Auburn’s new defensive line coach is charged with plugging holes on the front four at his alma mater, filling the shoes of predecessor Tracy Rocker and replacing Nick Fairley.
Both Lombardi winners are gone to the NFL, either as a coach or an expected first-round pick.
Pelton, an All-Southeastern Conference lineman at Auburn in 1994, inherited scant experience on the line and no proven players in the middle after Rocker left to coach with the Tennessee Titans. But he said he’s “tickled to death” to be back.
“He’s got young guys that have got a lot of want-to,” coach Gene Chizik said Monday. “He’s got a great group of kids that really, really work hard. Are we replacing a lot of talent that will be gone on the defensive line? Yes. That doesn’t mean we don’t have talent there now. It’s an experience problem there more than anything.
“But (tackles) Jeff Whitaker and Kenneth Carter, those guys have got to step it up. There’s no more, ‘I’m a true freshman.’ They’ve got to understand right now what it’s like down there and they’ve got to produce.”
The line was the most dominant part of the defense during Auburn’s national championship run, largely because of Fairley. Fellow starters Zach Clayton and Antonio Carter are also gone.
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