Auburn Football: Darius Slayton is Tigers’ secret star in 2017

Auburn football has a secret weapon. Speedster Darius Slayton will lead a Tiger receiving corps that should be sneak good in 2017.

The combination of Kamryn Pettway and Kerryon Johnson ran the ball 391 times for 2,119 yards last season. Auburn’s quarterbacks attempted 281 passes for 2,195 yards.  While the yardage totals were roughly equal, the offensive tendency was obvious. The Tigers ran the football, a lot.

Part of that is because of the offensive philosophy of Guz Malzahn. Another piece was personnel. The Tigers did not have the quarterback to distribute passes downfield accurately last season. However, now they have Jarrett Stidham.

Some media outlets have already lionized Stidham, turning him into the savior-quarterback destined to lead the Tigers back to the College Football Playoff. Count me one of the believers in the Auburn offense, but it’s not solely because of their shiny new toy under center. A quarterback is only as good as his receivers, and Darius Slayton is going to make Stidham look incredible.

A freshman last season, Slayton reeled in 15 passes for 292 yards and one touchdown. He served as the backup to Tony Stevens, the Tigers’ most productive receiver a year ago.

Slayton has drawn comparisons to former Auburn wideout and current NFL pass catcher Sammie Coats. Like Coats, Slayton has the speed and size to absolutely smoke defenders and out muscle them in the air.

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With the football arriving on time and in the right place, Slayton will be set for a field day in 2017. He’s the go-to deep threat in an offense that is going to be able to move the football in a myriad of ways. His production is going to soar, and so will the Auburn win total.