• WR Darvin Adams, 6-3, 192, Jr.
• WR Terrell Zachery, 6-1, 211, Sr.
• WR Emory Blake, 6-1, 194, So.
• TE Philip Lutzenkirchen, 6-4, 246, So.

• WR DeAngelo Benton, 6-2, 205, So.
• WR Kodi Burns, 6-2, 207, Sr.
• WR Quindarius Carr, 6-1, 184, Jr.
• WR Philip Pierre-Louis, 5-8, 150, So.
• WR Ralph Spry, 5-10, 167, Jr.
• WR Travante Stallworth, 5-9, 180, So.
• WR Derek Winter, 6-0, 205, Jr.
• WR Jay Wisner, 6-2, 191, Sr.
• TE Robert Cooper, 6-4, 210, rFr.

• WR Xavier Brown, 6-2, 207, Sr.
• WR Edgar Pritchett, 5-11, 170, So.
• WR Nathan Taylor, 5-10, 180, Jr.

• WR Shaun Kitchens, 6-3, 211, Fr.
• WR Trovon Reed, 6-0, 173, Fr.
• WR Antonio Goodwin, 6-2, 170, Fr.
• TE Dakota Mosley, 6-4, 252, Fr.

This is a late correction, but that previous sentence was actually supposed to be written about Darvin Adams. (Not really.) But the fact that last year at this time, Hawthorne and Montez Billings figured to be Auburn's two starting receivers seems highly comical. Neither did anything. Instead, Adams turned into the best receiver not recognized on the All-SEC teams and Zachery became a capable No. 2 with big-play potential. Beyond that, there wasn't much. Auburn leaned on those two throughout the season, despite season long questions about who would emerge as the No. 3 target. Somebody new seemed to be a candidate each week, but nobody ever seized the spot permanently. In Year 2 of the Gene Chizik era, the big question is with Adams and Zachery well-established, who will be the No. 3 option?

It's hard to get a gauge on who exactly is making progress. Wide receivers coach Trooper Taylor is prone to excessive praise, usually focusing on the last player he saw who caught a pass before he came into the interview room. But it seems like some legitimate growth is there. Blake and Benton, the two players everyone expected to step in and contribute immediately last year, are starting to get it. Coaches praised their willingness to do everything asked of receivers, including blocking. If they can be trusted to be on the field in that capacity, the catches will come. Carr had a nice spring game, catching four passes for 152 yards. Perhaps he is on the verge of showcasing some of the speed we've been hearing about for so long. Spry, after sitting out last year following a transfer, had a solid spring. Lutzenkirchen has worked more on playing out of a three-point stance, something he didn't do as much in high school but now will in the absence of Tommy Trott. And coaches always seem to have something good to say about Wisner, who's nothing impressive physically but is more than willing to do the dirty work.

Again, it's hard to figure out bad things when Taylor is so excessively positive about everything going on. But the injury situation wasn't great. Stallworth didn't get to do anything this spring, not far removed from knee surgery. And just when it seemed Pierre-Louis was turning a corner, he suffered another knee injury, the severity of which we still don't know. Also of note: Burns' name didn't come up much, if at all, this spring. Part of that might have to do with the fact that Auburn didn't run any Wildcat formation (and even if it did, Burns might not be the man this year). Burns is a nice novelty to have on offense for trick plays, but with less than a year of experience at receiver, he's still raw at the position. That's not a good position to be in for a senior.

I wrote last year that it's hard for freshmen receivers to make an immediate impact, then completely contradicted myself in writing about Blake and Benton's pending contributions all season. I stand by my assertion that it's hard for a receiver to step in right away, which is why I think Kitchens and Goodwin won't have major roles. But Reed could be a candidate. He's small (6-feet, 173 pounds) but shifty and quick. Auburn doesn't have too many receivers like that (especially if PPL is out), and Gus Malzahn might like adding a piece like that to his offensive arsenal, especially as a slot receiver.

My Hawthorne pick missed so badly last year that I'm hesitant to make a selection, but I'll go with Blake. He gets the edge over Benton simply for the position he plays — the slot. Benton is backing up Adams at one of the outside receiver spots. Good luck displacing an All-SEC caliber performer. Blake has worked inside, along with Wisner. At some point, you'd expect a third receiver to take some of the pressure off Adams and Zachery. Blake seems like a good pick. He's smart, has decent size (6-1, 194) and seems to have an understanding of the bigger picture of what Auburn's trying to do offensively.

It's hard to pick a battle at receiver, since Adams and Zachery seem so entrenched in their starter spots and wholesale substitutions are so common that everyone seems to get playing time. Instead, I'll say the battle to watch is for who emerges as a third pass-catching threat. Everyone knows how limited Auburn was in that department last year (Adams had 60 catches, Zachery 26. No other WR/TE had more than 11). It's the same candidates as usual — Blake, Benton, Carr, Lutzenkirchen, Wisner, Burns, with perhaps Reed entering the picture. But if the Tigers would like to diversify their offense at all, finding more than two receivers who they can trust to run a correct route and catch the ball would be a good start.

"I’ve never been a guy that likes to rotate a bunch of guys because I like the rhythm of that quarterback and that receiver. A lot of times, forget what the read said, Chris (Todd) was getting that ball to Darvin because he knew Darvin was going to make a play. I’ve been around a lot of receivers and quarterbacks and when they get that rapport, it just happens. It just clicks. That comes from doing rep after rep after rep. That’s what the young guys like DeAngelo Benton, Spry, all those guys have to understand. They have to get on the same page as that quarterback. I don’t care how pretty you look in that uniform or how well you run that route, if he throws it to you and you’re just a little bit off, I’m not putting that on the quarterback. I’m putting it on you. You’ve got to go make a play." — Taylor

0 — times in school history a receiver had caught 60 passes in a season before Adams did it last year.

What was thought of last year as Auburn's weakest unit actually turned out to be quite good. Adams, despite a lack of spring publicity, turned himself into the go-to receiver the Tigers needed. Zachery, after years of wondering when he would tap into his potential, finally showed what he can do. Now it's time to see if anyone else on the roster can make that leap from also-ran to featured player. It won't be easy, particularly with Adams and Zachery still locking down the starting spots, but if Auburn can find some more options at receiver, it seems like that would open up even more ways for Malzahn's offense to be a juggernaut.