Birmingham Bowl 2015: Auburn Practice 1
Auburn quarterbacks Sean White (13) and Jeremy Johnson (6) warm up during practice Sunday, Dec. 27, 2015, at Hoover High School in Hoover, Ala. Auburn will take on Memphis in the Birmingham Bowl Wednesday. (Julie Bennett/jbennett@al.com)
(JULIE BENNETT)
Auburn's starting quarterback job appears to be wide open.
The Tigers open spring practice Tuesday with no clear front-runner to win the job, and head coach Gus Malzahn said each one will begin with equal reps.
"We'll chart everything that they do in team settings, 7-on-7 settings and give them all a chance to compete," Malzahn said. "Competition brings out the best in everyone. My experience is, the longer spring goes on, you put the guys in different situations... So we'll see and me and (offensive coordinator) Rhett (Lashlee) will evaluate that position on a daily basis."
Jeremy Johnson and Sean White started seven and six games, respectively, for Auburn in 2015 with mixed results. At midseason, the Tigers offered a scholarship to junior college quarterback John Franklin III, who committed and enrolled in January.
Though his accuracy has been questioned, Franklin (6-1, 174) brings an attribute that's been missing from Auburn's offense since Nick Marshall left in 2014 -- speed. In a two-quarterback system at East Mississippi Community College last fall, Franklin rushed for 451 yards and nine touchdowns. Johnson and White combined for 172 net rushing yards in 2015.
Franklin told AL.com last fall he intends to win the job prior to before fall camp begins. Malzahn said Franklin is already off to a good start with his strength and conditioning under coach Ryan Russell.
"He had good mat drills with our coaches," Malzahn said. "I think he's a guy who is very eager and has done a good job so far of being a good teammate -- getting to know his teammates, so we'll see what he does."
Johnson completed 60.5 percent of his passes for 1,054 yards, 10 touchdowns and seven interceptions in 2015. He was benched after Auburn's loss to LSU in favor of White, who was hampered with injuries but went on to complete 58 percent of his throws for 1,166 yards, one touchdowns and four interceptions.
Malzahn said both players are ready for a fresh start.
"(Johnson's) done a good job of putting last year, and even when he was successful, he's put that behind him," Malzahn said. "He is laser-focused moving forward and I think there's some freshness with that. He's got that look, and Sean's got that look too. That was last year. This is a new year, and that's what we've been preaching to our guys."
Meanwhile, fellow quarterback Tyler Queen has not fully recovered from his shoulder surgery, but is expected to participate in spring practice on a limited basis. Malzahn said the rising redshirt freshman will throw about 50 times each day.
"That's still a lot of throws, and that's after he warms up so Coach Lashlee will definitely keep up with that," Malzahn said. "But he's in a good spot right now. He's excited to get out there and get back to participating."
The Tigers also singed dual-threat quarterback Woody Barrett in the 2016 recruiting cycle, but the four-star prospect will not enroll until after spring. Former Vigor quarterback Devin Adams will walk on for the Tigers.
"Can they be successful running our offense?" Malzahn asked. "That's really the bottom line and everything that goes with it from on the field, off the field, leadership, making your teammates better, the unique thing about our offense (is) our quarterback's got a chance to really influence the rest of his teammates. That's what we'll be looking for."