In his freshman season at USF, wideout Jeremiah Koger turned plenty of heads in the Sunshine State. Now, he looks to do the same at Auburn.
The 6-foot-3, 213-pound sophomore comes to the Plains looking to replicate success from his time with the Bulls, already having chemistry with head coach Alex Golesh, offensive coordinator Joel Gordon and quarterback Byrum Brown. While those relationships help, Koger had a chip on his shoulder about what the outside media thinks about this new-look Auburn team.
While the move to the SEC for most of these players could be deemed as intimidating, he sees it as an opportunity to shine on the biggest stage.
"I mean, people would think like, 'Yeah, that's a concern,'" Koger said on Sunday. "But we just come in here; we're not going to try to change anything that we're doing. We're just going to come in here and work every single day, and then, hopefully, we get the best outcome."
In his first season of college football, he finished the season with 38 receptions for 597 yards and eight touchdowns, tying for first in touchdowns and second on the team in the other two statistics. While most of the room is returning pieces with experience, like Keshaun Singleton and Chas Nimrod, Koger brings a spark that he will continue to build in only his second season.
While there are expectations from the outside about where the Tigers need to be, Koger simply wants to be "the best at being myself."
"[We're] not really worried about the outcome," he said, "and we're just trying to put our best foot forward every day so that anything that can happen is the best."
The self-belief comes from the demands that his coaching staff has of him. Koger doesn't take it as criticism, but rather a blessing that people like Golesh and Gordon, among others, took the chance on him in the first place.
"Having coaches that believe in you is probably one of the best things because, like, the more the coaches talk to you, you know that he's believing in you and you got to push harder for yourself," Koger said.
It's why the Baltimore native isn't worried about the change in competition: he has belief both internally and externally from others. The wideout can be a "high-energy guy, making plays on the field" who will help Auburn in some of those in-conference competitions this fall.
The cornerback opposite Koger might be more skilled than those in the American Athletic Conference from last season, but the coaching staff has his back to have him not worry about who he is going up against in 2026.
"Even starting from the beginning, you've got to want it within yourself, but seeing a coach want it for you, it makes you want to go even harder because you've got people who believe in you," he said, "and the team is actually depending on you."
Sign up for our free Auburn Tigers newsletter and follow us on Facebook and X for the latest news!
This article was originally published on www.si.com/college/auburn as Why Auburn WR Jeremiah Koger Isn't Worried About Jump to SEC Football .
