08/16 at 10:55 PM

Auburn’s battle at right tackle has a new candidate, and he might just be in the final two.

Reintroduce yourself to A.J. Greene, a redshirt junior from Madison, Tenn., who has logged snaps in two career games.

Greene said Monday he was battling against Auburn native John Sullen, who worked with first-team members during the open media window Monday.

“I’m not too sure what the coaches are thinking right now,” Greene said. “But all I can do is go out there and give it my all every day. And whatever comes out comes out.”

Offensive coordinator Gus Malzahn said he’s seen a different Greene than the one who saw action in garbage time against Mississippi State and Furman last season. Instead of the “passive, laid-back” Greene of last year, Malzahn has seen someone who has tackled the only open position on the offensive line “very aggressively.”

“He’s really flipped the switch,” Malzahn said.

Junior-college transfers Brandon Mosley and Roszell Gayden were recruited specifically to battle for the position. Mosley, though, has worked behind Lee Ziemba at left tackle during recent media windows at practice while Gayden has labored through a nagging knee injury.

Their presence appears to have brought the best out of Sullen and Greene.

“I hope it opened up everybody’s eyes that this is a position that’s up for grabs,” Chizik said. “Obviously we want to play the best guy. You hope that as you continue to bring in players, the competition level increases everywhere.”

Greene came to Auburn in 2007 as a defensive lineman, but never was able to crack the rotation. He was switched to offensive line in 2008 under Tommy Tuberville, a move that still didn’t get him on the field.

“I had no clue about the offensive line. I had no clue about anything,” Greene said. “But now I’ve been over there for about a year and a half, two years, so I’ve adjusted and it’s coming along really well.”

Greene said he’s overcome “minor things” in his life to attack his best chance to play with refocused energy.

“I’ve put a lot more time and effort into the game of football that I love,” he said. “It’s all about grinding and coming out to work every day.”

White moves to defensive back
Two weeks later, Ryan White was at the position Auburn recruited him to play.

White’s tryout at quarterback ended unceremoniously, as he was permanently moved to defensive back before Monday’s practice.

“It’s kind of a later move in camp,” Auburn head coach Gene Chizik said. “But at the end of the day that’s where we feel he has the best chance to help us.”

During the early portion of Monday’s practice, White worked individually with a defensive quality control assistant while the rest of the team ran through various special teams drills.

He joined up with the defensive backs on a ball-strip drill when the team broke up into individual groups.

He has plenty to learn in the next couple of weeks.

“There’s a good bit of catchup there,” Chizik said. “But he’s a very good athlete and it’s just going to be a matter of how fast he catches on.”

Cornerbacks coach Phillip Lolley watched White in person as a high school quarterback in Tallahassee, Fla., where he accounted for nearly 1,700 total yards of offense as a junior and earned 4A FSWA First State Honorable Mention. Lolley said White reminded him of the former Auburn cornerbacks, such as Roderick Hood and Carlos Rogers, who have made the transition from high school offense to college defense.

“They’ve been under that kind of pressure, very athletic,” Lolley said. “He was one of those quarterback athletes that I went to watch and was very quick, understood the game.”

Auburn scrimmages today
Chizik said he will be looking for answers on Auburn’s offensive and defensive fronts along with depth across all the special teams platforms at today’s scrimmage.

“A lot of those positions are going to be filled by young guys,” he said. “I think we’ve got to make some quick decisions so it’s going to be a big day.”

Freshman running back Michael Dyer is expected to receive a heavy dose of the carries after picking up “a few” in the first two.

“He’ll definitely get some carries and get some blitz pickups,” Malzahn said. “Obviously now, he can carry the football. We know that. But there’s a lot more to playing running back, specifically in our offense that we ask him to do, so we’ll definitely give him a good look.”

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