Auburn wide receiver Chas Nimrod returns to Neyland Stadium to face his former Tennessee team, but he isn't treating it like a revenge game. After a 33-yard touchdown against Vanderbilt, Nimrod and Byrum Brown will look to spark the Tigers offense in Knoxville.
Auburn Tigers wide receiver Chas Nimrod returning to Tennessee will be a storyline this week. The coaching staff just doesn't want it to become Nimrod's storyline.
Nimrod spent three seasons at Tennessee before eventually transferring to Auburn. Now he's going back to Neyland Stadium wearing a different shade of orange.
But Tigers wide receiver coach Kodi Burns isn't treating this like some kind of revenge game.
"I think it's the next game, right?" Burns said. "I don't know that this is any bigger for Chas than any other game."
That may sound like it's easier said than done, but Nimrod is known for not listening to the hype or any outside noise and really focusing on what's ahead of him inside the program.
When fall camp began, Auburn's offensive coordinator Joel Gordon didn't hesitate when asked about Auburn's wide receiver room. The first player he mentioned was Nimrod, calling him one of the most experienced, physically gifted, and smartest players at the position. But Nimrod wasn't listening to the hype.
"It's cool that they say that, but me personally, I don't like to hear that kind of stuff," Nimrod said. "I like to just stay hungry, unsatisfied."
This situation is slightly different, however, as it is a team that he played for inside the same conference that has former teammates on the other side of the football.
And he'll probably know quite a few people standing on the other sideline.
But Burns' message is pretty simple.
"Don't make it personal," Burns said. "It's really about us. It's not about the opponent. It's always about Auburn, and Auburn is facing Auburn."
And once again, it seems like it's just business as usual for Chas Nimrod. The veteran wide receiver has made it very clear this offseason that outside noise has not affected him, and it sounds like it's doing its job once again.
"I really don't look at it as much more than just another game," said Nimrod. "You could make it out to be bigger than what it is, but there's no bad blood or anything. So I just look at it as another game."
Nimrod helped push the offense to new levels against Vanderbilt last Saturday, scoring the first touchdown of the game on a 33-yard reception from Byrum Brown. He'll look to do it again, especially early in the contest, as the offense still looks for its identity. It might be a little bit sweeter if he can do it against his former team.
