Bryan Harsin reveals what went into moving Jeremiah Wright back to offense
Auburn lineman Jeremiah Wright has gone back and forth between playing offensive and defensive line for the Tigers. His most recent switch was back to the offensive side of the ball during fall camp, a decision that head coach Bryan Harsin said was entirely made by Wright.
“Jeremiah was a defensive lineman when we came here, we wanted to move him to o-line, he wanted to move back to d-line, then he wanted to move back to o-line. Jeremiah is one of my favorite guys,” Harsin said.
“I love him. I think he’s a phenomenal person. I know he can help us and he just sees it, he sees that maybe I can go back to o-line and make a bigger impact there and I do think that’s the position that fits him.”
Harsin also elaborated on how he’s open to his players switching positions, and that his top priority is their eagerness to be on the field.
“But also I want guys to want to be on the field, I don’t want to force a guy into a position they don’t want to play. I just want guys to love what they’re doing and play the position that they feel like they can and he did a good job on the d-line. But then he was looking at it going, ‘hey I think I might be able to come back here, and help us,'” Harsin said.
Wright put the team first in his decision to move to the offensive line, which Harsin recognized him for and spoke on the big impact he’ll have in his new role.
“So to me, that’s a really mature decision on his part to go well I tried that and I think I can help our team better and I think I can contribute here,” he continued. “So I trust him and believe in him and if that’s what he wants to do then we’ll move him back there and he’s going to help us on the o-line, there’s no doubt about it. He’ll play. He’ll help us. We’ll see where he’s at in a couple weeks. He’s got a few more weeks to kind of get in there and get himself a little bit more in the groove on the offense but he’s gonna help us and he’ll play.”
Auburn’s defensive front has been a constant strength of their team for years now, and hopefully for them, Wright’s switch can bring that same strength to the Tiger’s offensive front this upcoming season.