Just In: A brilliant head coach Hugh Freeze has abruptly departs from Auburn Tigers Amid issues due to…

Just In: A brilliant head coach Hugh Freeze has abruptly departs from Auburn Tigers Amid issues due to…

Auburn’s season-opening win over Baylor calmed a lot of concerns, but the offensive success came primarily on the ground. With 307 rushing yards and just 108 passing yards, there was relief, but questions remained.

What can Jackson Arnold bring as a passer? Will Auburn’s receivers live up to the hype? Can the offensive line hold up in pass protection?

The Tigers made an effort to throw the ball early and often against Ball State and were successful. Arnold was efficient, completing 24 of his 28 passes for 251 yards and three touchdowns, but there were still issues in protection and not a lot of explosive pass plays.

“Offensively, I did not think we strained very well upfront,” Freeze said. “It’s hard to sit here and act like we weren’t solid, but there are things on the film that I think we need to improve.”

Despite the issues, there was more balance than what Auburn showed against Baylor. The Tigers rushed for 224 yards and threw for 271. Four different receivers caught at least four passes, led by arguably the two biggest stars: Cam Coleman and Eric Singleton Jr.

“It wasn’t a really clean night, but I feel like we executed well,” Singleton said after the game. “We’ve got to watch film, come back and clean some things up. I think we’ll be firing on all cylinders.”

Auburn didn’t hit on many explosive plays through the air, but those were hard to come by against a Ball State defense that liked to play a lot of quarters coverage. It was similar to Baylor, who played with two high safeties for most of the game, forcing Auburn to run the ball.