Can young Powell Gordon help Auburn at the ’Jack’ position?
AUBURN – Several linebackers have earned the trust of new linebacker coach Josh Aldridge and defensive coordinator Ron Roberts during the spring. Powell Gordon, a redshirt freshman linebacker, is starting to earn praise in some unique ways.
On Tuesday, Roberts mentioned Gordon as someone who was probably behind some of the veteran guys. He did however leave the door open for a possible position change for Gordon.
“Powell, same thing, he’s athletic, probably looks his best when he’s on the edge I think he’s more comfortable because it’s where he was at in high school,” Roberts said. “He’s a young guy, probably behind a veteran group of linebackers. That room is a little older.”
Will Gordon eventually move to Jack linebacker and play on the edge, or at least work at both Jack and inside linebacker?
“We did have a discussion, yes,” Roberts said.
Riley on Gordon
It seems as though that discussion spilled over to current linebackers on the team, and possibly even to Gordon himself.
Cam Riley, a junior linebacker, said he spoke with Roberts about that possibility for Gordon. It’s an idea Riley loves.
“He (Roberts) just told me yesterday,” Riley said on Wednesday. “I would like to actually see him down there though. I feel like he would do a pretty good job at edge. I feel like if he could get a little more weight on him, he would possibly be a great edge for us.
Riley described Gordon making a play in Friday’s scrimmage that he had never seen before. It seems as though Gordon surprised him with some athleticism he had not seen until Gordon was on a blitz in a live situation.
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“Powell, he’s grown tremendously, too,” Riley said about Gordon. “I actually saw a play during the scrimmage last week. I can’t describe it, it was some move he did I had never seen before. Once I saw that, I’ve been trying to tell coach, we need Powell on the edge. He would make every play. After the play I saw him make, I was like yeah, we need him down there.”
Gordon’s history as an edge player
Gordon impressed as an edge rusher on the high school level. He disrupted plays on a consistent basis when pinning his ears back and getting after the quarterback. He contributed 14 sacks to a State Championship run for Auburn High School as a junior. He had similar numbers as a senior as well.
Auburn Live scouted him in person when Auburn High took on national high school power IMG Academy. On the opening play of the game, Gordon got the better of now Alabama offensive guard Tyler Booker, stripped the ball from the quarterback, and gave his team the ball in the red zone.
On the very next play, Gordon lined up at tight end on offense, ran a corner route and made a touchdown grab while falling down.
Now, there are talks to get Gordon back down on the edge where he has made so many plays in his previous football career.
Here’s what we wrote about Gordon when he committed to Auburn on August 7, 2021.
Gordon is a menace as an edge rusher. Playing mostly on the edge he was able to tally 88 total tackles, 14 sacks, and 32 tackles for loss. When he’s not filling up the stat sheet, he is usually causing problems for opposing quarterbacks. He shows excellent bend and good, quick hips when taking on blocks.
