Auburn football's offensive line improved against Southern Miss, rushing for 343 yards as freshman Wilson Zierer saw time at left guard. Alex Golesh is still evaluating his best five linemen ahead of the Tigers' SEC opener against Florida.
The Auburn Tigers offensive line looked considerably better against Southern Miss.
And I think Wilson Zierer might be one of the biggest reasons why.
After struggling to consistently protect Byrum Brown or establish the running game against Baylor, Auburn made a change up front against Southern Miss. Zierer, who had primarily worked at right tackle throughout the offseason, got an opportunity at left guard.
But I don't think we should immediately declare him Auburn's new starting left guard.
Alex Golesh made it clear afterward that the plan was to play Jacob Strand and then get Zierer some work inside.
"That was the plan was to go with Strand and then get Wilson in there some," Golesh said. "We repped him inside. He got to play some inside, got to play some outside."
Still, the fact that Auburn is willing to move Zierer around tells us something.
The Tigers are trying to find their best five offensive linemen before SEC play begins.
And Zierer is clearly part of that conversation.
"He's going to be a really good player. He already is a good player," Golesh said. "It was good to get him some experience. We'll need him as we keep going here, but we'll continue to evaluate it and figure out who our best five are."
It's always easier to move a tackle inside to the interior offensive line than the other way around, and Zierer is already showing his immense value with his versatility in both areas as a freshman.
Auburn entered the season with plenty of options along the offensive line. But after allowing five sacks and struggling to run the football against Baylor, having options isn't nearly as important as figuring out which combination actually works.
Against Southern Miss, Auburn took a pretty significant step forward.
The Tigers rushed for 343 yards, with Omar Mabson, Jeremiah Cobb, Bryson Washington, and Brown all having success. Golesh thought Auburn did a "solid job" up front and said the rushing performance would have looked even better without the holding penalties.
Of course, Southern Miss isn't Florida.
That's why figuring this out now matters.
Maybe Strand remains Auburn's starting left guard. Maybe Zierer eventually takes that job. Or maybe his ability to play both guard and tackle makes him Auburn's sixth offensive lineman who can step in wherever he's needed.
We don't know that answer yet.
From what I've seen in both the end of Week 1 and against Southern Miss, Zierer gives this team a much needed boost.
Now Auburn has to figure out whether he's part of its best five.
