AUBURN -- Mario Fannin came to Auburn with the idea of playing tailback.

That part of the freshman's plan has gone awry.

Not that he's complaining. Though his third-place position on the depth chart has precluded him from much work at tailback, Fannin has convinced coaches that he deserves a substantive role.

So they're building a position for him: Half fullback, half wideout.

"It's just giving the coaches more reasons to trust me as an athlete," Fannin said. "They're giving me the opportunity to play different positions and get the ball in my hands. It's a great opportunity."

Fannin is one of the Tigers' most important assets. He is the team's fastest tailback -- one of the five fastest players on the entire team -- and has an innate ability to anticipate how defenses will react to his next step.

It's home-run talent. Fannin worries even the best defenses.

Yet he's been troubled. A rash of early-season fumbles eroded trust between Fannin and assistant coach Eddie Gran, who controls the Tigers' rotation at tailback. The freshman was supposed to split carries with sophomore Ben Tate during the first six weeks of the season.

Instead, Tate earned the plum assignments.

When Brad Lester returned from suspension one month ago, Fannin's role became strictly peripheral. Lester and Tate now split carries.

The freshman has earned only seven carries during the last three games.

That emerging irrelevance bothered offensive coordinator Al Borges, who sought inspiration from earlier solutions to similar problems. He successfully merged Ronnie Brown and Carnell Williams during the 2004 season by making Brown a utility player.

He played some fullback. He played some tailback. Brown occasionally mimicked a slot receiver.

Borges applied those lessons to Fannin. The freshman caught three balls against Florida, added another against LSU and made two catches against Ole Miss last weekend.

The results are recent. The plan isn't. Borges said he's been grooming Fannin for this dynamic role since preseason camp, but only now is comfortable letting him play it.

"Ronnie had played a long time and he picks things up so fast. Mario was brand new and we were probably saturating him a little bit with too much (information)," Borges said. "What we've done now is each week we've condensed his package to where we'll run it, and he can do it without having any reservation."

Fannin sometimes substitutes for starting fullback Carl Stewart, whose sculpted shoulders and lower body make the freshman look like a middle-school player.

Blocking isn't part of the deal.

Fannin usually runs patterns from the fullback spot. Borges likes getting the ball to Fannin quickly on the outside, where his speed is most useful. Defenders struggle to handle the freshman's acceleration and surprising willingness to create collisions.

Gran gradually is regaining an appreciation for Fannin.

"I think Mario has great hands, but with Carnell-type moves and speed. He brings that power, too," Gran said. "We'll keep implementing plays and putting him in there. He's right on track. I'm excited."

Fannin isn't necessarily smitten with this transitional role.

He said coaches have told him that his future is at tailback. Lester frequently encourages the freshman to keep his spirits high, relating his own stories of playing behind Brown, Williams and Kenny Irons.

The message is getting through.

"The coaches said they would try to get me the ball. I went with it. I trusted the coaches," Fannin said. "When it's my time, it'll be my time to play at the tailback position. Right now, I'm just contributing in the best way I can."

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