Center Kaleb Kim would be lying if he said he wasn’t nervous for his first career start.
“I’m sure people say if you’re not nervous before games, you probably should quit,” Kim said.
Entering a season-opening win over No. 6 Washington, Auburn's offensive line was forced to replace four starters from the previous season. Kim, a redshirt junior, earned his first start against the PAC-12’s leading defense in 2017.
Despite the loss of starters, Auburn’s offensive line allowed two sacks and three tackles for loss while pushing forward for 147 cumulative yards. Quarterback Jarrett Stidham threw for 273 yards and a touchdown on 26-of-36 passing.
Kim said that offensive line coach J.B. Grimes was happy with the way his new combination of linemen pulled out the win.
"We like wins,” Kim said. “A win is a win. Obviously going up against the number six team in the nation is special. We'll enjoy it and get back to work tomorrow."
Despite Auburn’s offensive output, Kim said that the offensive line was prepared for the learning curve.
“It’s never going to be as good as you think it’s going to be,” Kim said. “There’s a lot of room for improvement.”
With a defense that praised itself on overcoming adversity, Auburn’s offensive line was more focused on getting the pieces together.
Through an offense that averaged 3.3 yards per carry, Auburn’s line pushed forward for a go-ahead touchdown with 6:15 remaining with Kim at the forefront.
Defensive back Jamel Dean said he was impressed by the team’s ability to come together at the right time.
“We came together as one unit because we knew we struggled to finish last season,” Dean said. “We knew we already had the mindset that we had to win close games.”
Even with a win at Mercedes-Benz Stadium, Kim said the offensive line is prepared to fix key mistakes moving forward.
"We'll get back to the drawing board and figure it out and move forward from there,” Kim said.
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