Auburn Tigers Nearly at Full Strength, Return Key Player for Texas A&M

The Auburn Tigers will face the No. 9 Texas A&M Aggies Saturday afternoon, and aside from two players with long-term injuries, this weekend marks the healthiest they’ve been in weeks.

Auburn cornerback Jay Crawford is set to make his return after battling a knee injury that kept him sidelined during last week’s loss at Oklahoma. The sophomore was listed as “probable” in Wednesday’s initial availability report earlier this week, but was not featured in Friday’s version, indicating his intention to play against the Aggies.

Defensive end Amaris Williams has been banged up the last two weeks due to a shoulder injury suffered in Auburn’s homecoming win over South Alabama, and saw limited action last week in Norman. The initial injury report had Williams listed as “questionable,” but the sophomore pass-rusher is no longer included on the most recent release.

Junior center Connor Lew was also tagged as “questionable” in Wednesday’s report after going down with a lower-body injury at Oklahoma. 17-year-old freshman Kail Ellis stepped in for a couple of snaps with Lew out against the Sooners, but the preseason All-SEC third-teamer is expected to start on Saturday.

Wide receiver Malcolm Simmons, safety Kaleb Harris, and running back Jeremiah Cobb were all listed as “probable” on Wednesday, but have since been extracted from the latest injury report. All three were dealing with minor some dings, but they don’t seem to impact the Tigers’ availability ahead of Texas A&M.

Senior wide receiver Horatio Fields suffered a broken foot earlier this week in practice, requiring surgery and setting an indefinite timetable for his return. This makes Fields the second Tiger to be determined as “out,” with running back Durell Robinson remaining out of the rotation following a “freak” leg injury during Auburn’s home opener against Ball State.

Excluding Fields and Robinson, this clash in College Station looks to be the healthiest the Tigers have been in a few weeks. And with Crawford, Williams, Lew, and Simmons – key guys that play crucial roles this season – all seemingly at 100%, Auburn boasts an even better chance to take down the Aggies on Saturday.