When asked before the season why he made the decision to transfer from Penn State to Auburn, KeAndre Lambert-Smith listed a few reasons, but one on-field reason stood out.

“Having the opportunity to come to a staff where they’ve got four guys on the staff where they take pride in throwing the ball and getting the receivers open and drawing up plays for the receivers — that kinda got my attention, I would say,” Lambert-Smith said in August.

Through 10 games, that idea has come true for Lambert-Smith, surpassing his career high for receiving yards in a season against Louisiana-Monroe. He’s up to 761 receiving yards for the year, almost 100 more than his best season at Penn State.

He’s been arguably the most important piece of an Auburn passing offense that despite sitting at 4-6, has been rejuvenated this season. The Tigers are No. 37 in the country in passing yards per game and already have 2,565 passing yards on the year as a team, their highest total since 2021.

There was a noticeable emphasis put on upgrading the talent at wide receiver going into the season, as Auburn added four blue-chip freshmen receivers and three experienced transfers, including Lambert-Smith.

The newcomers to the room have had varying degrees of success this season, but the offense as a whole has made a noticeable statistical jump.

Lambert-Smith had one of his best games of the season against ULM, catching six passes for 104 yards and a touchdown, his second 100-yard game of the season. Arguably the bigger story of the game, though, was the performance of one of those blue-chip freshman, Cam Coleman.

Coleman caught eight passes for 100 yards and three touchdowns, his best outing in an Auburn uniform so far. Lambert-Smith, someone who coaches and players have described as a mentor to the younger receivers, was happy to see things come together for his freshman teammate.

“It meant everything for his confidence, especially the one-handed catch. I’m pretty sure it was a great feeling,” Lambert-Smith told reporters on Tuesday. “I’ve seen Cam make that catch quite a few times since I’ve been here so I kinda knew what kind of player he was. I feel like everybody kind of knows that and it’s just a matter of time before he puts that on display.”

While simple, having confidence can be the final trait to break out as a receiver. Lambert-Smith called it the biggest key to the season he’s having.

“I feel like I’m around a group of guys who push me, especially the younger guys. And then, just Coach Davis, Coach Mo, Coach Heath. I feel like they provide trust in me,” Lambert-Smith said. “So I just feel like it’s all allowed my confidence to be where it should’ve been, and I’m not doing nothing spectacular. I feel like this is the player I’ve always been.”

Despite possibly only having two college games left in his career, Lambert-Smith still believes he can offer more. He said his main priority is winning, but getting to 1,000 receiving yards would be a nice bonus.

It won’t come easy, though, and the final stretch starts with a home finale against Texas A&M, a team Lambert-Smith considered while in the transfer portal. Then comes a date with Alabama to end the season, but the tough opposition doesn’t seem to be changing Lambert-Smith’s approach.

“What do they say? The best is yet to come? It sounds really cliche, but that’s how I feel honestly,” Lambert-Smith said. “Just been capitalizing on all the opportunities and leading the young guys and help the team win.”

Peter Rauterkus covers Auburn sports for AL.com. You can follow him on X at @peter_rauterkus or email him at [email protected]m