Bryan Harsin explains how Auburn's offensive linemen are 'getting better' this spring

One of the weaknesses in the Auburn Tigers program over the past few seasons has been the offensive line. Not being able to protect former quarterback Bo Nix over the past three years has been an issue and head coach Bryan Harsin is on a mission to fix it for the upcoming 2022 season.

After a recent spring practice, Harsin gave an update on how the unit is progressing early on. He said the offensive line is “getting better,” saying getting a few big names back from injury will certainly help with depth and build the group up overall.

“Well, they’re getting better,” Harsin said. “That’s the one thing. The guys that have been the backups, you don’t get many reps and the more reps you get, the better you get. You just got more on tape, you learn more, you get coached more, you get feedback. So those guys are improving and then you go back and then some of those guys that have played. We talked about Brandon Council, (Nick) Brahms. They’ve gotten reps so they got to get back in the mix in the summertime so that will be a big thing for them. Some of those guys that have played a little bit, some of those guys that haven’t played at all, they’re getting reps. So they’re just getting coached up and it’s also, the attention is one them. They watch themselves on film and they get to see, ‘alright what did I do well, what did I do poorly, what am I going to do next practice?’

“From that standpoint, assuming that those guys that have played come back and they improve and they’re competing with the guys right now, then we have better depth. You have more competition, better depth, which is going to create, hopefully, better performance with those guys up front.”

Harsin wrapped up by saying he is excited to see how the offensive line finishes out the spring, wanting see them improve from top to bottom. Position coach Will Friend has a big task in front of him, needing to build a capable five to block for whoever wins the starting job this fall.

“But the O-Line, that’s really going to be interesting to see as we finish out spring,” said Harsin. “How those guys improve, how those guys come back, and what it looks like going into the summer and then what Coach Friend is going to do with those guys.”

Even with the questions, Bryan Harsin will have one of the most experienced offensive lines in the SEC. Brahms and Council, the two guys the head coach mentioned as returning from an injury, are both super seniors with the former entering his seventh college football season. Having to face SEC defensive lines on a weekly basis, the offensive line will have a major impact on how Auburn performs this season.