Jarquez Hunter poised for breakout season: 'The best that I've coached'
AUBURN — Hugh Freeze barely hesitated when recently asked about Auburn running back Jarquez Hunter.
“I think Jarquez is special, I do. I think he’s probably the best running back I’ve ever coached, truthfully,” Freeze said leading into the final week of spring camp. “I think he’s a really, really good running back.”
While at Ole Miss, Freeze coached Jaylen Walton, who rushed for 1,957 yards and 17 touchdowns. He coached Jordan Wilkins, who rushed for 1,751 yards and 14 touchdowns. I’Tavius Mathers rushed for 1,057 yards and seven touchdowns at Ole Miss. And Akeem Judd played at Ole Miss during Freeze’s last two seasons, rushing for 1,251 yards and nine touchdowns.
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At Liberty, Freeze coached Joshua Mack, who rushed for 2,042 yards and 14 touchdowns. And he coached Dae Dae Hunter, who went for 854 yards and eight touchdowns in the 2022 season alone.
During relatively short stints at Ole Miss and Liberty, Freeze has encountered some productive running backs, but Hunter appears to be on another level.
“I think Jarquez is the best that I’ve coached thus far,” Freeze said. “I’m excited about his demeanor and the way he goes about his work. He keeps his mouth shut and just goes to work. If you want him to play on the kickoff team or punt team, he’s all ‘let’s go’ and ‘let’s do it.’ Not that we want him to do that.”
Hunter served as Tank Bigsby‘s backup the past two seasons, but still managed to rush for 1,262 yards and 10 touchdowns, all while averaging over six yards per carry. Hunter’s humble approach and as team-first mentality, as Freeze described, is what running backs coach Carnell Williams loves about Hunter the most.
“I’m fired up about Jarquez,” Williams said. “Since day one and he stepped foot on campus, one of the things that stands out about Jarquez is his humble approach to everything. He’s a great human being that treats people right.
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“Relentless effort. He has a work effort where he’s coming to work each and every day where he’s that same person. You don’t know if he’s having a bad day or good day. I love his tenacity and his grit. I love how he’s willing to learn each and every day. He’s always trying to find ways to get better. He has a chance to be a very special back.”
Knowing where Jarquez Hunter ranks among running backs Freeze has coached, where does Hunter stand with running backs Williams has coached? That answer is “to be determined,” Williams said, but added, “the sky is the limit.”
“He’s as talented as anybody I’ve coached,” Williams said. “The guy has the skill set, the talent, the grit. I think what separates him from a lot of guys that I’ve coached is his mental toughness. He’s one of the toughest kids that I’ve been around by his approach, how he handles adversity, how he had the opportunity to play behind Tank Bigsby and sit, learn, still be humble. That’s tough to do, I’m speaking from experience. To watch his growth has been inspiring for me.”
Auburn will practice again on Wednesday, go through a walk-thru on Friday, before taking part in the final spring scrimmage on Saturday, better known as A-Day. The game is scheduled for 1 p.m. CT inside Jordan-Hare Stadium.
