Auburn’s quarterback situation just got a little more dicier for Alex Golesh in his first season on the Plains.
Ashton Daniels, who was expected to be the leader for the starting position in 2026, announced on Saturday his intention to enter the transfer portal.
A transfer from Stanford, Daniels sat behind Jackson Arnold for the first seven games of the season. With Auburn trailing at Arkansas and the Tigers’ offense struggling again, Hugh Freeze decided to put Daniels in to give Auburn a boost in the second half of a 33-24 win against the Razorbacks. In that game, Daniels completed 6-of-8 passes for 77 yards while rushing for 35 yards on seven attempts.
As the starter in the next game against Kentucky, Daniels and Auburn were lethargic on offense, as he completed 13-of-28 passes for 108 yards and an interception before being replaced by Arnold in the second half of a 10-3 loss that would end the Freeze era at Auburn.
A brand new Ashton Daniels and Auburn offense
With Derrick Nix calling plays, Daniels and the Tigers lit it up against Vanderbilt, with the quarterback throwing for 353 yards and two touchdowns while rushing for 89 yards and two scores in a 45-38 overtime loss to the Commodores.
Daniels elected to sit out the Mercer game to preserve his redshirt for the season, returning for the season-ending game against Alabama. Against the Crimson Tide, he threw for 259 yards and a touchdown with an interception and rushed for 108 yards.
In four games, Daniels completed 57.1 percent of his passes for 797 yards and three touchdowns with two interceptions while rushing for 280 yards and two scores.
With Daniels joining Arnold as players intending to enter the transfer portal, Deuce Knight is the only quarterback on the Tigers’ roster with playing experience from this past season. There is speculation that Byrum Brown, who played for Golesh at USF, could follow the coach to Auburn.