Bryan Harsin updates the availability of Tar'Varish Dawson, Landen King
Auburn will enjoy a week off after a tough stretch of games. Head coach Bryan Harsin will want his team to rest before entering the month of November. At least three wins from the last five games will be required of the Tigers to make their ninth straight bowl game.
Wide receiver will be a position of key down the stretch but a couple of guys have not been on the field too much over the past few weeks. Tar’Varsish Dawson and Landen King were early contributors for Auburn but now, only one of them is available.
CLICK HERE to subscribe for FREE to the On3 YouTube channel
Harsin said Dawson has been available to play but has been competing for playing time. Dawson has “been in the mix” when going through practice but has just not gotten the playing time quite yet.
“Dawson has been available,” Harsin said. “I think between him, Jay Fair, and Ja’varrius Johnson — those guys have been competing for those spots. We let those guys compete throughout the week. Tar’Varish has been in the mix. He’s been practicing and all that.”
As for King, Harsin said he is not available moving forward. There was not much comment past that, saying they will continue to work with King in the future.
“Landen, we saw him early and he’s not available right now,” said Harsin. “We’ll see what that looks like moving forward.”
Bryan Harsin gives outlook on wide receiver room
Harsin gave an outlook on the wide receiver room in general, shouting out Omari Kelly for a play he made against Ole Miss this past weekend. Outside of that, Auburn is “still learning on the fly.” The head coach likes the effort but thinks more experience will help the position grow.
“Those guys in that room — we’ve seen some young guys step up, make some plays,” Harsin said. “Omari Kelly made a good catch in the last game, did some good things. But we’re still learning on the fly with a lot of these young guys.
“Feel like some of the effort is there but it’s the experience and understanding of what it takes to play at a high level consistently. Those guys are learning and they’re part of that group that we’re working with every single day to get better.”
Ja’Varrius Johnson is Auburn’s leading receiver at the moment, having 19 receptions for 335 yards and a touchdown. Whether it’s Robby Ashford or TJ Finley at quarterback, the wide receiver room will have to grow into a bigger role for the Tigers’ offense to flourish.