AUBURN TROJANS

Coach: Gordon Elliott, 13th year

Last year: Third in the South Puget Sound League North 4A with a 5-3 record, 6-4 overall.

Type of offense: Jet Sweep

Top returners: Patrick O’Dell, senior, FB, 6-0/190; Demetreus Taua, junior, OL, 5-10/255; Mario Luevano, senior, OL, 5-8/250; Jacob Sanow, senior, OL, 5-10/240; and Payton Polly, senior, OL, 5-10/275.

Type of defense: 3-3

Top returners: Justin Ioimo, junior, DB, 6-2/200; Sam Lindsey, senior, LB, 5-10/200; Dillon O’Grady, junior, LB, 5-9/210; and Demetreus Taua, junior, DL, 5-10/255

Impact newcomers: Malik Williams, junior, RB/DB, 5-8/160; and Jacob Apodaca, senior, DL, 5-11/272.

Outlook: In a league filled with teams running the high-powered spread offense, the Trojans are an anomaly. For years Auburn has relied on the misdirection and multiple ball carriers of the Jet Sweep, leaving defenders to guess who’ll have the ball and where they’ll come from. Pounding the ball down defenders throats is what Auburn does best. Don’t expect any different this season. The team returns the bulk of its offensive line from last season, with Taua, Luevano, Sanow and Polly looking to clear the way for fullback O’Dell and halfback Williams. Don’t expect this team to take to the air often.

Defensively, the Trojans will have to contend with the prevalent spread offensive, but traditionally the team has had the push up front and a core of talented D-backs to deal with this. This season looks no different. Couple in an aggressive linebacking corps led by returners Lindsay and O’Grady, and the Trojans look to have the pieces to slow down the new SPSL 3A’s high-powered passing attacks.

Key game: Auburn gets an early test when it hosts the defending SPSL 3A champs from Peninsula (8-4 last season) on Sept. 19. The big rivalry games against Auburn Mountainview and Auburn Riverside are Oct. 24 and Sept. 26, respectively.