RB Jarquez Hunter on Auburn's new offense and his personal goals

AUBURN — With Tank Bigsby setting his sights on the NFL Draft and no longer at Auburn, Jarquez Hunter is the veteran in the running back room and knows it.

“I’ll take advantage of this and I’ll go out and work hard so I can maintain this spot,” Hunter told the media on Wednesday afternoon.

Although Hunter played in all 12 games this past season, he has a big opportunity to make an even larger impact on the success of Auburn’s offense this year. The junior finished the 2022 season with 104 attempts, averaging 6.5 yards per carry.

Hugh Freeze has emphasized the fact that there is no depth chart at this point in the year, so Hunter is competing against sophomore Damari Alston and transfer Brian Battie for the role. Alston averaged 6.1 yards per carry on just 14 attempts this past season. At Battie’s previous school, USF, the now junior averaged 6.7 yards per carry and finished with 1,186 total yards.

RELATED: Offensive practice observations from Day 1

Here is everything Hunter had to say about the new offense, along with his personal goals for the spring:

With all of the new coaches on this staff, how is it having a familiar face in Carnell Williams?

“It’s pretty nice to have Cadillac back. I already know how my coach is going to be and me and Cadillac have a pretty good relationship.”

How do you feel about the new offensive style under Coach Montgomery?

“I like it pretty much… It’s fast paced, we’re going to beat a lot of defense with that fast offense. I think Coach Montgomery knows what he’s doing.”

“It’s going to take a little bit for everybody- like quarterback, O-line, the receivers, being all one thing- but we’re going to get it eventually because that’s going to help us out this season.”

How has the competition been in the running back room, especially with there being no depth chart yet?

“It’s really motivating. That means we have to go out there each and every day and compete with each other and try to earn our own spots.”

How has Damari Alston’s game improved since Auburn’s last season?

“I’ve seen him go out there, he’s matured a lot more. He just takes everything in and he goes out there at practice and applies everything that he’s learned.”

What about transfer Brian Battie?

“He brings a lot. He’s going to make us work harder because everybody’s competing for a spot. He comes out and works hard- does what he’s got to do and does everything coach is telling him right… He’s got a good mentality. He’s going to go out there and work hard like all the running backs in the room.”

The kind of running back he is:

“His play style, he’s like a shifty type of guy, gets in and out of holes quick. That type of running back.”

What kind of things are you working to improve during the spring?

“I think I need to improve on my cuts, like jump cuts and in and out, stuff like that. I’m (also) very bad at just keeping the ball in my right arm, so I just need to work, like holding it in both arms.”

How Williams has helped:

“He’s shown me in film, he’s shown me out there at practice, like what I need to do and what I need to practice on and he emphasizes it every day at practice and we work on those things everyday.”

How do you feel about the possibility of you catching the ball more within Auburn’s new offense?

“I’m looking real forward (to it). As a running back, I think catching the ball out of the backfield is a big opportunity, I mean, if you want to play in the NFL, you’ve got to catch balls out of the backfield and I think the way Coach Montgomery runs his offense, I can do that.”

What sticks out to you about Auburn’s new, revamped offensive line?

“They work harder. I see them everyday in the weight room and I see them working hard in the field. I mean, when we’re conditioning and running, they’re going to play their butts off. And then they go out there on the field and they work. They’re much faster, quicker type O-linemen. They can move well.”