanGorder, who most recently served in a similar capacity with the Atlanta Falcons. Also new to the Tigers defensive coaching staff is Willie Martinez, who will coach defensive backs. Martinez was most recently an assistant coach at Oklahoma. VanGorder and Martinez previously coached together at Georgia in the early 2000s. The Tigers switched to a more aggressive blitzing scheme on defense. The presence of VanGorder on the Tigers’ coaching staff paid dividends in recruiting, as they secured commitments from several high profile recruits for the 2013 class.

Key Losses

 * QB Barrett Trotter
 * RB Michael Dyer
 * WR Quindarrius Carr
 * LT A.J. Greene
 * RT Brandon Mosely
 * LB Eltoro Freeman
 * FS Neiko Thorpe
 * HC Gene Chizik

Key Returners

 * QB Kiehl Frazier
 * QB Clint Moseley
 * RB Onterio McCalebb
 * RB Tre Mason
 * WR Emory Blake
 * TE Philip Lutzenkirchen
 * C Reese Dismukes
 * LE Corey Lemonier
 * LE Craig Sanders
 * LE LaDarius Owens
 * RE Dee Ford
 * RE Nosa Equae
 * DT Jeff Whitaker
 * LB Daren Bates
 * CB Chris Davis
 * CB T'Sharvin Bell
 * P Steven Clark
 * K Cody Parkey

Depth Chart
Offense

Quarterbacks


 * 10 Kiehl Frazier So 6'2 228
 * 15 Clint Moseley Jr 6'4 233
 * 12 Jonathan Wallace Fr 6'2 205

Running Backs


 * 23 Onterio McCalebb Sr 5'11 168
 * 21 Tre Mason So 5'10 205
 * 20 Corey Grant So 5'9 203
 * 22 Mike Blakely RFr 5'9 206

Fullbacks


 * 35 Jay Prosch Jr 6'0 253
 * 48 Blake Burgess Jr 6'2 255

 Slot Receivers


 * 1 Trovon Reed So 6'0 188
 * 4 Quan Bray So 5'10 175
 * 8 Anthony Morgan Sr 5'9 204

 Wide Receiver


 * 80 Emory Blake Sr 6'2 197
 * 13 Sammie Coates RFr 6'3 210
 * 89 Jaylon Denson So 6'3 208
 * 6 Ricardo Louis Fr 6'2 210

Wide Receiver


 * 85 Travante Stallworth Sr 5'9 195
 * 82 Melvin Ray Fr 6'4 205
 * 87 JaQuay Williams Fr 6'4 201

Tight End


 * 43 Philip Lutzenkirchen Sr 6'4 260
 * 11 Brandon Fulse So 6'5 250
 * 81 CJ Uzomah So 6'4 246 (was the wildcat last year)
 * 46 Ricky Parks Fr 6'3 237
 * 84 Darrien Hutcherson Fr 6'8 272

 Left Tackle


 * 73 Greg Robinson RFr 6'4 312
 * 72 Shon Coleman RFR 6'6 295
 * 77 Shane Callahan Fr 6'6 285

 Left Guard 


 * 71 John Sullen Sr 6'6 336
 * 63 Alex Kozan Fr 6'4 295
 * 76 Jordan Diamond Fr 6'5 295

Center


 * 50 Reese Dismukes So 6'3 305
 * 65 Tunde Fariyike So 6'3 302

Right Guard


 * 75 Christian Westerman RFr 6'3 310
 * 60 Eric Mack So 6'3 315
 * 70 Robert Leff Fr 6'7 275

 Right Tackle


 * 62 Chad Slade So 6'5 325
 * 51 Patrick Miller Fr 6'7 275
 * 56 Avery Young Fr 6'6 275
 * 74 Will Adams Fr 6'8 285

Defense

Left End


 * 55 Corey Lemonier Jr 6'4 250
 * 13 Craig Sanders Jr 6'4 266
 * 10 Ladarius Owens So 6'2 257
 * 42 Gimel President Fr 6'4 245

Defensive Tackle


 * 54 Jeff Whitaker Jr 6'5 305
 * 92 Ken Carter Jr 6'4 297
 * 74 Jamar Travis Sr 6'0 294
 * 91 Tyler Nero Fr 6'2 291

Defensive Tackle


 * 90 Gabe Wright So 6'3 305
 * 98 Angelo Blackson So 6'5 325
 * 95 Devaunte Singler So 6'5 295
 * 93 JaBrain Niles RFr 6'2 297

Right End


 * 95 Dee Ford Jr 6'2 245
 * 94 Nosa Equae Jr 6'3 263
 * 52 Justin Delaine So 6'5 250
 * 45 Keymiya Harrell RFr 6'5 260

 Strong Side Linebacker


 * 17 Kris Frost RFr 6'2 233
 * 35 Jonathan Evans 5'11 230
 * 44 Anthony Swain 6'2 245

 Middle Linebacker


 * 5 Jake Holland  Jr 6'1 238
 * 33 Chris Landrum RFr 6'3 233
 * 30 Cassanova McKinzy Fr 6'4 237

 Weak Side Linebacker


 * 25 Daren Bates Sr 5'11 225
 * 26 Justin Garrett So 6'2 206
 * 58 Ashton Richardson Sr 6'1 218
 * 18 Javiere Mitchell Fr 6'2 197

 Left Corner Back


 * 11 Chris Davis Jr 5'10 184
 * 6 Jonathan Mincy So 5'10 188
 * 1 Josh Hoseley Fr 5'9 175
 * 21 Jonathan Jones Fr 5'10 185

 Free Saftey 


 * 14 Enrique Florence So 6'1 185
 * 9 Jermaine Whitehead So 5'11 195
 * 31 Trent Fisher So 6'1 187

 Strong Saftey 


 * 12 DeMutruce McNeal Jr 6'2 193
 * 24 Ryan Smith Jr 6'2 208
 * 16 Ikeem Means Sr 6'0 205

 Right Corner Back


 * 22 T'Sharvin Bell Sr 6'0 182
 * 27 Robensen Theirize So 5'8 203
 * 19 Ryan White Jr 5'11 195
 * 28 TJ Davis Fr 6'1 190

Special Teams


 * K 36 Cody Parkey Jr 6'1 175
 * P 30 Steven Clarke Jr 6'5 228
 * LS 59 Jason Lembke Jr 6'2 242
 * H 19 Ryan White Jr 5'11 195
 * LS 61 C.T. Moorman Fr 6'1 220


 * PR 20 Corey Grant So 5'9 203
 * KR 20 Corey Grant So 5'9 203
 * KR 4 Quan Bray   So 5'10 175

Team Captains


 * Emory Blake
 * Philip Lutzenkirchen
 * Corey Lemonier

Award Finalist


 * Maxwell Award- Onterio McCalebb
 * Doak Walker Award- Onterio McCalebb
 * Paul Hornung Award-Onterio McCalebb
 * Johnny Rodgers Award-Onterio McCalebb
 * Fred Biletnikoff Award- Emory Blake
 * John Mackey Award-Philip Lutzenkirchen
 * Dave Rimington Trophy- Reese Dismukes
 * Chuck Bednarik Award- Corey Lemonier
 * Bronko Nagurski Trophy-Corey Lemonier
 * Ted Hendricks Award-Corey Lemonier
 * Lombardi Award-Corey Lemonier
 * Butkus Award-Daren Bates
 * Lou Groza Award-Cody Parkey
 * Ray Guy Award- Steven Clarke (was finalist last year)

Recruiting Class
The main focus in offseason recruiting was adding new offensive linemen. The Tigers signed seven, led by tackles Avery Young and Jordan Diamond, who were both rated five stars by Scouts.com. Parade All-American Shane Callahan and Patrick Miller, both rated as four star recruits, also highlight the recruiting class, as do tackle Will Adams and guard Robert Leff. The final signee to Auburn’s impressive class of offensive linemen is Alex Kozan, who signed with the Tigers three weeks after the National Signing Day. In addition, 2010 signee Shon Coleman has been cleared to play after being cured of acute leukemia. He will have four years of eligibility remaining.

The only high school running back signed was Jovon Robinson; however, he has been unable to practice until potential irregularities in his high school transcripts are resolved. Three running backs have transferred to the Tigers from other programs: Mike Blakely (Florida), Corey Grant (Alabama) and fullback Jay Prosch (Illinois).

The Tigers added two four-star recruits at wide receiver. Ricardo Louis signed with Auburn, picking the Tigers over Florida State; also, the Tigers beat out Georgia Tech for the services of JaQuay Williams. In addition, Melvin Ray transferred from Alabama and will be eligible for the 2013 season. The Tigers also signed two tight ends: highly regarded Ricky Parks and Darrien Hutchinson, who is 6’8” and weighs 272 pounds.

On defense Auburn concentrated on the secondary, picking up four-star recruit Josh Hosely as well as T.J. Davis and Jonathan Jones. Defensive line signees include Parade All-American Gimel President and four-star recruit Tyler Nero, who has been timed running a 40-yard dash in 4.62 seconds. Linebackers Cassanova McKinzy and Javier Mitchell round out the class.

Schedule

 * Schedule Source: