Auburn football: 2 questions to kick off fall camp 2023

It’s finally August, which means Auburn football’s fall camp is here and the college football season is just weeks away. There are only 15 practices standing in between the Tigers and their first game against UMass in Jordan-Hare but there are quite a few questions to be answered.

The most pressing question, and one that has been a question for a long time on the Plains, is who will be the starting quarterback. Deja vu, anyone? This year, fall camp is kicking off with a three-way quarterback battle between Holden Geriner, Robby Ashford, and Payton Thorne.

The Montgomery Advertiser reports that head coach Hugh Freeze has planned for the trio of quarterbacks to compete for the first ten practices, and then narrow it down to two guys for the last five sessions. Will that be enough for a standalone starter by September 2? Either way, don’t count Robby Ashford out of the action— Freeze has said that the QB makes the team better and will likely have a role whether or not he is QB1.

Next, will the Tigers’ passing game improve? For the past few seasons, Auburn football has struggled to find a go-to receiver and make big plays through the air. While returner Camden Brown could potentially have a breakout season this year, there are also plenty of new receivers on the roster from the transfer portal.

Caleb Burton, Jyaire Shorter, and Shane Hooks are just a few of the newcomers in the mix for wide receivers coach Marcus Davis, and the position group as a whole will likely have more expected of them in the new offense. Last year, the Tigers were last in the conference in average passing yards per game, but hopefully that changes in 2023.

The Auburn football program has a lot of work to do over the next month, but it’s clear things are trending up.