Last Saturday, JaTarvious "Boobee" Whitlow called it "hurricane and earthquake." Tuesday, Kam Martin said it was "thunder and lightning."
However you spin the moniker for Auburn's top two running backs, both serve well to describe the tandem's skillsets shown in the Tigers' season-opening victory over then-No. 6 Washington in Atlanta.
Martin, Auburn's leading returning rusher from last year at 753 yards off 74 attempts, was considered a fleet-footed threat the past two seasons behind SEC leading rushers Kerryon Johnson (2017) and Kamryn Pettway (2016). Martin admitted that Auburn's coaches advised him to add power in the offseason to carry the workload of an every-down SEC back.
So the junior added 15 pounds to crack 200 on the scale, thanks in large part to his summer diet (protein shakes and sandwiches before bed) and commitment to the weight room.
That bulk-up allowed Martin to shoulder the responsibility of a career-high 27 touches against the Huskies for 112 total yards. His tendency to bounce outside remained, but Gus Malzahn's takeaway from Saturday echoed something Auburn coaches touched on previously in the offseason: Martin's intangible veteran presence.
Kam Martin (9) celebreates with the Old Leather Helmet after winning the Chick-fil-A Kickoff Gam at Mercedes-Benz Stadium, Saturday, September 1, 2018, in Atlanta. (Paul Abell via Abell Images for Chick-fil-A Kickoff)
"Kam Martin, what you have, is a veteran," Malzahn said Tuesday. "Kam Martin, he would press the line of scrimmage and cut back. He knows all the little things. He made a couple things bounce to the outside. Then the big fourth-and-1 run, I thought was really good, too. He's a veteran guy.
"He gives you kinda a calming experience out there when he's out there. I thought he did a really good job running, and then he did a really good job protecting the football."
While Auburn's offense revolved heavily around Jarrett Stidham's third-most attempts as a Tiger (36), Martin still out-rushed preseason AP All-American Myles Gaskin (80 yards on 22 caries vs. 75 yards on 17 carries) against Washington's stingy unit, which ranked No. 2 in the nation in rush defense last season.
But if Auburn is going to beat the likes of No. 11 LSU, No. 18 Mississippi State, No. 3 Georgia and No. 1 Alabama during its painful SEC gauntlet, the ground game will need to continually improve.
"Really, what stood out to me is we've got to run the football better," Malzahn said. Give Washington credit. Great run defense. But we need to improve in that area."
As Martin's more physical counterpart, Whitlow rushed for only 28 yards on eight carries. But half of those yards came on two of the most clutch plays of the top-10 showdown.
On a 10-yard touchdown heard 'round The Plains, Whitlow galloped through a huge opening created by center Kaleb Kim's effort at the line of scrimmage and right guard Marquel Harrell's block at the second level of the defense.
At the goal-line, the redshirt freshman Whitlow, playing in his first college football game, met 2017 All-Pac-12 second-teamer Jojo McIntosh, who "Boobee" proceeded to bounce off, then bull over for the go-ahead score.
"Coach just called my name, and I knew that it was a big play," Whitlow said. "I knew that we needed to score on that down, other than just getting a first down. I had to go on and just run with everything I had in me. I couldn't go down. I had to get to the end zone."
“Man, Boobee’s a baller," Martin said. "That was his first college game. He’s just going to get better. I feel like both of us, we’re going to be a great one-two punch. Boobee brings a lot of thunder. I’m going to bring a lot of lightning to the game."
After Auburn forced a turnover on downs with a 4th-and-17 all-out blitz of Jake Browning on the next possession, the Tigers found themselves one first down away from breaking their two-game skid in Atlanta.
Malzahn called Whitlow's number again. Facing a 3rd-and-2, Whitlow took the direct snap in the Wildcat. He was hit short of the line to gain, then extended to the marker with another powerful second effort. McIntosh had to bring him down.
"It's a blessing that they can trust me now," Whitlow said. "I'm more fluent in the offense now. You can put me in the mix now, and I'm not going to fail you. I'm going to show you that I need to be in right here.
"Me and Kam Martin, we're going to go on. Everybody said Thunder and Lightning. Like I told him, we're Hurricane and Earthquake. That's how we're going."
The Tiger tandem might see bigger running lanes this Saturday against FCS Alabama State. The only other true running back to receive a carry against the Huskies was true freshman Shaun Shivers. That should change in Auburn's home opener.
The Hornets allowed 273 rushing yards in a season-opening overtime win over Tuskegee. Auburn has sleep-walked through two of its past three FCS contests, committing five turnovers last season in a 24-10 win over Mercer and taking Jacksonville State to overtime in a 27-20 victory in 2015.
However, the 2016 blasting of Alabama A&M, 55-0, allowed a true freshman Martin to tease the future of Auburn's running game with a 176-yard, two-touchdown performance.
Youngsters like Shivers, whose 7-yard run against Washington featured a broken tackle and quick juke move to net a first down, and true freshman Asa Martin could use the playing time against ASU to do the same and make good on their four-star credentials.
"He's a guy that definitely will be in the mix more throughout the season as long as he keeps progressing in practice," Malzahn said of Asa Martin. "Definitely, he has a chance to play."
Auburn, which vaulted two spots up to No. 7 in Tuesday's AP Poll, will kickoff its first-ever gridiron matchup with Alabama State at 6:30 p.m. CST, broadcast on SEC Network alternate programming.
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Nathan King, senior in journalism with a minor in business, is The Plainsman's sports editor.
