AUBURN, Ala. – For someone who prefers to let his accomplishments do the talking, Tank Bigsby's freshman season spoke volumes.
The first Auburn football player to average 6 yards per carry since James Bostic in 1993, Bigsby earned SEC Co-Freshman of the Year honors in 2020, rushing for 834 yards, the second most for an Auburn freshman in program history.
"I just let my actions speak for themselves," Bigsby said. "If I keep doing what I'm doing and keep my head straight, I'll get there."
"There" could be Bigsby's ascendance to Auburn's next All-America running back, a fraternity that includes Bo Jackson, Tucker Frederickson, Tre Mason and Tank's position coach, Carnell Williams.
"Coach Cadillac is pushing me," said Bigsby, who earned second team freshman All-America honors last season. "He tells me how many great running backs came through here. Of course, I want to be the next.
"He can keep teaching me the ways and steps to get there. It was great that he came back. He recruited me. He means a lot to all the running backs because he treats all of us the same. He's a great coach and a great person."
Deploying a physical style befitting his nickname, Tank Bigsby became the first Auburn freshman to rush for 100 yards in three consecutive games and four total, netting 146 vs. Arkansas, 111 at South Carolina, 129 at Ole Miss and 192 in the regular season finale at Mississippi State, a performance he described as the best of his inaugural campaign. Tank Bigsby rushed for a career-high 192 yards at Mississippi State
"I was always taught once you make them feel you, they don't want to feel you anymore," Bigsby said of his penchant for contact. "You have to be physical (to play) running back. I don't think I'll go out of bounds."
First-year Auburn head coach Bryan Harsin noted Bigsby's physicality, a prerequisite for success.
"That position requires it," Harsin said. "You've got to be a different guy to play tailback. You've got to be a guy that's going to be physical. You've got to do it in practice so you get those reps and you're prepared for the game.
"Tank's done a tremendous job. Shaun [Shivers] has done a tremendous job. I like both of those guys. They work very hard, they're intentional about what they're doing. And not even at practice, go back to when we started working out, I love it because Tank asks a lot of questions. He wants to know the details of it, which is why he's a good player and why he'll continue to be a good player."
Harsin and offensive coordinator Mike Bobo have both expressed their desire to make a strong rushing attack a foundation of Auburn's offense, music to Bigsby's ears.
"We're more downhill this year," Bigsby said. "We've got Mike Bobo, we've got Coach Harsin, big offensive guys. I feel like we're going to be really good at what we do, especially running the ball. I feel like we're going to be great at that."'They've got more experience': Tank Bigsby is bullish on Auburn's offensive line
In contrast to last season, Auburn returns starters at all five offensive line positions.
"I didn't have a problem with my O-line last year," Bigsby said. "I feel like our O-line is great. They've got more experience. I feel like they're going to bring a lot this year with the offense."
After ranking second among all FBS freshmen in rushing yards in 2020, Bigsby attacked the offseason with head football strength and conditioning coach Jeff Pitman.
"Coach Pitman is a great, great man," Bigsby said. "He's all about hitting it. We're going to hit it. Heavy weight, running. We weren't big on moving a lot of heavy weight last year. We'll move a lot of weight this year. It's fun. He's a great coach. He's got a good staff with him. I feel like they're strong together."
The pandemic prevented Bigsby from showcasing his skills in front of 87,451 at Jordan-Hare Stadium last season. Most Auburn fans have seen Tank's talents only on television, a situation both student-athletes and fans hope turns out to be a one-and-done dilemma.
"Hopefully this year it will be better," Bigsby said.
Auburn fans can get a preview of the 2021 Tigers at the A-Day game on April 17 at 1 p.m. CT.
'More downhill': Tank Bigsby looks forward to Auburn's rushing emphasis under Auburn head coach Bryan Harsin and offensive coordinator Mike Bobo
Jeff Shearer is a Senior Writer at AuburnTigers.com. Follow him on Twitter: @jeff_shearer