Mike Dyer and Onterio McCalebb are expected to be the featured backs at Auburn this year, but the man who filled in for those two in a weekend scrimmage is angling for playing time, too.

True freshman Tre Mason — who had three long touchdown runs in a scrimmage last Wednesday — had a solid outing during Auburn’s second scrimmage on Saturday.  So solid that running backs coach Curtis Luper was left to dole out plenty of praise:


“He’s cat-quick.  He’s smart.  He’s tough.  He’s going to be better than people think.”


Mason hasn’t learned enough of the quarterback protections for Gene Chizik to say that he’s fully arrived, but you can bet Gus Malzahn is dreaming up ways to get the 5-10, 190-pound speedster onto the field.

1.  Alabama is ready to put on the full pads.

2.  Dee Milliner is using experience to help land a starting quarterback job.

3.  Here’s a UA practice report.

4.  Gene Chizik was happy with effort (but not technique) after Auburn’s first day in full pads.

5.  Freshman running back Tre Mason is hoping to make a name for himself.  (His father was in the group De La Soul.)

6.  The Tigers’ O-line is fighting through injuries.

7.  Arkansas continues to toy with a five-man front on defense.

8.  The Hogs had cooler temperatures for their first day in full pads.

9.  Colton Miles-Nash says he’s OK with moving from defensive end back to tight end.

Auburn’s first commitment on Wednesday came from defensive end Devaunte Sigler from B.C. Rain High School in Mobile, Ala.

Sigler made the announcement at his school, choosing Auburn over LSU and Mississippi State.

“I’ve had a lot of time to think about it, and now I know,” Sigler said, according to the Mobile Press-Register.

Sigler’s goals are high as he prepares to enter college. He said he plans to be the “next Nick Fairley,” referring to the former Auburn defensive tackle expected to be drafted near the top of April’s NFL Draft.

Auburn might have also found the next running back to make an instant impact in Gus Malzahn’s offense. Tre Mason from Park Vista High School in Lake Worth, Fla., committed to Auburn over Ole Miss.

“It was the place that felt the most like home to me,” Mason told ESPN.com. “The coaching staff is great. The players were cool. Everything was great.”

Mason became Auburn’s 21st commitment for the class of 2011.