AUBURN, Ala. -- The fire is typically contained, smoldering inside Avery Young but undetectable beyond his friendly exterior.
Young selectively lets out the burn. The Auburn offensive lineman doesn't often dredge up the season he calls "the worst," a 3-9 sinkhole in 2012 that cost coach Gene Chizik his job less than 16 months after he raised the crystal football. But there are times when Young, among a small number of current Tigers who actually played that season, feels compelled to educate his younger teammates.
"We’re not used to losing, so when you do lose, it hits the heart really hard," Young said. "You’ve got all these guys now who have never been through that type of thing, so you've got to let them know that it happens. I explain it to them, but I don’t talk too much about it.
"It's nothing you want in anybody's head."
Auburn seems a lifetime away from 3-9. It it still much closer to the 2013 team, which fell 13 seconds shy of a national title.
But the way the Tigers responded from their low point can help them try to move past a 2014 season that left nobody pleased on the Plains.
"We had a bunch of guys on that 2013 team who were so hungry because they were depressed from the 3-9 season," defensive end Carl Lawson said. "They were leaders. Those guys brought the best out of everyone. That's kind of what we were missing last year. There's no miss on talent.
"It’s a leadership mindset to do it every day."
It's an edge coach Gus Malzahn talked about regaining when Auburn began spring drills last month. The Tigers reclaimed their edge after the horror of 2012, only to lose it last season following a 7-1 start. Off-field issues before, during and after the regular season sidetracked Auburn, especially on defense. Auburn dropped its final four games against FBS opponents.
"The issues we had before the season started kind of caught up with us," quarterback Jeremy Johnson said.
Malzahn needed a dramatic move and sent a Boom around the SEC West in December by hiring Will Muschamp as defensive coordinator. The man known as Boom has overseen smothering defenses everywhere he's been, including a prior stint as Auburn's defensive coordinator (2006-07) and even during his failed tenure as Florida's head coach.
Muschamp's spring task is reshaping a defense that allowed 31 points or more in each of its final seven games against FBS opponents and surrendered an average of 481.3 yards in its five losses.
"He doesn't have any off days," Malzahn said. "Because of that, the guys have really responded and are starting to take on his personality. The standard's extremely high."
But is the talent? There's promise in the front seven as Auburn returns experience at linebacker with Cassanova McKinzy and Kris Frost, who combined for 21 tackles for loss, four forced fumbles and two interceptions last season.
Lawson, who had seven tackles for loss as a true freshman before missing all of last season with an ACL tear, is back this spring working at the Buck position in Muschamp's defense.
"He looks like he hasn’t missed a lick," Malzahn said, "the same old Carl. Coach Muschamp, he knows how to use a special player. Carl’s got that ability."
The concern remains building secondary depth around All-SEC cornerback Jonathan Jones and Johnathan "Rudy" Ford, Auburn's tackles leader in 2014, who is moonlighting at corner this spring to complement his skills as a safety.
Given Auburn's record-setting offensive track record under Malzahn, a moderate improvement on defense could get the Tigers in the playoff hunt. Muschamp last week praised the unit's progress, but Lawson thinks it's "a long way away" from championship caliber.
"You need to establish a culture and that’s what we’re doing right now," Lawson said. "I’m not saying there’s not potential to be, but we all got to do a better job of being consistent."
Auburn technically returns only three offensive starters but has others with ample experience claiming bigger roles, including Johnson, the expected successor to Nick Marshall. The 6-foot-5, 240-pound junior is a marvel, and his arm should provide more balance to an offense that last fall had at least 43 rushing attempts in all but one game and had 25 or less passing attempts in nine contests.
Despite losing SEC yards-per-catch leader Sammie Coates (23.9 ypg), Auburn might be even stronger at receiver. Veterans Duke Williams and Ricardo Louis return and several players have emerged this spring, including Melvin Ray, Marcus Davis and Jason Smith, a junior college quarterback now working at slot receiver.
Auburn's bold goal: At least eight completions of 30 yards or longer per game.
"We just firmly believe in that," offensive coordinator Rhett Lashlee said. "We’ve got wide receivers who can go down the field. We have quarterbacks who can. It puts pressure on the defense."
Added Johnson: "I'm a good deep-ball thrower. Once we build that chemistry on the field, it’s going to be fun to watch."
Auburn needs to bring back the fun it enjoyed in 2013. But it will take hard work to get there, and the occasional reminder from Young that nothing should be taken for granted.
"We've been physical, we've strained 'em," Malzahn said, "and they've responded in a positive way."