Tag: Zach Calzada

New list ranks potential Auburn quarterback near bottom of SEC

The quarterback competition isn’t over yet, but there’s certainly a favorite amongst outside observers.

Auburn may be in a quarterback competition at the moment, but that won’t stop the annual college football preseason rankings craze.

A new list by Athlon Sports ranked the top 14 quarterbacks in the SEC — one for each team — and decided to go with Auburn’s [autotag]Zach Calzada[/autotag], who did have a starting job in the SEC last year at Texas A&M. The list ranked Calzada at No. 12, only beating out Missouri’s Brady Cook and Vanderbilt’s Mike Wright. Here’s a little bit of what the list said when it came to Calzada in comparison to his competition in camp:

With Calzada, a Texas A&M transfer, sidelined due to injury, the spring didn’t provide much insight into Auburn’s wide-open quarterback battle… Capped by a 285-yard and three-touchdown performance in an upset over Alabama, Calzada threw for 2,185 yards and 17 scores over the full year and connected on 56.1 percent of his passes. Ashford impressed in the spring game, but Calzada is likely the best option for Harsin.

Calzada is the most likely candidate to win out the quarterback competition, but his back stretch at A&M last year is certainly enough to place some doubt in the minds of Auburn fans. Nonetheless, a change is necessary after the departure of Bo Nix to Oregon, and Calzada’s win over Alabama presents a potential that is desirable for any team in need of a signal caller.

Coach [autotag]Bryan Harsin[/autotag] has yet to pick a winner of the quarterback competition yet, but whoever does get the job will debut against the Mercer Bears for Auburn’s first game on Sept. 3.

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New list of quarterback battles has Auburn as team to watch

Who do you think will win Auburn’s quarterback competition?

As the season draws nearer, quarterback battles in camp among teams without a clear answer at the position have been heating up. This year, Auburn happens to be one of those teams, and the seemingly three-way contest for the starting job has people in the college football world paying attention.

A new list of quarterback battles by On3 has Auburn as one of 10 camp contests to watch before the start of the season. They aren’t the only SEC school to be mentioned — Missouri, LSU and Texas A&M were also listed as battles to watch as the season draws nearer.

Here’s what the list had to say about Auburn’s quarterback battle:

Ashford (from Oregon) and Calzada (from Texas A&M) transferred in during the offseason, though Ashford – an Alabama native with dual-threat ability – seems like longest shot in the race because of a lack of experience. Calzada started the final nine games for the Aggies last season and led them to an upset of top-ranked Alabama. But he also was the starter in losses to LSU and Mississippi State. Calzada threw nine picks and completed 56.1 percent of his passes; in short, he’s adequate – but that may be enough to win the job. Finley, who transferred in from LSU after the 2020 season, started Auburn’s final three games last season; he avoided mistakes but wasn’t that accurate as a passer. He is a physically imposing guy (6 feet 6, 245 pounds) but isn’t mobile.

It appears at the moment that Calzada is set to win the job, and that’s the outcome our staff at Auburn Wire predicted as well. Nonetheless, coach [autotag]Bryan Harsin[/autotag] has yet to name a starter for the upcoming season, and it could be interesting to see if a surprise candidate ends up winning the job through their performance in camp.

Whoever emerges victorious will get their first start on Sept. 3 when the Tigers kick off the season against the Mercer Bears.

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College Football News predicts Auburn’s 2022 season

A look at College Football News’ 2022 game-by-game predictions for the Auburn Tigers.

It won’t be long before the Auburn Tigers are set to host the Mercer Bears as they open the 2022 season.

We will finally know who will take the starting job under center, whether that is [autotag]Zach Calzada[/autotag], [autotag]T.J. Finley[/autotag], or [autotag]Robby Ashford[/autotag]. What we do know is that [autotag]Tank Bigsby[/autotag] is ready to shoulder the load for the offense in the running game. The SEC media recently named him first-team All-SEC at his position.

Defensively the team will be led by [autotag]Derick Hall[/autotag], [autotag]Colby Wooden[/autotag], and [autotag]Owen Pappoe[/autotag]. The defense appears to be the strength of this team and we will soon find out how much truth there is to that.

As we continue to prepare for the upcoming campaign in year two of the [autotag]Bryan Harsin[/autotag] era, College Football News released their game-by-game predictions for Auburn.

New list picks quarterback as “key newcomer”

Who do you think will be Auburn’s biggest newcomer?

There are quite a few new faces on the Plains for this upcoming football season, all of which could contribute to the Tigers’ success. As always, though, there’s one position in football far more important than the rest.

A new article from On3 detailing the “key newcomers” from the SEC West pinned new quarterback [autotag]Zach Calzada[/autotag] as Auburn’s selection on the list. Here is what writer Jesse Simonton had to say about the Aggie-turned-Tiger:

“I was tempted to assign freshman safety Caleb Wooden here, as the 4-star prospect was a name-to-know this spring for the Tigers and could push for a starting job early in 2022. But it’s hard not to go with a quarterback, particularly someone who beat archival Alabama last season. Calzada struggled with consistency at Texas A&M (especially accuracy and precision passing) and missing the spring recovering from a shoulder injury. But when healthy, the Peach State native has cannon for an arm and will either win the job outright or force incumbent TJ Finley to prove worthy of keeping Auburn’s QB1 spot.”

Calzada’s defeat over the Tide last year should certainly earn him some points with Auburn fans, but he’ll need to prove that he can consistently produce as a Tigers to truly win them over. Calzada is likely to win the team’s ongoing quarterback competition, so there’s a good possibility he’ll get the first chance to prove his worth when Auburn goes up against the Mercer Bears in its season opener on Sept. 3.

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Zach Calzada at the bottom in new SEC quarterback ranking

Where do you think Zach Calzada ranks among SEC quarterbacks?

There may be excitement among Auburn fans that [autotag]Zach Calzada[/autotag] will be able to upgrade Auburn’s passing attack, but that optimism is not shared by the USA TODAY Sports Network.

In their ranking of the 10 best SEC quarterbacks prior to the 2022 season, they ranked Calzada 10th. He beat out six other quarterbacks who received fewer than his 20 points. Here is what they said about Calzada:

A 56.3% passer last season, Calzada is already popular at Auburn after leading Texas A&M’s upset of Alabama last season.

Calzada, who transferred in from Texas A&M, threw for 2,185 yards, 17 touchdowns, and nine interceptions last season. His most memorable performance came against Alabama, he threw for three touchdowns to upset the No. 1 Crimson Tide.

He suffered an injury to his non-throwing shoulder during the season and that limited his availability during spring football. Now that he is healthy he is expected to win the starting job during fall camp.

Here is a look at the rankings.

  1. Bryce Young, Alabama, 160 points
  2. Hendon Hooker, Tennessee, 127 points
  3. Will Levis, Kentucky, 111 points
  4. Stetson Bennett, Georgia, 93 points
  5. KJ Jefferson, Arkansas, 88 points
  6. Spencer Rattler, South Carolina, 87 points
  7. Will Rogers, Mississippi State, 78 points
  8. Anthony Richardson, Florida, 51 points
  9. Jaxson Dart, Ole Miss, 35 points
  10. Zach Calzada, Auburn, 20 points

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New list has Zach Calzada as a “tier 2” quarterback

Zach Calzada led Texas A&M to an upset win over Alabama last season, but can he do bigger things at Auburn?

Although he has not been formally announced as Auburn’s starter at quarterback for the 2022 season, Pro Football Focus believes [autotag]Zach Calzada[/autotag] has been given a strong case to earn that position.

Seth Gazinaa, senior football analyst at Pro Football Focus, recently dropped his list of his favorite Power 5 quarterbacks. He listed Calzada in the same category as Kentucky’s Will Levins, Louisville’s Malik Cunningham, and South Carolina’s Spencer Rattler as tier 2 quarterbacks.

Calzada transferred to Auburn after playing in 15 games with 10 starts in three seasons at Texas A&M. He completed 184-of-327 passes in 2021 for 2,185 yards and 17 touchdowns, but is most notably the quarterback that led the Aggies to a 41-38 upset win over Alabama at Kyle Field on October 9.

Gazinaa says that the Alabama win was the game that made him a believer in Calzada.

“Zach Calzada surprised me the most upon rewatch after watching a bit of him in season,” said Gazinna in a tweet. “Was one of the better qbs (sic) from the ‘Bama game on.”

Upon reading Gazinaa’s tweet, the Auburn Observer’s Justin Ferguson broke down Calzada’s stats following the Alabama game and found some amusing numbers.

In last season’s game against his new team, he completed 15-of-29 passes for 192 yards in the Aggies 20-3 win over Auburn in College Station.

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CBS Sports names top transfer for every SEC team

Who do you think is Auburn’s most important transfer?

The transfer portal has quickly become an integral part of roster building in college football. The portal allows teams to do everything from adding a proven playmaker or filling out the depth chart at a key position.

Auburn has not shied away from using the portal under Bryan Harsin. The Tigers added nine players through the portal in his first season and have already added nine for the 2022 season. The Tigers are far from the only team doing so, teams across the country are using the portal to put the finishing touches on their roster.

With so many additions it can be tough to figure out which player will have the biggest impact for the Tigers, but Barrett Sallee of CBS Sports thinks it will be former Texas A&M quarterback [autotag]Zach Calzada[/autotag].

The former Texas A&M quarterback started 10 games in 2021 and led the Aggies to a shocking victory over No. 1 Alabama. Now, he is the frontrunner to win the Tigers starting quarterback job in August

Calzada, who Harsin recently called a “full go”, was limited in the spring with a shoulder injury but has a great shot at winning the starting quarterback job this summer.

Here are Sallee’s picks for the top transfer for every SEC team. Georgia was not included because they have not added a transfer.

Alabama: RB Jahmyr Gibbs

Arkansas: LB Drew Sanders

LSU: QB Jayden Daniels

Ole Miss: QB Jaxson Dart

South Carolina: QB Spencer Rattler

Florida: OL O’Cyrus Torrence

Kentucky: WR Tayvion Robinson

Mississippi State: DB Jackie Matthews

Missouri: RB Nathaniel Peat

Tennessee: Bru McCoy

Texas A&M: QB Max Johnson

Vanderbilt: DB Jeremy Lucien

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Where each SEC quarterback situation ranks in ESPN’s QB tiers

ESPN places every CFB QB into a tier, so where do the ones from the SEC land?

In recent years, the SEC has become one of the strongest quarterback conferences in the nation. Last season’s Heisman winner, [autotag]Bryce Young[/autotag], was a quarterback in the SEC and will look to repeat that feat in 2022.

All 14 teams have unique quarterback situations. Whether it be a solidified starter like Young with the Crimson Tide, or maybe an all-out battle in Missouri to see who will be their lead passer.

ESPN took that into account and many other factors when putting together a tier-ranking system for every Division I quarterback in the nation.

While the entire list offers explanations and details for nearly every program and their quarterback’s, let’s take a look at how the SEC currently stands.

Auburn quarterbacks don’t rank high in this new tier list

The future is murky under center for the Tigers.

The Auburn Tigers quarterback battle continues to get press, and probably not the kind head coach [autotag]Bryan Harsin[/autotag] was hoping for.

A new quarterback tier list by ESPN put all of college football’s quarterbacks in a series of 25 tiers, and Auburn’s situation wasn’t looked on the most favorably. The list put both expected starter [autotag]Zach Calzada[/autotag] and backup [autotag]T.J. Finley[/autotag] in the 14th tier of the list, which they referred to as potential “diamonds in the rough”.

Here is what the list had to say about Auburn’s quarterbacks:

Calzada struggled often at Texas A&M last year, and Finley appeared lost for long stretches in a backup role behind Nix. Both would need to take a huge step forward to dramatically alter Auburn’s offensive futility.

It’s certainly true that Auburn’s quarterback situation is in flux. Calzada will already likely be considered a hero around Auburn’s campus for his victory over rivals Alabama last season, but his season as a whole was marred with inconsistency that will leave fans far more worried than pleased. Finley, meanwhile, has never particularly stood out at any school he has been to, and a shakey showing at the spring game will also leave fans with a lack of confidence heading into this year.

It’ll be up to Harsin to make his choice before Auburn squares off against Mercer on Sept. 3 to open the season.

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Auburn quarterback Zach Calzada is a ‘full go’

It appears the QB battle is about to officially begin.

In a very tumultuous offseason, the Auburn Tigers lost their starting quarterback of the last three seasons, Bo Nix. He opted to enter the transfer portal and head west to Eugene, Oregon. Ironically enough, former Oregon Ducks quarterback Robby Ashford wanted to return home to Alabama, as he transferred to Auburn.

Ashford wasn’t the only quarterback that decided to come to the Plains, former Texas A&M Aggies passer [autotag]Zach Calzada[/autotag] also chose to play for the Tigers. He was the quarterback of record when the Aggies and Tigers faced off in November of 2021.

Calzada bested Auburn that day but suffered a shoulder injury during the game. It is that shoulder injury that kept the new Auburn signal-caller out of the spring game. Head coach Bryan Harsin laughed a bit about the situation.

“Somebody was asking me last night: It’s funny, because in a way, the game he played against us is when he really got banged up, and now we have him on the roster, right?” Harsin said. “So you’re sitting there kind of looking at it like, damn. It’s just kind of one of those things that you hope he hadn’t gotten injured, and he could have gotten some more reps in the spring. But he’s really been pushing himself and studying and preparing, so now it’s just a matter of letting him get out there this summer.”

There hasn’t been a decision made on the quarterback battle between Calzada, Ashford, and TJ Finley. It seemed as though Harsin wasn’t in a big hurry to make a decision as they waited on their new quarterback to get medical clearance to compete for the job.

“It’s full-go,” Harsin said. “He’s got to be ready to play. If he’s one of the guys that we kind of narrow it down and he’s one of the top guys, then we’ll get him ready to play.”

With summer workouts approaching, it is the perfect timing for the news. We are getting closer to a decision being made and Calzada has as good of a chance to start as anyone. It might come down to Calzada or Ashford but Finley is the guy that started the final three games of the season.

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