Aug. 15, 2016
By Charles Goldberg
AuburnTigers.com
AUBURN, Ala. - No, coach Gus Malzahn didn't name a starting quarterback Monday. But he did say he's been pleased with Auburn's preseason practice, so much so he rewarded his players and cancelled the second session of Monday's scheduled two-a-day workout.
"Our guys had a very good practice with great energy yesterday afternoon before Fan Day. They were very motivated. It was very impressive for me late in fall camp that we were able to respond," he said. "I think we're in a great spot."
Monday morning's work was also encouraging, so Malzahn officially closed the fall camp portion of practice before the afternoon workout. The Tigers are off Tuesday for the first day of class, then will move to a normal practice schedule Wednesday as they begin working toward the Sept. 3 season-opener against Clemson.
"We need to sharpen up. But the main thing will be getting ready for Clemson," Malzahn said.
Malzahn said the quarterback race between Sean White, Jeremy Johnson and John Franklin III remains a "fierce competition."
"They're much improved from the spring, and that's exciting for me.
Malzahn said he'll consider his options for the three.
"We've always had a Wildcat-type guy and we've always had a starter," he said.
"I don't think you can ever have enough quality depth at the quarterback position if you run your quarterback. The fact that we've got three guys that can take a snap and execute a play like we need it executed, I think that's a positive. Our quarterback has to be more of a runner this year, we've talked about that, I don't care who it is. It's good that we've got that depth right now."
Malzahn also saidÃÆ'¢Ãƒ¢'¬¦
**Receiver Tony Stevens, who was spotted at Fan Day on crutches, has a "minor thing."
"He'll be back to practice probably in the next 2-3 days but it's nothing that will alter him as far as the first game is concerned.
"Fall camp was tough, and it should have been tough. We needed to get back to that physical straining them. We're a little banged up at a lot of different positions, but it's not a bad banged up. We've got two and a half weeks, a little more than two and a half weeks, to get these guys ready. And the guys that are there, we're expecting every one of them to play. We're expecting everyone to be 100 percent that's not already had surgery or something like that."
**"There's no doubt," Malzahn said, freshman running back Kam Martin will play this season.
"He's a tough guy. That's what stood out to me. He's got courage. Backs protect in this league and it's not easy. He's stepped up and put his face in there. That was encouraging."
Charles Goldberg is a Senior Writer at AuburnTigers.com. Follow him on Twitter: Follow @AUGoldMine