Auburn Football: Optimistic Outlook 2010

What can Auburn fans expect going forward from A-Day 2010? This is one of the questions running through the minds of the Auburn family. While there is no definitive answer to this question, here is my opinion.

Auburn had four quarterbacks that looked really good on A-Day. Only two of those quarterbacks were allowed to play the ball down field. These are the same two that were leading in my opinion going into A-Day and nothing has changed.

Unless he quits improving, is injured, or falls off in performance Cameron Newton will be the Auburn quarterback in 2010. While the scrimmage was specifically controlled to keep his status under wraps, it is my educated opinion. The Auburn offense will be near unstoppable under his leadership.

Barret Trotter will be the number two quarterback for 2010. He can also stretch the field and has good decision making ability. Auburn would be in excellent hands if he were the starter. He would take the Auburn offense to another level of consistency.

Neil Caudle is a good quarterback and could start on several SEC teams this year. He has improved over the last year; his competition has simply risen above his capabilities. Neil Caudle could also run the offense and it would likely be as effective as it was in 2009.

Clint Moseley is growing with huge potential. Future years will hold a fierce battle between him and Barret Trotter to rise to the top. He is simply not comfortable with the offense working at tempo.

The receiving corps has improved past the point where players 7^th and 8^th on the list are better this year than Darvin Adams and Terrell Zachery were in 2009. Adams and Zachery have taken their performance to the next level. This looks to be a special year for both.

Quindarius Carr, Kodi Burns, DeAngelo Benton and Emory Blake are now dependable receivers that can be counted on. If they continue to improve this will be a huge factor in the 2010 football season.

For Auburn fans this is a source of real optimism. Auburn has never before had this kind of depth at quarterback and receiver at the same time. It leaves fans a very positive outlook during the summer break from football.

The Auburn offensive line drew national attention on A-Day. There are few if any teams that enjoy the quality of play that this unit can produce. Roszell Gayden did bang up his hand on A-Day and had to come out of the game. It appears to be a quick healing type of injury.

This Auburn offensive line could easily be the best in the SEC and one of the best nationally. This unit is set to make a mark on the SEC in 2010. I have not watched another offensive line that was this far along this spring.

The Auburn defensive line also gained national attention. This was in large part due to the play of Antoine Carter although Nick Fairley soaked up some love as well. This unit put on quick, persistent pressure throughout the scrimmage.

The Auburn defensive line managed to hold its own against the Auburn rushing attack. This is quite a feet since no other defense was able to do this after the LSU game in 2009. This is quite an improvement for this unit over where it started last spring.

Many of the starters and playmakers in the defensive secondary were out. This made evaluating the unit difficult. There were eight missed tackles in this unit that led to some big plays that should have been contained. None of these were by starters.

This leaves two units to evaluate. The linebackers and the running backs could both benefit from incoming recruits. Both units were solid on A-Day, but both units could certainly use some depth. I think this depth is coming in May.

Here are the complete statistics from the A-Day scrimmage.

Here are some very revealing quotes from coaches and players after A-Day.