Caleb Wooden on competing to start, playing with his brother, taking note of low outside expectations
AUBURN – Caleb Wooden arrived at Auburn most widely known as Colby Wooden’s brother.
Colby, of course, is Auburn’s all-conference defensive tackle and future NFL draft pick. Caleb is a 6’1, 193-pound safety from Lawrenceville, Georgia’s Archer High School who is ready to make his own mark on the Auburn football program.
“Absolutely I’m trying to earn a starting spot. I know I have a lot of work to do, but I’m gunning for a starting spot,” Wooden told Auburn Live.
The safety position is a competitive group that’s open to opportunities after the departure of Smoke Monday.
“I think my summer has been pretty good,” Wooden said. “Spring, I was just getting here and still figuring out the playbook. The chemistry, especially on defense and my position group, has grown. I’m more comfortable with the guys, the calls, and I know more of the playbook. I’m in a better position than I was in the spring.”
Wooden is competing with returning junior Zion Puckett at the field safety position. Puckett is the presumed starter, and while Wooden is gunning for a starting spot, he’s also grateful to have a veteran to learn from.
“Puck, he knows everything. That’s one of the guys I hang around. He’s smart. He knows what to do, so he’s always going to be in the right position to make a play,” said Wooden.
Bulked up to 193 pounds, it’s the heaviest Wooden’s ever been. Tackling SEC running backs isn’t easy, so Wooden wants to continue to bulk up to 200-plus pounds.
“It feels good,” he said.
The fact that Wooden feels he’s in position for considerable playing time is partly because of the job defensive backs coach Zac Etheridge has done developing the younger Wooden.
“Coach is teaching, trying to make sure all the guys are brought along. He does a great job of explaining stuff. I ask a lot of questions, but he’s just back there teaching and preparing us to be the best secondary in the country.”
Special time for Caleb and Colby Wooden
It’s pretty rare to play football with your brother in college, especially rare to play with your brother at the level of Auburn and the SEC.
Caleb Wooden is certainly going to appreciate the moment.
“It’s been pretty cool. This rarely happens,” he told Auburn Live. “People dream of playing alongside their brother in college. It’s really cool. I have a role model to look up to. To see what it’s taken for him to reach the level he’s at, I have somebody to look up to.”
Colby Wooden was voted second-team All-SEC by the league’s media during SEC Media Days, while Auburn was picked last in the SEC West. Caleb expects more – for both his older brother and this football team.
“I’m expecting an All-American-type of season,” Wooden said. “I feel like he’s put the work in and he’s going to be the best he can be for this team. And it’s not like we’re eyeing the media, but they had us ranked to finish seventh in the west. We definitely paid attention to that.”
Conversations between the two go beyond football. The older Wooden educates his younger brother on the game of football, sure, but also the game of life.
Caleb remembers a conversation in the spring where his older brother walked up to him and told him that if he didn’t improve a particular facet of his game, he wasn’t going to play.
“He’s real with me,” Wooden said. “That’s the kind of real talk that sometimes only brothers can have.”
