Auburn Football: Will Kiehl Frazier Start the Tigers Bowl Game?

The 7-5 (4-4 SEC) Auburn Tigers are anxiously awaiting the conclusion of this Championship Week so they can begin preparation for their final game of the season. As the Tigers enter the bowl practice sessions, there are a variety of adjustments that have to be made if the Tigers want to finish the season with a win.

One of the most glaringly obvious gaps that the Tigers have is at the quarterback position. Granted, a lot of the issues that come from the quarterback position right now are due to a wealth of problems that have haunted the Tigers all season. The offensive line has battled injuries and consistency while the receivers have not been able to clear off their bump man coverage and get a release on time.

The lack of Auburn’s push up front in the running game gives a team with quality talent the ability to clog the middle with their defensive line and force turnovers in the passing game. Forcing Auburn to pass with a stacked coverage has led to disaster.

At the end of it all, the quarterback has to be the leader and the playmaker for the offense. This season, Auburn hasn’t found a playmaker. There have been times where Clint Moseley looked the part, as well as Barrett Trotter, but as a whole their performances have been sub-par.

The one wild card in the entire scenario for the Tigers is true freshman Kiehl Frazier. Frazier arrived on campus this season with a ton of recruiting fanfare, some even predicting him to earn the starting nod for the Tigers to begin 2011.

Frazier came to campus during the second mini-semester right before fall camp, but making the major transition from the high school game to college can be a taxing process. Watching Frazier throughout the season, he has had a progressive confidence that has come with his time on the field.

The biggest concern that comes with Frazier at this point is his inconsistency with the few chances to pass that he has had. Frazier has 12 pass attempts on the season, completing five of the throws to his teammates and two passes to the other team. That’s not a record-breaking stat line.

Frazier’s biggest impact has come on the ground as he has 60 rushing attempts and has gained 272 yards. Frazier has a great ability to run the option play in the Malzahn offense, but the defenses are not fooled into thinking that Frazier has done anything to warrant pass coverage when he enters the game.

Auburn’s best shot at the future appears to be Kiehl Frazier, but is putting Frazier into the bowl game as a primary the best answer for the development of a young quarterback? That is a deep-rooted question that this coaching staff needs to try and answer.

The Tigers have not been successful on offense by any stretch of the imagination this season. Outside of Frazier’s production, the Tigers have only thrown for a total of 1,807 yards this season. That is far from dangerous numbers for an offense.

While Michael Dyer has had a great season for the Tigers with 242 attempts and 1,242 yards on the ground, the rushing production has been hampered by inconsistency. The inability to run the football consistently against good defense has ruined the Malzahn offense this year. Malzahn is a run first coach, when the run is lost or inconsistent, the remaining pieces of the offense suffer.

Auburn heads into bowl practice with two quarterbacks that have split time as the starter and one quarterback that has seen consistent snaps all year. Frazier has played in 12 games this year. That is the most of any of the three quarterbacks.

Auburn has some issues up front on the offensive side of the ball, and the only answer for the Tigers may be to utilize Frazier as a starter. The more consistent snaps that Frazier gets, the more consistent his play will become.

At this point, it is obvious that the Tigers want to be able to lean on Frazier in the future, or they wouldn’t have burned his redshirt.

Giving Frazier and the Tigers three to four weeks to prepare may be enough time to implement more of the offense and give Frazier at least half of the game time snaps. Frazier has the most talent of the quarterbacks on roster, and is likely to get a fair shot to earn the start this spring.

Whether or not the coaches are comfortable enough to give Frazier significant snaps is unclear. However, it has to be on the table of conversation. The Tigers need a spark offensively, and they haven’t found one yet. It may be time to transfer the helm to Frazier and really see what the freshman can do.

The bowl game would be a good time to move forward with such a transition. There is plenty of time for the Tigers to prepare with Frazier. Add to the time frame the experience that he has gained so far this season, and it makes sense to see him on the field more than ever this coming bowl season.

Frazier has been on the big stage already and has been hit by the best defenders that college football has to offer. He will not be overwhelmed by any of the competition that he will see in a bowl game. The bowl game is a chance for the Tigers to possibly see if Frazier can be effective next season.

Unless Frazier bombs in bowl practice, he will see a ton of snaps this bowl season. Who knows, he may even earn the start.