Auburn wide receiver Sammie Coates' left knee appeared to be feeling a lot better in Saturday night's 41-7 win over LSU at Jordan-Hare Stadium, or he was at least good at not showing the pain,.
"I think he is getting healthier each week," head coach Gus Malzahn said. "He made some good plays tonight."
Coates injured his left knee in the Tigers' 45-21 victory against Arkansas in the season opener, and is just taking it day by day.
It was an impressive overall performance from Auburn, but the junior stood out with a big play early.
Coates started working on his SEC West rivals early in the first quarter when he caught a 54-yard touchdown pass in tight coverage from senior quarterback Nick Marshall.
"He made an unbelievable catch," Malzahn said. "I mean that was really nice. Really used his body well, came down with it. That got us going right there."
Coates accredited the catch to the offensive line and Marshall throwing a good pass.
Marshall was not only quarterback for the Tigers that got to connect with the athletic reciever.
Sophomore quarterback Jeremy Johnson came in late in the first quarter and tossed a 38 yarder to him. A play that eventually turned into a touchdown after Marshall took it to the end zone to improve the Tigers lead to 17-0.
"Those two big ones really helped get us some momentum," Malzahn said.
Coates managed to rack up over 100 yards before the first half was over, contributing to an impressive half for the Tigers.
The 29-yard reception by Coates at the end of the half assured fans that the plays were not just glimpses of last season's player.
The junior had 144 yards receiving by the end of the third quarter after 21-yard completion with less than 10 minutes remaining in the quarter, a statistic that he finished the game with.
"I've been here going on four years and this is the first time we beat LSU," Coates said. "And it is great to be at home and beat them. It's just a big win for us all around."
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