The 2022 Auburn football A-Day spring game has come and gone, and Tiger fans now have an idea of how certain pieces will be integrated on both sides of the ball.
Plenty of youth and transfers make up the AU roster following a disappointing season that started off well but couldn’t have possibly finished any worse. Moving forward, expectations are tempered in the Bryan Harsin era. Things could take time to develop on the Plains.
Then again, Auburn is at its best when people are saying these sorts of things about them.
A-Day was a slog at times, with the offense often failing to produce downfield movement. Other times, there were flashes of electricity.
What we know is that the defense is still solid, and the offense will be reliant on a physical run game to get by and win close battles in 2022.
Fly War Eagle is here to dissect whose stock has improved, and whose took a tumble during the 2022 Auburn football A-Day spring game:
Auburn football QB T.J. Finley: Stock down
Any performance that didn’t win over a large number of doubters was going to be considered an unsuccessful showing from T.J. Finley. Unfortunately, despite flashes of brilliance, it felt like a lot of same ‘ol, same ‘ol for the six-foot-seven Ruston, Louisiana product.
Now, granted, his corner route end zone find to Malcolm Johnson Jr. was the exact sort of play Finley needs to master to make the best use of his big arm. But watching him sail balls more than five yards over the head of intended receivers was a painful reminder of his inaccuracies.
His receivers were far from perfect with Tar’varish Dawson’s dropped deep ball being one of the most egregious errors. But no one is coming away from that game saying he was the most impressive QB.
Consider the QB race wide open after A-Day.
Auburn football QB Robby Ashford: Stock up
Robby Ashford’s public debut as an Auburn Tiger went about as swimmingly as it realistically could have gone. He didn’t break free for any big runs or send a missile downfield on the run, but Ashford comes out of the day as a far bigger winner than T.J. Finley.
Ashford finished 12-16 with 132 yards and looked elusive and swift maneuvering around the pocket.
While it may not have been convincing enough of a showing to definitively pencil him in as the starter this upcoming campaign, the Hoover product leaves A-Day far closer to the starting job than where he was coming into it.
Auburn football QB Holden Geriner: Stock up
Holden Geriner’s first taste of collegiate action was electrifying. The Savannah, Georgia gunslinger had the offense humming in the fourth quarter, and despite falling short with an incomplete two-point conversion end zone attempt to Landen King (who caught the TD preceding it) while down 10-9 with the game on the line, showed he can make things happen in the passing game.
Geriner is also elusive, though not quite as slippery as Ashford. His quick snap on his throws work well in the flat, and he read the coverage well on several of his deep-ball end zone tries.
The starting job is going to be tough for him to win as a freshman, but Geriner showed he is a legitimate entry into the Tigers QB battle.
Auburn football RB Tank Bigsby: Stock neutral
Tank Bigsby didn’t get much from the first-team OL, and thus didn’t exactly have many highlight-reel runs.
Nothing to worry about too much during the spring game, but it’s troubling that the former Heisman hopeful has seen his hype die down so much since the conclusion of the 2020 season.
Auburn football RB Sean Jackson: Stock up
It’s clear that Sean Jackson is going to be an important member of the Tigers backfield during the 2022 season based on his workhorse performance Saturday.
Don’t be surprised to see Jackson have a 2022 campaign similar to Shaun Shivers’ 2020 season in the run game, but one more similar to Shivers’ 2021 season in the passing game.
Auburn football S Caleb Wooden: Stock neutral
It was going to be hard for Caleb Wooden to improve his stock given the tremendous hype he had coming into it.
Though Malcolm Johnson Jr.’s 20-yard TD grab over Wooden was actually dropped, it didn’t count as such in the record books. Letting up the big play hurts his stock, but he made up for it on the very next play. That’s a push in FWE’s eyes.
Auburn football DL Dylan Brooks: Stock up
Dylan Brooks was physical and athletic in getting to the spots on the field he needed to, showing the coaching staff that the future of the EDGE position is in good hands after Eku Leota and Derick Hall.
Brooks should have had a recorded sack on Finley, but the stats don’t matter. What does is that Brooks looks like someone immediately ready to contribute.
Auburn football TE Brandon Frazier: Stock up
We just want to give a quick shoutout to two-year SEC academic honor roll honoree Brandon Frazier. The junior TE Frazier caught four straight passes from Holden Geriner in the final drive.
Auburn’s TE room has no shortage of options, but Frazier showed he has reliable hands on Saturday afternoon.