Coffee and Magnolia: 14 April 2015

BASEBALL

The Tigers have a pair of midweek games against in-state competition, this week. They'll be facing Alabama State and Alabama A&M. We'll have more information on those games and all of the other big things happening this weekend in town around noon today. There's a LOT going on in Auburn this weekend.

Freshman Keegan Thompson was named SEC Pitcher of the Week for his complete game 6-1 victory over LSU. That is an honor well deserved. Keegan Thompson is masterful on the mound and is bound for big things down the road.

OTHER

Two Auburn athletes - diver Fraser McKean and volleyball player Camila Jersonsky are up for the H. Boyd McWhorter Scholar-Athlete Post Graduation Scholarship. Auburn has put forth their names for the SEC's award for the top male and female scholar athletes.

FOOTBALL

A-Day will look the same this season as it has the past two seasons under Gus Malzahn. That means you'll see the offense on one side of the field, the defense on the other side of the field, and you may have players who swap from a blue to a white jersey or vice versa at times. It won't be a true game, but rather a scrimmage played as one. I'm perfectly fine with that, personally. It gives both fans and coaches what they want.

Senior Cassanova McKinzy said it was a no-brainer to come back for his senior season when he learned Will Muschamp would be the new defensive coordinator.

The Montgomery Advertiser profiles sophomore Nick Ruffin and his moves on the depth chart this spring. Ruffin was getting reps at the star position last fall, but didn't see the field too much. He did not play in the Tigers' final two games of 2014. Given the depth issues in Auburn's secondary right now, he'll have a good chance to make something of himself this fall.

Jovon Robinson is feeling the pressure of expectations as he prepares for the upcoming football season. Auburn fans expect a lot of the Tigers' running backs every season. It comes with being called "Running Back U."

Phillip Marshall talks about how Auburn loves to take high school quarterbacks and turn them into receivers. The Tigers have a long history of doing that, and some of the best Auburn receivers (and even the receivers coach) were former quarterbacks in some capacity.

The initial ESPN article on the top recruiters under 40 is behind their "Insider" paywall, but fortunately, AL.com sums up the bit that covers Auburn defensive backs coach Travaris Robinson. Robinson's recruiting prowess has already been proven for Auburn fans in the 2015 signing class. Without him, it's doubtful the Tigers pull any of the big-time recruits from south Florida that joined this season's class.

If you do have ESPN Insider, you can check out their top coaches under 50 list and see that Auburn's Gus Malzahn is #2.

On the recruiting front, 247Sports has a running list of the recruits who are planning on attending A-Day. Florida State is coming hard after 5* WR Nate Craig-Myers, and the Tigers are doing all they can to hold on to him. I'm trying not to even think about that situation. It's a long 9 months between now and signing day 2016.