AL.com will be previewing each of nine position groups leading up to the start of Auburn's fall camp on July 31. The second installment in the series reviews the H-backs and tight ends.

Chandler Cox is back for a third year as a starter in the backfield as Auburn's H-back.

Entering his junior season, Cox has become one of the vocal leaders on offense and now he might get more touches than his four carries for 15 yards with a touchdowns and four catches for 41 yards.

"I mean he's like a quarterback back there," Auburn coach Gus Malzahn said. "He has great experience. You'll see (offensive coordinator) Chip (Lindsey) utilize those guys a little bit differently than we have in the past. That may be the biggest difference you see offensively than what we've been: Utilizing the tight end and the H-backs and getting those guys more involved."

Jalen Harris returns at tight end, where Sal Cannella brings a different skill set to the position than Auburn has had in a few years.

Departed: N/A

Returning starters: Chandler Cox, junior; Jalen Harris, junior

Other returning players: Keenan Sweeney, junior; Sal Cannella, sophomore

Summer arrivals: John Samuel Shenker

Outlook: Starting with H-back, Cox is the lock starter and will get nearly all the snaps, just as Jay Prosch did in 2013.



"He has his A-game every day," Malzahn said. "I don't know if I've ever seen anybody that can bring the energy consistently and it's not fake energy. He's got it. He's got that ability to effect everybody and he's earned that respect from his teammates."

Cox is a fine lead blocker for Auburn's run game but still has room to improve in pass protection, particularly with the Tigers preparing to do much more in the passing game with Jarrett Stidham.

If for any reason Auburn needed to play another H-back, Keenan Sweeney will be the backup on paper but Harris or freshman John Samuel Shenker might get the nod in a longer term scenario.

Fall camp position preview: QB | RB | HB/TE | WR | OL | DL | LB | DB | ST

At tight end, Harris can only see his production in the passing game increase from his two catches for 16 yards and two touchdowns last season. At 228 pounds, Cannella is more in the mold of a receiver than an extra blocker and how he was lined up on A-Day indicates he'll be split out more.

It's a position Lindsey has a history of utilizing far more than Malzahn ever has and should see a spike in production compared to what Auburn tight ends have done in the past five years.

"Jalen Harris has really came on and Sal Cannella is a guy that very impressed us," Malzahn said. "So Chip's going to use a tight end more. We see so many more odd fronts and so running the football-wise you definitely need that. We feel very good."

Shenker has been compared to the late Philip Lutzenkirchen and if he displays those skills in fall camp it's possible he plays as a true freshman rather than redshirts.

Post-spring depth chart analysis: HB | TE

Battle to Watch: Whether tight end is a battle or a rotational situation based on play call will be interesting to gauge in fall camp. During spring practice Auburn used personnel packages that had Cox, Cannella and Harris, two of the three and just one. That's not unusual by any means, but it shows there won't be only one way for them all to see the field.

Keep an Eye on: Cannella is a far different mold than Auburn tight ends under Malzahn or most anywhere else for that matter. The junior college transfer is going to be used in the passing game and how quickly he proves capable in games could dictate how vast that position expands.

Projected two deep:

H-back:

Chandler Cox (6-foot-1, 239 pounds)

Keenan Sweeney (6-foot, 237 pounds)

Tight end:

Jalen Harris (6-foot-4, 252 pounds)

Sal Cannella (6-foot-5, 228 pounds)

Fall camp position preview: RB