AUBURN, Ala. - The only reads Jarrett Stidham pays attention to are ones he makes while surveying defenses, not those in which he is the subject.
Taking a break from social media and self-imposing a news blackout, Auburn's quarterback focuses on on-field actions, not off-field distractions.
"I just like to stay the course and be myself and let everybody else have all of the opinions," Stidham said after Auburn's first preseason scrimmage. "With time you learn about not reading things and not taking things too much to heart. I like to stay true to myself."
A high school star in Stephenville, Texas, Stidham learned early what it meant to be the face of the program. Competing in the Southeastern Conference and leading Auburn to the SEC West title in his first season amplified the spotlight exponentially.
"I also think there comes a lot of responsibility. I think that's a great thing to have and the platform that you have, the influence that you have on other people can be pretty high at times," he said. "I try to be a good influence to people and try to be a good person."
After being limited during spring practice while recovering from an injury, Stidham picked up where he left off in 2017, when he started all 14 games, led the SEC in completion percentage and threw for 3,158 yards with 18 touchdowns.
"I thought he looked real natural," Auburn coach Gus Malzahn said after Thursday's scrimmage. "He's off to a good start. It feels different with him out there."
Offensive coordinator Chip Lindsey also noted the sense of calm Stidham gained last season.
"I think the big thing for Jarrett is he wants to be the unquestioned leader on our team and on our offense," Lindsey said. "I think he wants to lead us to a championship. I think that is something that is driving him and important to him.
"He is improving in certain areas on the field. He is very talented. We all know that. At the same time Jarrett wants to be a complete quarterback. I think right now he is excited going into the season helping Auburn be as good as we can be in 2018."
Stidham and the No. 10 Tigers begins the season with a high-profile matchup against No. 6 Washington in the Chick-fil-A Kickoff Game Sept. 1 at 2:30 p.m. CT on ABC in Atlanta's Mercedes-Benz Stadium.
"It's going to be a great experience for us, for the fans, for coaches, and I think everybody," Stidham said. "It's not every week you've got a top 10 matchup, week one in season at a great place like the dome.
"It's going to be a great situation for us. A great situation for Washington. Whoever comes away with the win will have a little bit of an edge throughout the rest of the season. The good thing about this game, it doesn't have any conference implications. You should go and play this game, leave it all on the line, whether you're Auburn or Washington in my opinion. It's going to be a lot of fun."
Jeff Shearer is a Senior Writer at AuburnTigers.com. Follow him on Twitter @jeff_shearer.
