Auburn QB Race Down To Two

Aubie will apparently cheer on a quarterback making his first collegiate start when Auburn hosts Washington State for the season opener. Mandatory Credit: John David Mercer-USA TODAY Sports

Auburn’s quarterback race is down to two – and neither took a snap for the Tigers last year.

Offensive guru Gus Malzahn returned to Auburn, evaluated the talent and essentially said he would rather take his chances with a junior-college transfer and a true freshman.

In doing so, he eschewed Kiehl Frazier and Jonathan Wallace – both of whom started at quarterback a year ago. Before the competition began, the other player who started for the Tigers in 2012 – Clint Moseley – decided he would prefer not to play this season.

The remaining candidates are Nick Marshall, the aforementioned junior-college transfer, and Jeremy Johnson, the freshman.

Malzahn announced that Marshall and Johnson would split first-team reps moving forward. He also announced that Frazier, a former five-star recruit rated by some scouting services as the top-dual-threat quarterback in the nation, moved to safety.

Wallace will still line up at quarterback. Where he will fall on the depth chart, exactly, remains to be seen.

Nobody was listing Auburn’s quarterbacks at the top of the SEC this season, and for good reason. The Tigers were abysmal at the position in 2012 and only Frazier and Wallace were viable options through spring camp.

Malzahn has taken a chance on a quarterback who didn’t practice in August before, though, when he chose Chris Todd over Kodi Burns and Neil Caudle. Incidentally, Burns – now a graduate assistant at Auburn – is back in the news because of his tutelage and support of Frazier. Burns moved to receiver after Todd beat him for the position.

Auburn, likely to be led by either Marshall or Johnson, opens the season Aug. 31 against Washington State.