Auburn ends focusing on more than sacks

Posted 5:32PM on Saturday 20th August 2005 ( 19 years ago )

AUBURN, Ala. (AP) Quentin Groves and Stanley McClover got the glory roles last season, coming into games and chasing quarterbacks around before heading back to the bench. Now, Auburn's two speedy defensive ends are starters instead of specialists, and that means they are having to master a more blue-collar skill: stopping the run. In that regard, noseguard T.J. Jackson says, they're still a work in progress. ``I think with more work,'' Jackson said, ``they'll be pretty darned good players. ``When you've got that much speed coming from the edge, it's hard to change the mentality and try to be a run-stopper. They're working on it, though.'' They're already pretty accomplished pass rushers, tallying 7.5 sacks apiece last season to lead the Tigers even though McClover started only twice and Groves came off the bench all season. Bret Eddins and Doug Langenfield were the starters last season but combined for just five sacks as seniors. Now, their backups take center stage for Auburn, which was ranked 16th in the AP preseason poll released Saturday. McClover is a preseason All-SEC pick and was a first-team selection by the coaches in 2004. But he and Groves know they've got to adjust to new roles and improve against the run. With that in mind, McClover and Groves both packed on the pounds in the offseason. Groves, a sophomore, said he watches film of every down now instead of just passing situations. ``Everybody in the country knows that we can pass-rush,'' Groves said. ``We can get in on third down and line up against basically any tackle and go and do what we do. But they don't know we can line up on first and second down and pound, pound, pound. That's what we need to get better at.'' McClover had 35 tackles last season, but 10 were behind the line of scrimmage and he also forced four fumbles. Groves' biggest game was against Kentucky, when he had four sacks. Auburn's All-SEC offensive tackle Marcus McNeill has a firsthand view of Groves' progress, reminiscing about the good old days. ``There was a time when I could literally just beat down on Quentin and it was pretty fun,'' McNeill said. ``Now, Quentin has become a little bit of a havoc over there.'' McClover and Groves both said they've tried not to get carried away by the increased preseason focus on their play, and position coach Terry Price certainly helps too. ``We've tried our best to ignore it,'' McClover said of the attention. ``We're very appreciative of that, and we thank God every night about that. ``We never worry about getting a big head or getting full of ourselves because Coach Price always brings us back down to earth.'' Besides, they always have their partner at the opposite end spot for motivation. McClover said it's hard to pinpoint areas where either has a noticeable strength over the other because ``you can't really get more identical with a person than me and Quentin are.'' That doesn't mean they won't keep track of who tallies more tackles and sacks. ``I just know I don't want to see him with more sacks than me and he knows he doesn't want to see me with more sacks than him,'' McClover said. ``We're the same way with tackles. We want to outplay each other. That's kind of what drives us and keeps us going.'' TIGER TALES: Auburn quarterback Brandon Cox, who has had limited work in the past week because of a fatigued shoulder, threw a little more on Saturday. ``I didn't do everything, but were going to keep easing into it,'' he said. He likened it to his days as a prep baseball pitcher when ``you'd take a few days off and rest to get back to 100 percent.'' (Copyright 2005 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)

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