Phil Steele has surprising Auburn football quarterback prediction

Similar to last year, perhaps the biggest question heading into Auburn football’s 2023 season is who will be the starting quarterback. Last season, under Bryan Harsin, it seemed almost a toss-up, with Zach Calzada falling through and TJ Finley eventually petering out and leaving the job to Robby Ashford.

The level of competition seemed to be lacking, but that will not be the case for the Tigers this year. Robby Ashford and Holden Geriner will return and compete with the additions of incoming freshman Hank Brown and former Michigan State quarterback Payton Thorne.

Thorne has received a lot of hype in the offseason and has been labeled as Hugh Freeze’s guy after being brought in from the transfer portal. Many believe that his proven experience and ability to win games give him a leg up in the competition, but there’s no guarantee that he will win the starting spot.

Analyst Phil Steele released his projected depth chart for the 2023 Auburn football team and he believes that incumbent starter Robby Ashford will win the QB1 role rather than Thorne.

All along, head coach Hugh Freeze has said that Ashford has some growing up to do and that he faces accuracy issues. But now that there is a real coaching staff on board to help develop him, it’s possible that he’ll grow and improve enough to lead the offense for another year.

When Thorne was added to the roster, Ashford responded by tweeting, “Iron sharpens iron! Let’s get to work!” The competition in the room can only make the quarterbacks better, and there’s no telling who will come out on top this fall.

Even if Ashford wins the QB battle, the Tigers’ lineup is expected to look very different from last season with all the new transfers, especially on the offensive line. Hopefully, all the changes will lead to vast improvements for the Tigers no matter who is under center.