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Where QB competition stands


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Where Auburn's QB competition stands entering final week of spring practice

By Tom Green | tgreen@al.com
8-10 minutes

At the onset of spring practice, Bryan Harsin cautioned against placing a timeline on Auburn’s offseason quarterback competition. It wasn’t going to happen as quickly as some on the outside would prefer; the competition would unfold at its own pace as Harsin and offensive coordinator Eric Kiesau put every morsel of information under the microscope.

Though Harsin had no target date for naming a starter in mind, he hoped there would be some sort of demarcation midway through the spring. The Tigers’ quarterbacks would all get relatively even reps through the first seven of the team’s 15 spring practices, and then Harsin and Kiesau would see where things stand.

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Practice No. 7 — with the team’s first scrimmage — came and went last week, and the competition certainly has shifted from where things were entering March. Once a five-man race, the battle for QB1 has whittled down to four following Dematrius Davis’ decision to enter the transfer portal during the second week of practice on March 23. Only three of the remaining candidates have been able to get a full range of reps, with Texas A&M transfer Zach Calzada still limited and in a yellow jersey while recovering from a lingering shoulder injury.

That has left T.J. Finley (the lone returning player at the position), Oregon transfer Robby Ashford and four-star freshman Holden Geriner as the three candidates getting the bulk of the reps this spring. With Auburn now through 11 practices — including Saturday’s second spring scrimmage — and with A-Day less than a week away, Harsin provided an update on where things stand with the Tigers’ quarterback competition three weeks into the spring.

“It’s not balanced as much as it was early on,” Harsin said of the distribution of reps at the position.

Finley, the former LSU transfer who started the final three games for Auburn last season, has remained atop the pecking order this spring. During every portion of practice open to the media, Finley has worked with the first-team offense, and Harsin said Saturday that he has received the majority of the first-team reps this spring.

After completing 54.7 percent of his passes for 827 yards, six touchdowns and an interception last season while serving primarily as the backup to Bo Nix, Finley acknowledged the need to take a step forward in his development — from accuracy, to footwork, to fundamentals of the position — this offseason. Harsin lauded Finley for the progress he has made thus far this spring, particularly in how well he has been able to run the Tigers’ offense.

Finley is the only scholarship quarterback on Auburn’s roster who has experience with Harsin’s offense, and the 6-foot-7, 250-pounder is trying to make the most of that built-in advantage in the competition.

“He’s got a good handle on the operations,” Harsin said. “He’s got a good handle of what we’re trying to get done with some checks. I think he’s seeing the defense well. Now, it’s just going out there and making plays, throwing accurately, making the right read, being able to handle the different pressures and things that defenses bring.”

Behind Finley, Ashford has received the second-most reps this spring. The Oregon transfer has consistently been the second quarterback in the rotation during position drills, and he has been seen receiving most of the second-team reps during the portion of practice open to the media.

The further along in practice Auburn has gotten this spring, the more opportunities the former Hoover star has earned at the position. He has showcased a live arm and some quality throws during drills, as he and Finley have often looked like the most polished passers in practices when the media have been present.

“He’s trying to get better,” Harsin said. “I think he cares. That’s what I like about him the most — he wants to improve. He wants to play. He wants to be the best quarterback that he can be. He’s athletic. He can throw it. He’s got the tools. He’s learning a new system. A little bit, there’s some patience that comes with that. You’ve got to understand that.”

A former four-star quarterback in the 2020 class, Ashford did not see the field during his two years at Oregon before opting to transfer this offseason. Despite the lack of in-game experience at the college level, Harsin has been pleased with how the 6-foot-3, 213-pounder has come along since arriving on campus.

“He wants to be good,” Harsin said. “Makes a mistake, right? I know it bothers him. But you’ve got to (snaps) move on. You’ve got another opportunity. It’s the next play. Just trying to train habits with all the players. There’s really good habits, you keep emphasizing those. There’s bad habits, you want to correct those. Emphasize the good ones, correct the bad ones. He’s really in that stage right now. That’s going to continue.”

Patience has been crucial with Ashford, though, and how he continues to progress through the summer will determine where things stand for him entering fall camp.

That also applies to Auburn’s other two candidates for the job: Geriner and Calzada.

The lone freshman of the group, Geriner has been third in the pecking order during practices this spring since the departure of Davis nearly two weeks ago. The early enrollee has a strong arm, and Harsin has been impressed with his growth at the position over the last 14 months — from the time he committed to the program last February to now three-fourths of the way through his first spring.

Things can move fast for a freshman after arriving on campus, especially with trying to absorb everything that comes with a new playbook and the transition to college life for the first time. Still, Harsin likes what he has seen from Geriner—but again preached patience with early enrollee.

“He’s working on detailing that stuff up,” Harsin said. “It’s just going to take time. Once spring ball is over, the best part for a guy like Holden is he’s getting the reps right now. He’s getting a chance to experience it. He’s going through it. The time in the summer’s going to be huge for him because he’ll know what we’re doing, he’ll know how to operate it better. Then come fall camp, that’s what I’ve seen from quarterbacks when they come in early, young quarterbacks, is just how much progress they make when you get into fall camp.”

The true wildcard in the competition, at this juncture, is Calzada. Besides Finley, he’s the only other quarterback in the room with starting experience at the college level, having started 10 games at Texas A&M last season — including a career performance in an upset win against Alabama.

When Calzada transferred to Auburn this offseason, the assumption from many was that he would be Finley’s biggest competition for the starting job. The 6-foot-4, 208-pounder has yet to be fully integrated into practices though as he deals with a left shoulder injury that he just happened to sustain during Texas A&M’s win against Auburn last November.

Calzada completed 56.1 percent of his passes for 2,185 yards, 17 touchdowns and nine interceptions in 12 games for the Aggies last season, but Auburn has been cautious with his reps this spring. He has not taken many team reps, but he has worked through position drills and 7-on-7 periods this spring. Harsin acknowledged that Calzada would be getting a larger share of reps if he was fully healthy this spring, but coaches have wanted to make sure he doesn’t reinjure his left shoulder.

“I know he wants to be out there; he’s dying just to stand back there and watch,” Harsin said. “He’s in the yellow jersey, and it’s killing him; he wants to go out there and play, and I know he can. I might’ve said that. I told you guys that he can throw the ball well. He’s learning, he’s been in the film room really trying to pick it up. So, summer’s going to be big for him, fall camp, and that’s going to be determined when he can get out there and get those reps that guys are getting right now.

“But all four of those guys have done some really good things, but right now I think T.J.’s played in the offense, I think he’s leading well, I think he’s got a good feel for what we’re trying to do and just some of the things we want to accomplish this spring, that operation piece is really critical.”

Tom Green is an Auburn beat reporter for Alabama Media Group. Follow him on Twitter @Tomas_Verde.

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I think Holden Geriner has the highest ceiling of the four, but it would be a tall order for a true freshman to pass older QB's who have been college football starters. Hopefully one of the four can prove to be a winner this coming season. That too, will be a tall order considering the lack of depth at several positions.

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I believe the best man will win . We need a leader that carries his brothers and keeps everyone fired up from start to finish . 

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There are only a couple scenarios I see playing out.

The first is that TJ Finley starts the first game or two while ZC comes along. They may even split time the first game. 

The second is that ZC is the starter day one. 

Those are the two most logical outcomes. I know Finley is young and can still get a lot better, but from where they were last year I don't know if he holds off ZC for the starting spot long. It definitely helps TJ that ZC is injured this spring and limited. So if and when ZC does beat him out of the #1 spot we won't have to hear any of the normal BS we often hear from folks about why ZC is starting. 

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Our starting QB will need wheels unless we have a quick strike offense with quick decision making.  Finley can throw a pretty ball and he has a nice stature behind the line.  However, unless we find a transfer OL that can immediately plug in, Finley will be a sitting duck (unless he makes quick decisions). ZC and Ashford have good speed at QB to get out of trouble.  ZC proved that in that gutsy win against Bama. 

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I think we're giving TJ to much flack for his limited time last season and ZC to much credit based on the bama win. TJ was 54.7% behind our OL and ZC was 56.1% behind a TAMU OL. Unless both of these young men make major strides this off season, it won't matter who starts. I think ZC not being available hurts TJ. I'm not sure he's really been challenged this off season. Here's hoping a true star emerges by Fall.

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JLee and the On3 guys seemed to think Calzada was great fit for Harsin’s offense.  I also think Calzada will be the man to beat but it sounds like TJ is getting better.  It also sounds like Ashford is getting week by week.  

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8 hours ago, Mikey said:

I think Holden Geriner has the highest ceiling of the four, but it would be a tall order for a true freshman to pass older QB's who have been college football starters. Hopefully one of the four can prove to be a winner this coming season. That too, will be a tall order considering the lack of depth at several positions.

Agreed. Notably, the 2 guys w/ college experience he'd have to pass completed barely over half of their passes. We know w/ Finley that included missing some wide open guys at critical points in games on rare plays when he was hardly pressured. If a QB has a "grasp" on the O but cant hit his plate with a fork, the youngster learning the O (if he's even marginally more accurate) is a legit consideration. I personally think Harsin values Ashfords athleticism enough to make him the early starter.

Edited by aucanucktiger
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  • WarTiger changed the title to Where QB competition stands

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