Auburn’s Jarquez Hunter accepts 2025 Senior Bowl invitation
Auburn running back Jarquez Hunter has accepted an invitation to play in the 2025 Reese’s Senior Bowl, game officials announced Monday.
Hunter is the second Auburn player to commit to the Senior Bowl, joining linebacker Eugene Asante. The annual college football all-star game and NFL draft showcase is set for Feb. 1 at Hancock Whitney Stadium in Mobile.
The 5-foot-10, 202-pound Hunter rushed for 1,201 yards (second in the SEC behind Tennessee’s Dylan Sampson) and eight touchdowns this season, averaging 6.4 yards per carry. In four years at Auburn, the Philadelphia, Miss., native totaled 3,371 rushing yards (fourth in program history) and 25 touchdowns.
Other players with state of Alabama ties to accept Senior Bowl invitations are Alabama defensive back Malachi Moore and punter James Burnip, Alabama A&M offensive lineman Carson Vinson, Notre Dame quarterback Riley Leonard (a Fairhope High School graduate), Oregon wide receiver Tez Johnson (a Pinson Valley High School graduate and Troy transfer) and Tulane safety Caleb Ransaw (a Sparkman High School graduate and Troy transfer). Ohio State center Seth McLaughlin, an Alabama transfer, also committed to the Senior Bowl, but will be unable to participate due to injury.
Senior Bowl roster additions will be announced periodically leading up to game week. Kickoff is set for 1:30 p.m. on Feb. 1, with television coverage on NFL Network.
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Heading into Saturday’s Iron Bowl, Jarquez Hunter had been hard to stop.
Auburn’s senior running back came into Saturday’s contest averaging 6.6 yards per carry, totaling 174 carries for 1,145 yards rushing and eight touchdowns. He had rushed for more than 100 yards in four games this season, doing so in back-to-back weeks against Texas A&M (130) and ULM (102). He reached a career-high 278 yards rushing just a few weeks ago, doing so in Auburn’s 24-10 win against Kentucky.
However, against the Alabama football defense, Hunter’s role within the Tigers offense was diminished in a 28-14 Crimson Tide victory.
Hunter was held to 4.4 yards per carry, finishing with 56 yards on just 13 carries. Only two of his rushes were for more than 10 yards: one for 19 and the other 21, both coming in the first quarter. He had two red-zone touches, both resulting in minus-1 yard. He also threw a fourth-quarter interception off a double-pass play intended for KeAndre Lambert-Smith that was instead picked off by Bray Hubbard.
It was all part of the Crimson Tide’s game plan.
“Out-physical them,” cornerback Domani Jackson said. “That’s the whole motto this whole week, just out-physical them, and they are going to break. We did that.”
In total, the Alabama defense dominated Auburn, especially its running game. The Tigers finished with 399 total yards of offense (98 rushing, 301 passing) and were held to 4-of-12 on third down and 0-of-1 on fourth down. Jihaad Campbell led Alabama with nine tackles, Domani Jackson adding eight. Zabien Brown and Hubbard each had an interception.
“We just executed the plan, executed the play-calling,” defensive lineman Tim Keenan III said. “Making sure that everyone was in the spot that they needed to (be) and just listening to coach and believing in each other.”
