OK, it wasn't that cold. It was relatively cold. And too early. But enough complaints. Here are a few observations ...

• TE Philip Lutzenkirchen wasn't dressed out. Not sure why, but he wasn't even in uniform.

• S/LB Daren Bates (shoulder), WR Travante Stallworth (knee), LB Harrison Gaston (wrist) and LG Mike Berry (knee) were in pads but limited in what they could do. The first three wore orange, non-contact jerseys.

• Plenty of folks doing kick returns drills: Mario Fannin, Onterio McCalebb, Demond Washington, Terrell Zachery, Ralph Spry and Neiko Thorpe.

• Lots of punt return guys too: Quindarius Carr, Eric Smith, Philip Pierre-Louis, Blake Poole, Darvin Adams, T'Sharvan Bell, Washington and Fannin.

• The other day punt returners were letting the ball bounce of their facemasks on purpose, supposedly to work on looking the ball all the way in. Today, they were catching them with one arm. I guess this is to improve their dexterity. It looks easier for some (Fannin, in particular) than others.

• Two signees -- DT Jeffrey Whitaker and LB LaDarius Owens -- were in attendance. Must be spring break.

• Ryan Shoemaker had some booming punts. I was standing next to Wes Byrum, who shouted out to compliment Shoemaker from across the field a number of times.

• Fashion alert:Auburn hasn't abandoned the white shoes it wore in the bowl game. Some are wearing the white ones. Some are wearing black.

• Although it was cold, offensive line coach Jeff Grimes wore shorts and a short-sleeve shirt. He's tough. He coached at cold-weather places like Boise State, BYU and Colorado. Running backs coach Curtis Luper wore shorts and a short-sleeve shirt too, but he had an Under Armour skeleton underneath it and a winter cap. Smart move.

I'll be back with more following practice. You'll be able to find out exactly when anything gets posted if you follow the blog on Twitter.

The Auburn men's swimming and diving team took sixth place at the NCAA championships, which wrapped up at Ohio State on Sunday.

The Tigers finished with 277.5 points. Texas won the meet with 500 points, followed by California (469.5), Arizona (387), Stanford (369) and Florida (364).

Auburn was the defending national champion and had won six of the last seven NCAA titles.

“Our finish in this meet really summarized the whole season for us,” head coach Brett Hawke said. “It was a tough year, but we’re going to take a break and the regroup. We know that we’re a good team and we’ll come back stronger next year.”

Auburn has finished in the top-10 every year since 1993.

The Tigers had four finalists on the final day. Gideon Louw finished third in the 100 free, while Adam Brown was fourth. Adam Klein finished third in the 200 breast, and Kelly Marx took fourth in the diving event.

AUBURN, Ala. — A day after getting shut out at home for the first time in five years, Auburn’s lineup broke out in a big way.

Six different Tigers drove in runs in a 10-6 win against No. 14 South Carolina at Plainsman Park on Sunday as Auburn salvaged the final game of the weekend.

Auburn (17-7, 4-2 SEC), which left 12 men on base in a 2-0 loss Saturday, scored three runs in three different innings Sunday, displaying the offensive prowess it did in a three-game sweep of Georgia to open SEC play last weekend.

“We had a bunch of hits yesterday; we just weren’t able to get them when they counted,” said center fielder Creede Simpson, who was 3-for-4 with two RBIs. “Today we had some guys step up.”

South Carolina (19-5, 5-1 SEC), the last SEC team to lose a league game, watched its 13-game winning streak end.

“I think for out mind set, for our kids to know they can go out there and compete with the best teams in our league and the best teams in the country, I think it was a very important win for us today,” Auburn head coach John Pawlowski said.

Auburn wasted no time putting Saturday’s shutout behind it. The Tigers chased South Carolina starter Tyler Webb (1-2) with four runs in the first two innings.

The Gamecocks cut the lead to 4-3 before Auburn broke things open in the fourth. With the bases loaded and two outs, cleanup hitter Brian Fletcher took a borderline strike, the second close call of the inning. Pawlowski left the dugout to argue the point with home plate umpire Todd Henderson.

His message got through. With a full count, Fletcher took ball four on the fringe of the strike zone, just below the knees, to force home a run. Simpson followed with a two-out, two-run single to give Auburn a comfortable cushion at 7-3.

In the sixth, Justin Bryant walked with the bases loaded and Justin Hargett hit a two-run double to make it 10-3.

Simpson, Bryant and Hargett — three players in the bottom half of the order — combined to go 6-for-10 with six RBIs.

“I think that’s a trademark of a good team,” Pawlowski said. “I think Hunter (Morris) and Fletch are marked guys. Obviously, with the credentials that they have, teams are being very, very cautious, very conscious about them in the lineup. They’re pitching around them, maybe, and being very careful.

“I told the guys it’s the other guys that are going to have to step up, and certainly they’ve contributed on several different occasions.”

Grant Dayton (3-1) gave Auburn a solid effort on the mound, taking advantage of a strong wind blowing in from right field. The left-hander recorded 14 fly ball outs, getting 10 straight at one point. He went 7 1/3 innings, not throwing a single breaking ball the entire time, and left with a 10-4 lead. He gave up five runs on nine hits.

“It’s a huge confidence booster,” Dayton said. “I’d been struggling starting from last year, hadn’t been going deep in games. Going (7 1/3 innings), that helps. As a starting pitcher, that’s what you’re supposed to do.”

Auburn returns to action Wednesday at Troy before a weekend series against Alabama in Tuscaloosa.

I wrote a story on Auburn sophomore Daren Bates, an SEC All-Freshman safety who will try his hand in a new role this spring. Here's how it starts:

AUBURN, Ala. — Of Auburn’s surprise stories last season, Daren Bates’ is hard to top.

Lightly recruited out of Olive Branch, Miss., Bates went from relative obscurity to cornerstone of the Tigers’ secondary in a matter of weeks, starting all 13 games at one safety spot and earning SEC All-Freshman honors.

But here’s another surprise: the Tigers are moving Bates to a hybrid safety/linebacker role.

“We’re trying to get as much speed as we can on the field right now,” Auburn coach Gene Chizik said.

Read the full thing here. And follow the blog on Twitter.

Anthony Swain, a safety from Gadsden, Ala., gave his verbal commitment to sign with Auburn in 2011. The 6-foot-3, 213-pound Swain made his decision known after attending Auburn's Junior Day on Saturday.

We know this because of the fine reporting at AuburnSports.com, Inside the Auburn Tigers and The Auburn Sports Blog.

Swain chose Auburn over Alabama, Tennessee, Kentucky and Clemson.

A big, physical safety, Swain played eight games for Gadsden City High last year before breaking his foot while making a cut.

"I'm a big dude that can move," Swain told Scout.com earlier this month.

He is the Tigers' third commitment for 2011, joining East Mississippi Community College defensive back Izauea Lanier and Somerville, Ala., offensive lineman Spencer Region.

Let's update the big board for 2011:

• Izauea Lanier, DB, 6-1, 190, Gordo, Ala. (East Mississippi CC)
• Spencer Region, OL, 6-6, 330, Somerville, Ala. (Cullman High)
• Anthony Swain, S, 6-3, 215, Gadsden, Ala. (Gadsden City High)

Here's a video I put together from today's round of interviews. It's got head coach Gene Chizik, offensive coordinator Gus Malzahn, quarterback Cam Newton and linebacker Craig Stevens. Enjoy.

AUBURN, Ala. — After watching his quarterbacks perform in pads for the first time this spring, Auburn offensive coordinator Gus Malzahn thinks this group is ahead of last year's.

"The thing that stands out to be is all four have a good grasp in what we’re doing," Malzahn said. "Compared to this time last year, you can tell the guys have a better understanding of the offense."

The Tigers divvied up reps equally among their four quarterbacks — Cam Newton, Neil Caudle, Barrett Trotter and Clint Moseley. Malzahn would like to narrow the quarterback field down to give the frontrunners more reps, although he does not have a timetable for doing so.

Despite having the most impressive physical attributes, Newton, who transferred from Blinn (Texas) Community College in January, is still trying to play catch-up in the offense's lingo. But he said he's not completely new to the system.

"People think it's just three days (of practice), but ever since I've been on campus, coach Malzahn has been getting all the quarterbacks around and going over, just walking through it," Newton said. "That's probably been the biggest help I've had. Just not coming out here and going right into the fire. We've been practicing for this for a while now, for about three or four weeks. Just walking through against the air and knowing where our guys are supposed to be."

Here are some other notes and quotes:

• Not only did Auburn wear full pads for the first time this spring, the Tigers used the opportunity to go to Jordan-Hare Stadium to practice in front of a large crowd of potential recruits on Junior Day. "That was exciting," Newton said. "At my other schools, we never played in the stadium unless it was the spring game or the game. I think playing in the stadium really raised the level and probably put the effect in everybody's head that you've got to be perfect today, and that's what we're aiming for."

• The Tigers did some live inside drills, which are just short of going 11-on-11, head coach Gene Chizik said. The team also did two separate first-and-10 sessions that were live, except for quarterbacks. "It makes a huge difference," defensive coordinator Ted Roof said. "Some players, when they know they're not going to get hit, it makes them react a lot different than when they've got pads on."

• Chizik on Newton: "We're really proud of where Cameron after the third day is, in terms of just digesting the information. I think we're really pleased with the gains and the traction he's made here in the last three days. It's a complete learning process, completely different when you go out there and throw 11 guys against it and they're running fast."

• Newton didn't notice much of a change of pace with the team in pads, going full speed. "Being around coach Malzahn, you've got a tendency to be so fast and when you slow it down on the field, that's when you get your stuff in trouble because he's so fast 'Go, go, go, go!' When you get on the field, you may be too fast and it will hurt you. Other than that, I've been prepared, all the quarterbacks have been prepared. it's showing out there on the field."

• Craig Stevens, who stared all 13 games last year at strong-side linebacker, has moved to the weak side this spring to give Auburn some flexibility. Junior Eltoro Freeman has worked on the strong side. "Part of what we're trying to build in our system is interchangeable parts," Roof said. "So the absolute next best player goes on the field at that position, not the next best left linebacker or strong linebacker goes on the field." Stevens, who finished with 95 tackles last year, second most on the team to middle linebacker Josh Bynes, doesn't look at the move as a big deal. "They're basically mirror positions," he said. "(Weak-side) is just in the box more and (strong-side) has to cover a little more. Right now I'll just be in the box more. I guess we'll see how that works out. I played it before my freshman year so it shouldn't be too different."

• Stevens has seen growth in Freeman. "He's calmed down a lot from when he first got here," Stevens said. "Before, he was just thinking too much. He done probably thinking his way into making a mistake. Now he's calm out there, he's kind of playing the way he wants to play now. I see a lot of improvement in him and I think he'll be good going into the season ... He's still the same Eltoro, he just thinks a lot clearer now."

• Stevens has embraced his leadership role, with seniors Walt McFadden and Antonio Coleman no longer around. "I'm used to guys leaving and new guys coming in," he said. "With it being my senior year, I want it to be a very special year. I've been taking more of a stronger leadership role. It's to teach the younger guys and try to get them to follow our lead and get them to play the way we want to play this year."

• Offensive line coach Jeff Grimes said left guard Mike Berry will not participate in spring drills. Berry had offseason surgery on his knee. It opens up an opportunity for senior Bart Eddins to step in and work with the first team, with fellow senior Byron Isom at right guard. Grimes said he has rotated playing time for three players at the guard positions before but added that it can't mean sacrificing a certain level of play. "If I have three guys that are really close in terms of their ability, then I'll certainly rotate a guy in with them," Grimes said. "But he's got to be a guy who is not going to drop us. You can't give us a drop-off to get in there."

• Malzahn thinks both Brandon Mosley and Roszell Gayden, two junior college transfers, have fit in well with the rest of the offensive line. "Both those guys look the part, too," he said. "They have great attitudes. They just need reps working with the other four guys. At times they look really good, and at times you can see they’re hesitant on the assignments. The big key is to program those guys to execute. Both of them are physically what you want."

• Grimes agreed, and thinks we'll see more of what the two are capable of by the end of spring drills: "I think they're both really eager to learn and they both are guys who I think want to succeed and do well and they've both got a long way to go, of course, in terms of just learning the system. The thing that happens so often with brand new guys is you can't see how good they're going to be because there's so much thinking going on for them. So the real evaluation for them I think will come a whole lot more in the next couple of weeks toward the end of spring ball instead of the beginning. Because right now, their heads are spinning and they're just trying to figure out who to block and they're not doing things as quickly and aggressively as they can. But once they learn what to do, I think we'll see their real ability take over."

• Safety Mike McNeil, who missed last year with a broken leg, went live during the full contact portion of Saturday's practice. Aairon Savage (Achilles') and Zac Etheridge (neck) did not.

• McNeil is finally starting to shed a slight limp, safeties coach Tommy Thigpen said. "I think Mike is moving around a lot better than I thought because when we were going through the workouts in the morning he had a slight gimp," he said. "But I haven’t seen that since we started practice. I think he’s making a conscious effort to make sure he doesn’t have a limp. He flies around." Thigpen said the key for McNeil is to keep his pads low. With leg injuries, there's a tendency to play higher than usual. The same applies for Savage.

• McNeil also has to shake off some of the rust. "We’ve been working technique, technique, technique for the last two days and then once we put the pads on, technique went out the window," Thigpen said. "He’s a little rusty. He’s willing, that’s the good thing with Mike. He’s in the film room every day asking a lot of legitimate questions. I think he’ll be able to pick it up really fast and get back into the flow."

• Thigpen has been impressed with the play of Ikeem Means, a walk-on from Wetumpka, Ala., who played almost exclusively on special teams last year. "He’s really doing a good job," Thigpen said. "A big-bodied kid. He really has burst, he’s got size. He’s physical. The key for him is going to be how fast can he pick up the concepts."
  

• Today was a significant day for two freshmen who enrolled during what was supposed to be the final semester of their senior year of high school -- linebacker Jessel Curry and defensive end Craig Sanders. "Those guys ought to be doing something else right now," Roof said. "But I thought they both did a nice job and both have got a million miles to go, but I'm really proud of both of them and happy with their attitude and happy with their attitude."

• Former Auburn and current NFL players Jerraud Powers (Colts), Sen'Derrick Marks (Titans) and Quentin Groves (Jaguars) attended practice.

South Carolina's Sam Dyson threw seven shutout innings as the No. 14 Gamecocks blanked the Tigers 2-0 at Plainsman Park on Saturday. South Carolina clinched its 11th straight series victory over Auburn, dating back to 1998.

Auburn (16-7, 3-2 SEC) managed 11 hits but couldn't push across any runs. The Tigers left 12 men on base, twice leaving the bases loaded. It was the first time they haven't scored a run in a home game since 2005.

South Carolina (19-4, 5-0 SEC), which is the only remaining unbeaten team in SEC play, scored two late runs to take the win. Scott Wingo doubled in a run in the eighth to break a scoreless tie. Kyle Enders singled home a run in the ninth.

Tigers starter Cole Nelson (4-1) was the hard-luck loser. He gave up one run on four hits in 7 2/3 innings.

Hunter Morris and Justin Hargett had three hits apiece for Auburn. Justin Fradejas and Ryan Jenkins both added two hits.

The teams finish the series at Plainsman Park Sunday at 2 p.m. ET.

Auburn practiced in full pads and even went over to Jordan-Hare Stadium Saturday in what was the Tigers' third practice of the spring.

"Today I thought was a good day in terms of the energy,' Auburn head coach Gene Chizik said. "It was a cool day, and I thought they were running around, very excited with a high level of energy"

The Tigers did some live inside drills, which are just short of going 11-on-11, Chizik said. The team also did two separate first-and-10 sessions that were live, except for quarterbacks.

"I thought we had some good physicality in those three periods," Chizik said. "We wanted to start out making it a physical day but also try to be smart in what we do, considering our numbers"

Some other quick notes:

• Craig Stevens has been working at weak-side linebacker this spring. He played strong-side last year.

• Safety Mike McNeil (leg) was able to go live with the hitting today.

• All four quarterbacks -- Cam Newton, Neil Caudle, Barrett Trotter and Clint Moseley -- got reps today, although offensive coordinator Gus Malzahn said he'd like to narrow that group down. He did not give a timetable for doing so.
  

• Mike Berry (knee) will not be participating in spring drills, offensive line coach Jeff Grimes said. Bart Eddins should get a good look at left guard in his place.

I'll be back with more notes and quotes, and hopefully some video, later.

AUBURN, Ala. — Auburn starter Cory Luckie’s off-speed repertoire has worked well on Fridays, when emotions are high and opponents are prone to overswinging.

South Carolina wasn’t fooled by the slow stuff one bit.

The No. 14 Gamecocks tagged Luckie for eight runs in less than two innings Friday, slugging three home runs to spur on an 11-5 win at Plainsman Park

“They jumped us early,” Auburn coach John Pawlowski said.

Parker Bangs, Scott Wingo and Adam Matthews all homered for South Carolina (18-4, 4-0 SEC), which has won 12 straight.

Auburn (16-6, 3-1 SEC) watched its seven-game winning streak come to an end.

South Carolina wasted no time lighting up the scoreboard. Bangs’ three-run homer over the big wall in left started the Gamecocks’ scoring in the first. Matthews’ three-run homer into the visitors bullpen in the second ended Luckie’s night.

“In two pitches they scored six runs,” Pawlowski said. “They did a good job. Good hitters got some balls up in the zone and they put some good swings on it.”

Luckie (1-1) faced only 15 batters before getting the hook. Seven got hits, two walked and one was hit by a pitch. He left trailing 8-2.’

The Tigers, who outscored Georgia 43-9 in a series sweep last weekend to open SEC play, looked like they might keep pace. Creede Simpson blasted a two-run home run in the first and Auburn was on the verge of big things in the second, with two runs in, two runners on and the heart of the order coming up.

That’s when South Carolina starter Blake Cooper (4-0) settled down. He struck out Hunter Morris looking and got Brian Fletcher to fly out to end the rally.

Cooper cruised from there, allowing two hits in five additional scoreless innings. He retired seven straight at one point and finished his night with five strikeouts in seven innings.

Simpson, Morris and Fletcher and Ryan Jenkins each had two hits for Auburn.

The teams meet again today at 1 p.m. ET. Auburn will start left-hander Cole Nelson (4-0, 3.67 ERA) against South Carolina right-hander Sam Dyson (1-0, 5.40).

The Gamecocks seek their 11th straight series win against the Tigers, a streak that dates back to 1998.