We’re told to believe a lot during each preseason of college football.
Granted, there’s not much else to do than talk while waiting on actual gridiron action to return. Coaches across the country expect us to believe assessments of their own players — which are hardly ever negative — and trust that their teams are going to make waves across the college football landscape.
At Auburn’s preseason fall camp, specifically, we were informed by several coaches and players that tight end Sal Cannella has taken on a bigger role and improved from last season in the absence of injured receivers Will Hastings and Eli Stove.
They weren’t bluffing.
It may have been just one catch, but Cannella’s 10-yard touchdown grab on Auburn’s first drive could be called the difference, score-wise, in the Tigers’ 21-16 win over Washington on Saturday in Atlanta.
The score came on an endzone fade to the near sideline. Cannella looked every bit the part of a veteran receiver with his route running, deceiving preseason All-Pac-12 first-team cornerback Jordan Miller with a stunt-and-go to the corner of the endzone.
Jarrett Stidham’s pass was placed perfectly and Cannella went all out for the catch, displaying his striking vertical and landing on his back.
“It was a point of emphasis this summer for me and the other bigger receivers working with the quarterbacks in the red zone,” Cannella said. “We worked on specific routes every day for three months. It’s nice to finally pay off, honestly.”
In fall camp, teammates and coaches called the former No. 1 JUCO tight end a “mismatch problem.” Gus Malzahn added some merit to those comments by listing Cannella as the starter at slot receiver, the position left vacant by Hastings’ injury, on the team’s first depth chart last Tuesday.
As big-bodied and as athletically gifted as Cannella has always been, the one-time LSU Tiger experienced a polarizing first season at Auburn in 2017. He caught just three of his eight targets for 31 yards, and none in the last five games of the year, a tremendous downgrade from his seven touchdowns and 15 yards per catch average at Scottsdale (Ariz.) Community College in 2016.
“It was different. Coming up from a junior college, there’s no media,” Cannella said. “I see the [public comments]. I talk to my family and friends and try to not let it affect me. But it did affect me a little bit. At that point I knew I had to go back to what I knew, which is working.
“That’s how I got to Auburn: putting extra hours in, more than anybody. I knew I had good hands.”
Despite the on-field disappointments last season, Cannella remained a popular player among Tiger faithful. Small contingents of the Auburn student section wore his No. 80 jersey with "Cannella" on the back. Auburn blogs and internet celebrities gushed over his Fabio-like hair. Fans knew a 6-foot-5, 232-pound athletic anomaly wouldn’t be kept down for long.
Sal Cannella (80) signs autographs at Auburn Fan Day on Aug. 11, 2018, in Auburn, Ala.
While his now-signature Chanel gold chain glistened in the light of the TV cameras absent in Arizona, the starting wide receiver radiated that same confidence.
“I knew I was about to score,” Cannella said of his touchdown. “I had a lot of confidence in myself. Personally, I feel like I can go up against anybody. That’s just how I am. Coming from high school and junior college and here, that’s been my thing. I can go up and get it. And so I had all the confidence in the world.
“I knew it was about to happen. I even told my friends during the week. We were doing the walkthrough and they were calling that play, and I was like, ‘This is a guaranteed 6. Guaranteed 6.’”
Sal Cannella (80) beats Jordan Miller (23) for a touchdown in the first half.
Cannella is backed up by true freshman Matthew Hill in the slot. Hill saw time as a blocker and a side-to-side threat at flanker but came away with no receptions. His fellow first-year wideouts — Anthony Schwartz, Seth Williams and Shedrick Jackson — all earned playing time as well, with Williams making the only contribution in the box score with two catches for 37 yards.
Davis and H-back Chandler Cox tied for the yardage lead with 52 receiving yards apiece. Davis hauled in seven passes, putting him on pace to break his Auburn receptions record of 84 last season. Stidham finished 22-for-36 for 273 yards and the aforementioned touchdown for his third most pass attempts as a Tiger (37 vs. Mercer, 43 vs. UCF).
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Nathan King, senior in journalism with a minor in business, is The Plainsman's sports editor.
