The grind of the SEC schedule begins to take its toll on most teams around the conference this time of year, and Auburn is no exception.
The Tigers are dealing with multiple injuries, especially on defense, as they head into their contest against Georgia this Saturday.
The worst of Auburn’s injuries was that of Jeremiah Dinson, who suffered several injuries on one play late in the third quarter against Texas A&M.
“(Dinson is) a wonderful person,” said coach Gus Malzahn. “He’s always got a smile on his face. … He works extremely hard. He really had a big role on special teams. The last two games he was coming on, really playing a lot of snaps on defense. Just a wonderful person, so I’m real disappointed for him.”
While Dinson was in pursuit of Texas A&M quarterback Kyler Murray on 1st-and-goal, he was blindsided by A&M receiver Ricky Seals-Jones. Seals-Jones was originally flagged for targeting on the play, but the call was overturned upon review. Malzahn and defensive coordinator Will Muschamp refused to comment on the penalty.
Dinson suffered three torn ligaments in his right knee on the play, and the knee and his shoulder were dislocated.
“He’s done an outstanding job for us on special teams and defense, so that’s a big blow for us,” Malzahn said. “We’ll definitely be thinking about him.”
Even before it suffered a blow on the field against Texas A&M, the Auburn secondary entered the game a man down.
Tray Matthews traveled with the team to College Station but did not dress out. The sophomore is dealing with an ankle injury, but Muschamp expects the safety to play when the Bulldogs, Matthews’ former team, roll into town on Saturday.
“I think he’ll be fine this week,” Muschamp said. “We tried his ankle last week, and we felt like it would get better as the week went and it did not. … We’ll see how it goes through the week.”
With two members of the secondary injured, Auburn counted on young players such as Nick Ruffin and Stephen Roberts to play more snaps at safety.
Ruffin received the start in place of Matthews and recorded six tackles, while Roberts had three tackles in his increased playing time.
“I’m very pleased with their performance,” Muschamp said. “They both stepped up and made some nice plays, and certainly they’re capable of that and doing better.”
Auburn is also dealing with an injury on the defensive line, where Devaroe Lawrence has been dealing with an ankle injury.
Though the injury has not forced Lawrence to miss any games, but Muschamp believes the injury has hampered the junior defensive tackle.
“I think he’s progressed each week and done very well,” Muschamp said. “But his ankle has bothered him.”
Despite the injuries, Auburn will not change its approach to practice as the Tigers prepare to face Georgia at 11 a.m. Saturday.
“You just got to adjust,” Malzahn said. “This time of year, you’re kind of used to not having certain guys or certain guys banged up. You just got to do the best you can as far as preparation with the guys that are going to get the reps.”
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