AUBURN, Ala. — The moment Ikeem Means really caught Auburn special coordinator Jay Boulware’s eye last year might surprise you.

Means was one of three players who had a shot at taking down Arkansas kick returner Dennis Johnson in a game last October, but he missed, allowing Johnson to race down the field.

Not impressive, right? Wait, it gets better.

“What he did do was when Dennis Johnson broke back and started running back across the field, he caught him,” Boulware said. “So that really jumped out at me. He caught him from behind. And I looked at that kid and I said, ‘That kid really is fast.’”

Means has been turning heads ever since. The walk-on sophomore from Wetumpka, Ala., has drawn universal praise from Auburn’s coaching staff this spring, pushing for playing time at safety.

Who’s praising him? The better question is who’s not?

“He works his tail off,” Auburn head coach Gene Chizik said. “He is a great young man and he loves playing football. He has definitely caught the attention of the coaching staff.”

“At some places walk-ons think that there’s too many roadblocks to get to where they need to be,” defensive coordinator Ted Rood said, “but I think he provides hope for a lot of kids.”

“He kind of reminds me of (Daren) Bates except probably a little more burst than Bates,” safeties coach Tommy Thigpen said. “If he does exactly what he’s been doing in practice and be able to execute, he’ll be competing for some starting time.”

To compare Means to Bates is lofty praise. Bates shocked everyone by arriving on campus last August and seizing a starting safety job. He started all 13 games and made 70 tackles, earning freshman All-SEC honors.

But with Bates moving to a hybrid linebacker/safety position and health concerns surrounding veteran safeties Zac Etheridge (neck), Aairon Savage (Achilles’ tendon, knee) and Mike McNeil (leg), an opportunity has opened for Means.

“When you’re a walk-on, you’re probably the last option,” Means said.

“When I got my chance, I just tried to make the best of it.”

Safety was new to him. The 6-foot, 204-pound Means played receiver at Wetumpka High but only got scholarship offers from smaller schools like Alabama State, Alabama A&M and Tuskegee.

How does a guy like that slip through the cracks?

“Who knows?” Chizik said. “It happens every year. We’re just glad he chose to come here.”

Means decided to pay his way at Auburn, getting a summer job and taking student loans to help minimize the cost for his single mom.

“That was my main goal, just to help my mom out and do whatever I could because she’s always been there for me,” he said.

Since arriving, he’s made a serious bid to earn a scholarship. Means played almost exclusively on special teams last year but stood out, finishing with 10 tackles. He wanted a larger role this year, however.

“Just coming in, I didn’t take the freshman thing anymore,” he said. “I couldn’t use that excuse. I just wanted to come in and be a part of the defense.”

With Bates, Etheridge and Savage limited in what they can do this spring, Means has had a chance to work with the first team, gaining valuable experience at a position that’s still relatively new to him.

“I don’t think he’s so big-eyed with the game right now,” Chizik said.

If Means keeps it up, Boulware knows he might lose him as a special teams stalwart.

“There’s another guy that I’m going to have to cross off of my list if he keeps progressing,” Boulware said with a laugh.

“Darn. I can’t use him anymore. I set him up for the defense and all of a sudden he’s gone in one year. But that’s the way it is.”