Day 3 photo gallery
HOOVER - Before he took the podium at Southeastern Conference Media Days, Auburn coach Tommy Tuberville addressed a variety of topics Friday morning in a meeting with reporters who cover Auburn. Here are some highlights:
PERSONNEL DEPARTMENT
On sophomore offensive guard Chaz Ramsey's back
"He is not 100 percent. The question is where he's going to be when we start two-a-days, his availability. It's totally up to him. I know how back injuries are.
On linebacker Bo Harris
"Bo Harris is no longer with us. He got injured and has decided to transfer. We'll miss him because he was a good football player, but it just hasn't worked out."
On wide receiver Mario Fannin
"Mario Fannin is back ready to go. He's 100 percent. He's a guy that is going to have to play well for us in a number of places."
On nose guard Tez Doolittle
"He told me he's 100 percent. Doctors say about 95. It'll be a bonus to see what he can do. A torn Achilles is hard. He's been dedicated and worked. He's been a bonus to get back to the position he was in."
On running back Tristan Davis
"He told me last night that he's 100 percent for the first time. The last couple of weeks, he's had no pain, no stiffness. He'll wear a metal protector over the end of his foot. We have a lot of plans for him, not just at running back but on special teams.
On whether running back Reggie Hunt will qualify
I hadn't heard as of this morning. He's made his scores and everything. It's typical. Every year we sit and talk about one."
On cornerback Ryan Williams' academic status
"He's worked hard this summer. He got himself in a little bit of a bind. He's got to work hard to get out of the doghouse."
On freshman defensive lineman Andre Wadley
"He got hot, but he came in probably the best shape of any of the freshmen. It was a hot day. He'd had no problem. They didn't know whether he got the flu, had a bug or a virus or what. They've done all kinds of tests on him. To this point, there has been no answer to what happened. He said he didn't eat a whole lot.
"We want to get him in school, let him be part of the team, get him going and let him work back into it slowly. It's been a tough situation."
QUARTERBACK TALK
On naming a starter
"We will play two quarterbacks, but we will have one starting quarterback, a guy everybody knows is our starter. I don't know who is going to be the quarterback. I wouldn't be surprised at all if Chris Todd is our starter. Kodi Burns would be as of today.
"Chris has worked very hard, as Kodi has. His shoulder is much better. We are going to need both of them. I want everybody to know we are going to have a starter. We may use three. Neil Caudle has worked very hard. The quarterback situation is, I think, in good hands."
TITLE TALK
On being picked to win the West
"I think they are looking at us playing LSU at home this year, which makes not a lot of difference. Both teams usually play well at either place. Our quarterback situation is up in the air, but theirs is more up in the air because of losing Perrilloux. A lot will be told before that game about how good both teams are.
"If you look at last year, it could have been a great year. We lost three games basically on the last play. Hopefully, we can play better early. We made some mistakes that cost us."
PLAY-MAKING
On making and giving up big plays
"I want to have a few more big plays. We've got to be able to score from a distance and not everything be like pulling teeth. Defensively, we can't give up the big play. Every game we played in last year, we gave up some big plays. That's not Auburn football. We've gone back to more fundamentals and techniques, trying to play more consistent. I know we've played great at times on defense, but at times we didn't play great and it cost us."
