Why Hugh Freeze is OK with little attention Auburn football RBs are getting this offseason

Five players in the SEC tallied at least 1,000 rushing yards in 2023.

Four of the five — Jayden Daniels (LSU), Ray Davis (Kentucky), Cody Schrader (Missouri) and Jaylen Wright (Tennessee) — have moved on to the NFL. The other is former Ole Miss running back Quinshon Judkins , who transferred to Ohio State this offseason following a pair of standout seasons with the Rebels.

Only one other player in the conference reached 900 yards: Auburn football RB Jarquez Hunter, who is returning to the Plains as the SEC's leading rusher for his fourth and final year of eligibility. Hunter was voted to the All-SEC first team at media days earlier this month, and yet it somehow feels as if he's not being talked about enough heading into 2024.

That's more than fine with coach Hugh Freeze.

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“I’m kind of shocked no one is talking about him, and I’m OK with that and I’m sure he doesn’t seek anything like that anyways," Freeze said Thursday in Dallas. "He just wants to know where he can go fishing after workouts. ... I think he’s had one heck of an offseason."

Hunter has averaged 6.2 yards per carry on his 352 career rushing attempts. Amongst players with at least 200 career carries, Hunter's average ranks No. 5 in Auburn history behind Brent Fullwood (7.2), Bo Jackson (6.6), Tommy Lorino (6.5) and Onterio McCalebb (6.4).

Quite the list.

An impressive piece of Hunter's game last season was his ability to generate yards after contact, logging an average of 4.06 yards after a defender first touched him on any given play. That ranked No. 6 amongst SEC running backs who were given 100 or more rushing attempts, according to Pro Football Focus.

Seven SEC players ran the ball more than 150 times last season. None had a better yards-after-contact average than Hunter. Davis was the next closest at 3.81, and Montrell Johnson Jr. at Florida followed him at 3.53. None of the other players — Judkins, Schrader, Georgia's Daijun Edwards and Alabama's Jase McClellan — were over 3.50.

Another notable skill regarding Hunter was his knack for breakaway runs, which are defined as designed rushes that go for more than 15 yards. His breakaway run percentage last season was 44.9% − meaning nearly half of his yardage came via explosive plays − which was good for fourth in the SEC amongst RBs with 100 or more rushes. He also forced 39 missed tackles, which again ranked fourth amongst that same group.

But it's not just Hunter who will be involved at RB for the Tigers. Expect a rotation between himself, junior Damari Alston and sophomore Jeremiah Cobb. Freeze noted Thursday how he may opt to put non-contact jerseys on Hunter and Alston during preseason practices, because he doesn't need to risk injury with two veterans who have already put plenty on tape.

Running back depth is mildly concerning, considering the fact Auburn has just three on scholarship ready to play. Brian Battie is also on scholarship, but he is recovering from being critically injured in a shooting in May.

Alston, who had 320 rushing yards last season, is going to have to take on a bigger role in complementing Hunter.

"When you said his name, the first word that pops that pops into my mind is leader," Freeze said of Alston. "Two times now he's been elected to the culture council, unanimously. He has wisdom for a young man. You combine that with he's a dang good running back, too.

"I love our running back room. I'm fine with nobody talking about them. I really am. Jarquez, Damari and Cobb, I think, are three really, really good backs."

Richard Silva is the Auburn athletics beat writer for the Montgomery Advertiser. He can be reached via email at rsilva@gannett.com or on X, formerly known as Twitter, @rich_silva18.

This article originally appeared on Montgomery Advertiser: Why Hugh Freeze is OK with little attention Auburn football RBs are getting this offseason