Ashford makes case in Auburn QB race with A-Day MVP performance

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Auburn Football

Oregon transfer Robby Ashford makes case in Auburn QB race with A-Day MVP performance

Published: Apr. 10, 2022, 7:05 a.m.

Auburn Tigers quarterback Robby Ashford scrambles for yardage during the A-Day NCAA college spring football game at Jordan-Hare Stadium, Saturday, April 9, 2022, in Auburn, Ala. (AP Photo/Butch Dill)AP

By Tom Green | tgreen@al.com

Shedrick Jackson and his Hoover High teammates have believed for years that Robby Ashford had what it took to be a big-time college quarterback. There was something about Ashford—his athleticism, the way he carried himself, the level of gamesmanship he had on the field—that just made it feel like an inevitability that he’d be performing on the Saturday stage for a major program one day.

Things didn’t work out for Ashford at Oregon, where he failed to see the field in two seasons, but he transferred back to his home state this offseason with hopes of competing for Auburn’s starting quarterback job. On Saturday, the third-year freshman stepped into the spotlight and made his first public case to be the Tigers’ QB1.

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Observations from Auburn’s last day of spring practices

Ashford took home A-Day offensive MVP honors during Auburn’s spring game after completing 12-of-16 passes for 132 yards. Almost all of that came against the first-team defense and while working with the second-team offense, behind T.J. Finley, who got the first-team work for much of the scrummage.

“He did amazing,” Finley said.

Ashford made the most of his first spring with the Tigers, taking advantage of a quarterback competition that shifted somewhat over the last four weeks. The spring began with a five-man competition that included Finley, redshirt freshman Dematrius Davis, Texas A&M transfer Zach Calzada, Ashford and true freshman early enrollee Holden Geriner.

Ashford entered the spring viewed by many as, at best, the third quarterback in the competition. Finley, who started three games last season, was the incumbent after stepping into the starting role late last year following a season-ending ankle injury to Bo Nix. Davis was also back with a year of experience in the offense, despite not seeing the field last season, and Calzada entered the fray as the only other quarterback with college experience — and, more importantly, starting experience in the SEC. Davis started the spring getting the second-team reps behind Finley, but he entered the transfer portal after a little more than one week of practices. Calzada, meanwhile, was still dealing with a left shoulder injury he sustained against Auburn last season and was limited to position work and seven-on-seven drills while being held out of team periods.

That left an opportunity for Ashford, who received most of the second-team reps throughout the spring and was typically behind Finley in the rotation during drills when the media was present at practices.

“As far as the rust, he was working hard up to the first practice,” Auburn coach Bryan Harsin said. “You know, the first practice, you’re getting out there — and I really believe this, too — for a quarterback, it’s not just when you get into a competitive or a game situation. Every rep you take — routes on air, seven-on-sevens, all that — you’ve got to be thinking about the game, because there’s just so many factors that are happening around you at all times. And so, I would say coach (Eric) Kiesau, (offensive analyst) coach (Mike) Hartline in that quarterback room, they’ve done a good job of making sure those guys, just mentally, when they go in, they’re ready.”

Ashford on Saturday certainly looked ready for his opportunity. The 6-foot-3, 212-pounder showcased his strong arm and solid accuracy (he completed 75 percent of his passes and fit a few of them into tight windows).

Ashford had three passes of at least 20 yards, including a 27-yard pass to Ze’Vian Capers to convert a second-and-27 early in the second half. Two passes later, he hit tight end Tyler Fromm on a quick play-action pass for 23 yards. Those were both part of an extended field goal drive for the second-team offense to open the second half. After completing 5-of-6 passes for 47 yards in the first half, Ashford went 6-for-7 for 80 yards on the opening drive of the third quarter.

Although he didn’t lead any touchdown drives on the afternoon, Ashford demonstrated a solid command of the offense, especially considering he’s just 15 practices into his Auburn career.

“Early on (in spring), it was a little struggle, just a new offense for him and one that he’s not used to, so that could be a really big struggle for a quarterback,” tight end John Samuel Shenker said. “But I thought he handled it well today and got the reps that he needed.”

Ashford also brought an added dimension to the position as more of a dual-threat option, extending some plays with his legs and scrambling on a few occasions, including a 13-yard run to convert a third-and-1 situation on his first drive of the day. That’s the gamesmanship that Jackson spoke of — that he has seen for years, going back to their days at Hoover.

“I’ve seen Robby do all types of stuff,” Jackson said. “We all knew he was athletic, he could run, he could throw the ball, so I mean he’s not one-dimensional; he can do it all. Yeah, he got a live arm, so he’s doing good.”

Ashford officially finished with six rushing attempts for minus-3 yards, but he was also “sacked” twice -- with Harsin acknowledging that those weren’t guaranteed sacks in an actual game situation -- and had three scrambles blown dead for no gain. He showed an ability to improvise when necessary and made several throws on the move, teasing some of what he brings to the quarterback competition -- though the full impact of his athleticism couldn’t be appreciated on a day when the quarterbacks did not go live against the defense.

“He’s a super great athlete,” Shenker said. “That’s part of this thing. When he’s not live, it’s tough to see how athletic he can be. But yeah, he made great decisions today. Obviously made a lot of progress through the spring with the new offense. That’s a lot being thrown at him. He’s done well, and we’ll take that into summer as he continues to compete.”

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