Auburn's Jake Thornton named top-10 OL coach in college football
Auburn's offensive line should be much improved in 2023.
It's largely due in part to the acquisitions the Tigers landed through the transfer portal - but having a new coach heading up the group should give them a boost as well.
Big Game Boomer, a college football social media influencer, has released a graphic ranking the best offensive line coaches in the country. Auburn's Jake Thornton, who is moving over from Ole Miss, is ranked No. 7 nationally.
The only SEC o-line coach ranked ahead of Thornton is Stacy Searels of Georgia.
The Rebels ranked in the top 10 in the country in total offense in each of Thornton's two seasons in Oxford, leading the Southeastern Conference in the category (492.5) in 2021 before pacing the league and ranking third in the country in rushing offense (261.6) in 2022.
This season, the Rebels offensive line paved the way for 3,139 total rushing yards, led by SEC Freshman of the Year and First Team All-SEC honoree Quinshon Judkins, who led the league and set Ole Miss single-season records in both rushing yards (1,476) and rushing touchdowns (16). In two years at Ole Miss, Thornton mentored a pair of All-SEC offensive linemen and helped another achieve his goals of making a National Football League roster.
In his first season, Thornton's offensive line helped the Rebels lead the SEC in total offense at 492.5 yards per game. Anchoring that offensive line was eventual NFL signee Ben Brown, stalwarts like center Orlando Umana, tackle Nick Broeker, as well as Freshman All-SEC honoree Eli Acker.Thornton came to Ole Miss after spending the 2020 season as the run game coordinator and offensive line coach at Gardner-Webb
Thornton joined the Gardner-Webb staff after two seasons in the same role at FCS Tennessee Tech. There, he helped the Golden Eagles to one of the top turnarounds in the subdivision nationally in 2019.Thornton's offensive line cleared a path for 4,501 offensive yards in 2019 and protected one of the OVC's most productive quarterbacks in Bailey Fisher. Guard Trevor Stephens earned Freshman All-America honors from Phil Steele following a season that saw him start 11 games. Sophomore guard Mike Rhoades was a Second Team All-OVC choice following the season.The offensive yardage produced by the Golden Eagles in 2019 marked the second-highest total in program history for a single season.
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