Auburn Football: Could transfer TJ Finley be Tigers’ starting QB?

Auburn football added another talented arm to its quarterback room on Monday in the way of former LSU starter TJ Finley. What will his impact be with the Tigers? 

One of the most interesting players left in the transfer portal, especially at quarterback, was former LSU Tiger TJ Finley, who on Monday, announced his intention to transfer to Auburn football.

The 6-foot-6 quarterback from Louisiana started a few games last season for the Tigers and threw five touchdowns and five interceptions. He also completed just over 57 percent of his passes and left a crowded depth chart at LSU to enter the portal.

That was just a couple of weeks ago and in that time, Finley received offers from Auburn football, Penn State, Texas, Alabama, and Houston. All of those teams were in his final four except the Longhorns and on Monday, Finley finally chose the Tigers, who have been the favorite.

With a new head coach in Bryan Harsin, Finley told 247 sports he’s not going to Auburn football with the intention of being the No. 2, even with starter Bo Nix returning.

"“They don’t have a lot of quarterbacks in the room behind Bo (Nix) that can step in and play and I feel like they lack experience behind Bo. And there is an opportunity there. A lot of people in the organization there since the new staff got there believe I can come in and compete for the starting job. It ain’t like I’m going there to be a backup.”"

Can Finley win the starting job?

Finley was ranked 499th overall in the 2020 247 sports composite rankings but he showed last season he doesn’t lack for arm talent.

It’s not often that you get a youngster who has already started games for a team like LSU, with the chance to develop him for the future.

Finley can talk about winning the job and if he stands out in fall camp, maybe he will. Yet, even if Nix keeps the job, Finley gives Auburn football a solid option for the future.

Nix completed fewer than 60 percent of his passes the past two seasons and a year ago, he had just 12 touchdown passes compared to seven interceptions.

So a true quarterback battle could ensue this fall for Auburn football, especially if the SEC allows in-conference transfers to play right away within the conference.

The fact that Penn State and even Alabama showed interest, among others, tells you what you need to know about Finley’s recruitment and what kind of player he can be.