As we reported yesterday on Auburn Undercover, Auburn football’s 2026 starting offensive line may well be made up entirely of transfers. One of those guys squarely in the mix is Jo Simmons, who played at James Madison last year. Having over five guys who have never played together before can certainly provide some challenges. Simmons, however, feels they have made great strides in the first two days of preseason camp.
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Simmons said, “I think we took a massive step today in communication, especially since spring. How much time we spent with each other over the summer, it just, I feel like we've come a long way with our communication. Like we had a third out period. We're communicating a bunch and, you know, getting everything on the same page, and we picked up a lot of good stuff today.”
These first two days of camp have been without pads. Auburn Head Coach Alex Golesh feels once those go on, this Saturday, they will have a better understanding of who gives them the best chance to win during the season.
“These dudes are working. There’s some really good competition in there as well which is helping.” Golesh said.
Simmons specifically commented on the play of fellow transfer Jacob Strand. “Strand's a guy, you know, and it's good to have him back and practicing in fall camp. And, you know, he probably has like one of the best techniques out of the O-line. He's really out there proving it, and I'm excited to see him play in pads.”
Strand joins Michigan State transfer tackle Stanton Ramil, who is also returning from an offseason injury, and both are now taking full repetitions with this position group.
“They're like two of my best friends on the team, so like just going out there, having them out there, just be able to talk about stuff, see looks. I'm like an experienced player. It's really been nice to have someone to bounce ideas off of.” Simmons said
Simmons hopes with his college football playoff experience he can improve Auburn’s sack numbers from last year. The Tigers gave up 42 sacks, which was fourth worst in the country. He says he has been working on the left side of the line but feels wherever he ends up he can go out and make the offensive line and Auburn better.
Coach Golesh and the Tigers will be back on the field tomorrow for a walk through. Then as we mentioned before the players will put the shoulder pads on Saturday. Only 29 days remain before Auburn faces Baylor in the Aflac Kickoff Game, at Mercedes-Benz Stadium, in Atlanta.
Auburn Undercover is an independent Auburn sports media company covering Auburn athletics, recruiting and insider news.
