Auburn has not officially settled on a starting offensive line, but a leader appears to be emerging at right tackle with less than three weeks to go until the season opener against Washington.
UMass grad transfer Jack Driscoll has been working with the first-team offense at right tackle this week, according to offensive linemen Mike Horton and Prince Tega Wanogho Jr., as he continues to compete with redshirt freshman Austin Troxell for the starting job.
"I'm not a coach, but both players right now are pretty good," Wanogho said. "Jack is pretty good. Troxell is pretty good. We've got Jack right now going with the orange group. Wherever the coaches decide they're going to be in there, they're going to be in there."
Driscoll was seen working with the first-team offense during Monday's viewing window, which marked the last time practice will be open to the media this fall. That was a change from last week, when Troxell was getting the first-team reps in two practices that media got glimpses of.
The latter shouldn't have come as much of a surprise, given Troxell has been around the program for a season, while Driscoll arrived in the summer and was getting acclimated to practices early on.
"I think Jack really just came in and attacked everything," Horton said. "He never had any drop-off or period where he had to adjust. It seems like he's just always here. That's how we all felt. Like even in workouts and everything, he just competes with everybody and he just does what he has to do."
The 6-foot-5, 300-pound Driscoll was described as a "freak athlete" by quarterback Jarrett Stidham this summer, as he impressed his new teammates in the weight room. In just more than a week, that has seemingly translated to the field as the one-time two-star prospect is pushing ahead in the Tigers' right tackle competition.
While Horton said he can't tell if a first-team line has been set, coach Gus Malzahn said he wanted to fast-track the competitions on the line and have them settled after the team's first scrimmage, which took place last Thursday with the battle "very close" between the two players. With time to review film from that 100-play scrimmage, and now three additional practices under their belt, Driscoll seems to be inching toward the starting job -- though Horton said they will have to see what the coaches have planned the rest of the week.
Still, Driscoll has managed to impress with his athleticism, footwork and overall ability, with Wanogho saying teammates refer to the newcomer as a "fake version of Braden Smith," the former Auburn All-America right guard who was drafted in the second round of this spring's NFL Draft.
"He's very athletic and he definitely has some aggression to him, so I like that," Horton said.
Though Driscoll appears to have the edge after nine practices, Troxell will remain in the mix until the position is officially settled. Auburn does not release a depth chart to the public until game week, so the starting job could remain up for grabs until then -- unless Malzahn says otherwise this preseason or offensive line coach J.B. Grimes names a starting five when assistant coaches speak to the media on Thursday.
"Austin Troxell looks good too," Horton said. "Him and Jack both been rotating, so they both look pretty good. I can't really tell a difference between them right now."
Tom Green is an Auburn beat reporter for Alabama Media Group. Follow him on Twitter @Tomas_Verde.from Auburn Sports Impact http://www.al.com/auburnfootball/index.ssf/2018/08/auburn_right_tackle_battle.html
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