AUBURN, AL (EETV) - Since the hire of Chip Lindsey and the recruiting of Jarrett Stidham, Auburn fans have anxiously awaited a look at the Tigers’ offensive upgrades. They will get that chance today.
Malzahn announced that returning starter Sean White will be watching the annual scrimmage from the sidelines. Since then, fans and critics alike have speculated which quarterback option will be the one to watch. When asked about Stidham’s ability to lead Auburn’s new offense, Lindsay said, “Jarett is a smart guy. He comes up here and studies a lot and does a lot on his own, which is good. That’s the characteristic of a really good quarterback.”
Another option at front and center is Malik Willis. Willis signed to Auburn as a three-star quarterback with just one year of experience under his belt at Roswell High. He led his high school to the Class 7A state title game after passing for 2,562 yards, rushing for 1,033 and scoring 37 total touchdowns in one year.
“For a freshman, for a guy that really should be in high school getting ready for prom, I think he’s been really, really good. I really like his progress,” Lindsey said.
The person many spectators are most excited to see won’t be on the field though. That person is the new offensive coordinator himself. With Auburn’s offensive pitfalls last year and the loss of Rhett Lashlee, who some believed to be the glimmer of hope in the offense, hanging over their heads Gus Malzahn and Chip Lindsey have a lot to prove. A-Day will be their first chance at seeing not only what their new quarterback options are capable of but to show all of Jordan-Hare what they're capable of as well.
“We're going to throw the ball, for sure,” Lindsey said. “We've got to really try to focus on the things that we've already done and really get our guys to see who can execute our base plays that we've been running and who leads our team, who affects the other 10 guys the best. That's really what I'm looking for.”
Malzahn has been quiet about what his plans are for the day. The head coach will see his fourth A-Day with several different quarterbacks and a No. 3 running back spot to fill. A position that running backs coach Tim Horton calls “one of the biggest pieces of the puzzle.”
“Every year is a little bit different,” Malzahn said. “At the end of the day, you got to do what’s best for your team. There’s a lot of information these days on TV and in the stands. So yeah. I’m pretty guarded. Probably more guarded than most. And I need to be.”
Kickoff is set for 1 p.m. today inside Jordan-Hare Stadium and can be seen on the SEC Network. We will have a team of reporters at A-Day, check our website during the game for live tweets of the events happening inside Jordan-Hare Stadium.
