Robby Ashford – Page 6 – Syndication Server

Robby Ashford is refusing to back down

Ashford has handled the adversity of losing his starting job better than Hugh Freeze had hoped.

Incumbent quarterback starter [autotag]Robby Ashford[/autotag] reached a character crossroads last week when he was informed that he would not be leading Auburn’s offense for the season opener against UMass.

Instead of backing down, he is using this experience as a chance to continue fighting for the job. Head coach [autotag]Hugh Freeze[/autotag] is taking notice.

“He’s probably had his best three practices the last three practices,” Freeze said following Saturday’s scrimmage. “I’m really proud of him.”

Ashford’s response is exactly what Freeze had hoped for. Freeze mentioned Thursday that he feels confident that Ashford can help Auburn win down the road if he continued to work on his craft. He also says that Ashford will always have a package.

“Robby is not just a runner — he’s a dynamic runner, but he can throw. Certain things, he throws better,” Freeze says. “Hopefully, his consistency in that will continue to improve to where if we, whatever package he is in, they have to respect the pass off of it as well.”

If Ashford continues to progress, [autotag]Payton Thorne[/autotag] will in turn need to turn up his game in an effort to keep his job throughout the season.

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Paul Finebaum calls out Nick Saban over Alabama’s quarterback competition

The SEC Network analyst complimented Hugh Freeze’s decision to name Payton Thorne the starting quarterback while taking a shot at Saban.

Auburn head coach [autotag]Hugh Freeze[/autotag] announced this week that he has decided on Payton Thorne to lead the offense as the team’s quarterback. Kirby Smart also revealed this week that Carson Beck will be Georgia’s starting quarterback, taking over for Stetson Bennett.

It seems as if every quarterback battle in the SEC has been decided. Well, all but one.

The Alabama Crimson Tide went into spring practice with Jalen Milroe and Ty Simpson battling it out for the starting quarterback role. However, head coach Nick Saban could not determine a winner, so he reached out to the transfer portal and hauled in Tyler Buchner from Notre Dame. As fall camp has progressed, Dylan Lonergan has also risen in the competition.

In a recent interview with AL.com, SEC Network analyst Paul Finebaum praised Freeze for naming a starter, while criticizing Saban for dragging his feet on the matter.

“It’s remarkable that Hugh Freeze has come in – gone to the transfer portal – and now has a solid starting quarterback,” Finebaum said. “Meanwhile, over at Alabama, Nick Saban is playing musical chairs at the most important position.”

If Saban is close to naming a starting quarterback, it is obvious that he will do it on his own time.

“They all got to play,” Saban said following Saturday’s scrimmage in Tuscaloosa. “They all took snaps. They all completed some passes. They all made some throws that weren’t as good as they should have been. And they all got sacked. That’s what I saw.”

Although Thorne has been named the starter, Freeze said that [autotag]Robby Ashford[/autotag] has practiced well this week. Even adding Saturday that Thorne will “have to play pretty well” to keep his job from being taken away by Ashford.

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Hugh Freeze explains reasoning behind naming Payton Thorne the starting quarterback

Freeze says that one factor seperated the Michigan State transfer from the rest of the pack.

The news that Auburn fans have been waiting to hear for months was finally delivered on Thursday, as head coach [autotag]Hugh Freeze[/autotag] officially named Payton Thorne as the Tigers’ starting quarterback for their season opener on Sept. 2 against UMass.

Freeze mentioned Saturday that he would need to review the film of last Saturday’s scrimmage before officially naming a starting quarterback. Thursday, he revealed that he trusted his instincts when picking the right candidate for the open job.

“I believe in all three of those guys. There are days where there has been very little separation,” Freeze said Thursday. “I just believe, man, my gut is usually right, and usually when I follow my gut? And I’m not saying my gut is right that Payton is the guy for all 12 games. But my gut is saying it’s the time to do this, to get us best prepared for the opening of the season.”

The race for the quarterback job was a tight one, but Freeze says that there was one factor that led to Thorne separating himself from the rest of the pack.

“To this point, I think the separation? The reason Payton is getting the nod is just the leadership ability and the understanding of the offense,” Freeze said. “He’s been in some really good battles. It just seems like he was more efficient in the decision-making to this point. Not that the others were terrible by any means. It was not just a slam dunk.”

What is next for [autotag]Robby Ashford[/autotag] and [autotag]Holden Geriner[/autotag]? Ashford is deemed the team’s second-string quarterback, with Geriner wrapping up the third-string slot. Freeze confirmed Auburn fans’ suspicions that if Ashford were to lose out on winning the starting quarterback job, he would still find a way to get on the field.

“I believe with all my heart Robby Ashford gives us an absolute better chance to win the game if he accepts this news and continues to work and develops himself,” Freeze said. “Because he might be the most freakish athlete I’ve ever had at quarterback.”

Watch the entirety of Freeze’s Thursday presser below.

https://www.youtube.com/live/-oZlHRPh0PA?feature=shared

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Four questions heading Into Auburn’s final scrimmage on Saturday

Despite the Quarterback competition finally coming to an end, Hugh Freeze and the Auburn staff have some important decisions to make ahead of the season opener.

Auburn head coach [autotag]Hugh Freeze[/autotag] finally chose his team’s starting quarterback for the 2023 season on Thursday, ending a long, and at times nauseating, process that started when Freeze took over in November of 2022.

Transfer [autotag]Payton Thorne[/autotag] officially unseated incumbent starter [autotag]Robby Ashford[/autotag] for the role of the Tigers’ signal caller after a strong camp in which he demonstrated “strong leadership and understanding of the offense” according to Freeze.

Despite the Quarterback competition finally coming to an end, coach Freeze and the Auburn staff have some important decisions to make in the coming days before the team hosts UMass to open the season. Four major question marks still stand.

Social media reacts to Hugh Freeze naming Payton Thorne Auburn’s starting QB

He beat out Robby Ashford and Holden Geriner for the starting job.

Auburn’s quarterback battle has come to an end with [autotag]Hugh Freeze[/autotag] naming Michigan State transfer [autotag]Payton Thorne[/autotag] the starter

Thorne beat out [autotag]Robby Ashford[/autotag] and [autotag]Holden Geriner[/autotag] for the job and will have two weeks as the clear No. 1 ahead of the season-opener against UMass on Sept. 2.

Thorne started 26 games for the Spartans over the past three seasons and completed 61.4% of his passes for 6,493 yards and 49 touchdowns. He will look to take advantage of a rebuilt offensive line and wide receiver group while leaning on Auburn’s talented and deep stable of running backs.

After months of waiting, the Auburn faithful had plenty to say after finding out who their starting quarterback will be, here are the top reactions.

Report: Payton Thorne to be named Auburn’s starting quarterback

The Michigan State transfer has played in 29 games over the last three seasons.

After weeks of waiting, a decision has been made regarding Auburn’s starting quarterback job.

The three-person race of [autotag]Robby Ashford[/autotag], [autotag]Holden Geriner[/autotag], and Michigan State transfer [autotag]Payton Thorne[/autotag] has been decided. On3 and 247Sports are reporting that Thorne is expected to be named the starting quarterback this season.

Since arriving on campus, Thorne has worked tirelessly to study Auburn’s schemes. So much so, that offensive coordinator [autotag]Philip Montgomery[/autotag] has called Thorne a “guy that you’ve got to run out of the building.”

Montgomery says that he likes what he sees in Thorne.

“He’s seeing things right now at a really good rate,” Montgomery said last week. “You’ve gotta remember, he wasn’t here in the spring. Some of the things that he’s picked up on, we’ve gotta get everybody else around that to be on the same page with him. But I think he’s done a great job with his leadership. He’s disciplined, and he’s professional about what he does.”

The news could be made official this afternoon as [autotag]Hugh Freeze[/autotag] is set to speak with the media at 3 p.m. CT.

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Where does USA TODAY Sports place Payton Thorne in its preseason QB rankings?

If Thorne wins the starting quarterback job, he will need to prove himself in a hurry.

[autotag]Payton Thorne[/autotag] transferred to Auburn from Michigan State in hopes of taking the starting quarterback role, thus easing the minds of Auburn fans.

However, he has yet to win the job over incumbent quarterback [autotag]Robby Ashford[/autotag] and redshirt freshman [autotag]Holden Geriner[/autotag]. His presence has ramped up the battle, however, as head coach [autotag]Hugh Freeze[/autotag] is still evaluating each candidate.

“Yesterday, I had my mind made up. After today, I need to watch the film before I say (who wins),” Freeze said Saturday following Auburn’s first scrimmage of fall camp.

All three quarterbacks had great scrimmages, with Ashford and Geriner throwing touchdown passes. Thorne nearly had two scores, but both were wiped off by officials according to Freeze.

When it comes to preseason quarterback rankings, most outlets have taken the safe route by choosing Ashford as Auburn’s representative. USA TODAY Sports’ Blake Toppmeyer has gone another route by selecting Thorne for his personal SEC ranking.

Does replacing Ashford with Thorne help Auburn’s case? Here’s a look at Toppmeyer’s preseason SEC quarterback rankings, featuring Payton Thorne.

Hugh Freeze provides QB battle update following first fall scrimmage

All three quarterbacks performed well in Saturday’s scrimmage. How does their performance affect the quarterback competition?

Auburn offensive coordinator Philip Montgomery told reporters earlier this week that he had hoped to cut the quarterback competition from three candidates to two following Saturday’s scrimmage.

Head coach [autotag]Hugh Freeze[/autotag] also wanted to make that decision, but he now has some thinking to do.

“Yesterday, I had my mind made up. After today, I need to watch the film before I say (who wins),” Freeze said Saturday.

Freeze did not confirm if the competition had been cut, but he did say that [autotag]Robby Ashford[/autotag], [autotag]Holden Geriner[/autotag], and [autotag]Payton Thorne[/autotag] had good days. Two of the three quarterbacks in the competition threw touchdown passes.

“I think all three did that fairly well today,” Freeze said. “Robby threw a touchdown pass, Holden did also. Payton did not. (Thorne) had two, and I can’t see from where I was standing out on the field, the official ruled the receiver out of bounds both times. They did not turn the ball over, that is priority number one in offensive football, that was good. I thought all three looked good at times today.”

Auburn will have three more practices this week before competing in a final scrimmage next Saturday at Jordan-Hare Stadium.

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In Photos: Auburn’s first scrimmage of fall camp

The Tigers had their first scrimmage of fall camp saturday, here are the top photos.

[autotag]Hugh Freeze[/autotag]’s first fall camp at Auburn is in full swing and the Tigers completed their first scrimmage Saturday in Jordan-Hare Stadium.

Freeze met with the media after the scrimmage and admitted that it has caused him to reevaluate some things about the battle between [autotag]Payton Thorne[/autotag], [autotag]Holden Geriner[/autotag] and [autotag]Robby Ashford[/autotag] to become Auburn’s starting quarterback.

“Yesterday, I had my mind made up,” Freeze said. “And after today I need to watch the film before I say.”

Freeze also provided an updated injury report and the wide receiver group is currently down several expected contributors. [autotag]Ja’Varrius Johnson[/autotag] and [autotag]Camden Brown[/autotag] were both unable to play in the scrimmage due to Johnson needing stitches in his mouth and Brown battling a hamstring injury.

In addition, [autotag]Koy Moore[/autotag] is limited due to an ankle injury and [autotag]Malcolm Johnson Jr.[/autotag] is dealing with a shoulder injury.

The Tigers will be off tomorrow before getting back into camp Monday as they get closer to the season opener on Saturday, Sept. 2 against UMass. Here is a look at the best photos from Auburn’s first scrimmage of fall camp.

Where Robby Ashford falls in 247Sports’ Power Five QB rankings

247Sports dropped their Power Five quarterback rankings, and has given Ashford a less-than-ideal outlook.

Auburn, like several other programs across the SEC, has a quarterback issue that needs to be resolved.

[autotag]Robby Ashford[/autotag] took over the starting quarterback role in week four of the 2022 season after previous starter [autotag]T.J. Finley[/autotag] exited Auburn’s loss to Penn State after suffering a shoulder injury. Ashford would go on to pass for 1,613 yards and rush for an additional 849.

As a passer, Ashford completed 49.2% of his passes. His intended targets dropped 16 passes, and Ashford himself threw 15 passes that were deemed “turnover worthy” by Pro Football Focus.

He hopes to redeem himself this season but will need to battle Michigan State transfer [autotag]Payton Thorne[/autotag] and redshirt freshman [autotag]Holden Geriner[/autotag] for the starting quarterback role.

If Ashford were to win the starting quarterback job, where would he stack up against the remainder of the Power Five’s best? 247Sports has provided an answer.

247Sports’ Clint Brewster has ranked all 64 projected starting quarterbacks from Power Five programs ahead of the 2023 season, where he listed Ashford as Auburn’s representative. If Ashford does win the job, he will have an opportunity to prove that he is worth more than his low ranking.

Here is a rundown of where each SEC quarterback is placed in 247Sports’ Power Five quarterback rankings.