Post-practice reaction, 4/5

Hey everyone. Here are a few other note-worthy things we learned today.

• Marcus Jemison has, in fact, been moved to linebacker. He's 6-foot-2 and weighs 205 right now. He wants to add 20 pounds before the season starts. He'll be playing behind Craig Stevens on the strong side.
  
  ``It was the coach’s idea because of the way I come up from safety and throw my body at a guy when I hit him," Jemison said. ``He liked that and then I have a nose for the ball. He said that’s the way I’ll get on the field quickest, so I’m with it. As long as I’m playing, I’m with it."
  
  
• Eltoro Freeman, previously known as Stevens' backup on the strong side, has moved to weak-side linebacker. That's a permanent thing. He played that position in high school and junior college, so it should be a straightforward transition.
  
  ``The move went real good for me. I've been playing what I wasn't used to," Freeman said. ``One day, Coach (Ted) Roof gave me a couple reps at Will linebacker and he liked the way I was playing so he was like 'OK, Toro, this the fit for you.' So then I went on in the starting rotation."
  
  
• I thought Kodi Burns threw really well today. His motion still seems funky to me -- like he has too much weight on his front foot after throwing -- but he was pretty accurate today. Offensive coordinator Gus Malzahn told him so during practice.
  
  
• Former Prattville High tailback Justin Albert missed the 2008 season, his first at Auburn, while rehabilitating a repaired knee. He has drawn praise for his work this spring. ``I never sat out of a football game. And I love playing, I love competition and I was kind of frustrated. I was like, 'Aww, man.' I wanted to be out there, but I couldn't. So I just fought through it, fought through it and this year I get my chance."
  
  
• Gus Malzahn on The Quarterback Race: ``We don’t have a lot of our offense in now. It’s the base offense. After they get that down, we’ll start getting to the other stuff. But they’re competing hard. We went live with them again today. I think that’s the way you can evaluate the quickest. We’re going to find out what’s inside of them and how they compete."
  
  
• Mario Fannin looks bulkier ... because he is. The tailback said he's up to 230 pounds, which represents a 10-pound increase from his 2008 weight. It's all muscle. Still, he's not really satisfied.
  
  "I kind of bulked up on my own. That's one thing coaches took into consideration because they saw I wanted (that) as far as a personal preference -- to get bigger and at the same time be fast. That's something they recognized something I was to do. Now it's a matter of losing a couple of pounds to get that speed back."

Photo credit: Todd Van Emst/Auburn University