Final Auburn football depth chart projections for Week 1
With a little more than a week to go until the opener against Baylor, let's take one more stab at a depth chart for the Tigers.
AUBURN — The concept of the traditional depth chart might be outdated.
But, man, do people still want to look at them.
Every year, an Auburn head coach will go to the podium and say they don’t really deal with depth charts. Hugh Freeze has done that from his first campaign on the Plains. The depth chart is more of a media tool, helping broadcasters and writers get an idea of what they might expect from each position once the games start.
Since some position groups rotate more than others — like Auburn’s entire defense under DJ Durkin — who actually starts each game doesn’t matter as much as measurables such as snap counts.
But, again, people love to look at depth charts this time of year.
With that in mind, we’re taking one more stab at something that could resemble the depth chart Auburn may or may not put out officially or unofficially next Monday when Freeze holds his game week press conference for the opener against Baylor.
Thanks to the massive amounts of access that we were granted by Auburn during preseason camp and the volume of returning experience on the Tigers’ roster, this might have been the easiest depth chart projection to date. There weren’t a ton of position battles, and even the spots that felt close will likely rotate heavily.
So, without any more delay, here’s The Auburn Observer’s final projection of a depth chart of sorts before Auburn visits Baylor next Friday night in Waco — along with some thoughts on each position group heading into the 2025 season.
Quarterback
Jackson Arnold
Ashton Daniels
Deuce Knight
Despite any attempts from people outside of Auburn to make mountains out of a molehill of a radio show answer, this is Arnold’s show at quarterback. The Tigers have to have faith in the options behind the Oklahoma transfer, but he’s been the clear-cut No. 1 since he arrived on campus. Arnold’s ability to improvise and run the ball have been praised this preseason, and he had stretches of camp where his accuracy and ball placement in the pocket were strong. He’s still got to go out and prove he’s better than what he showed with the Sooners last year. There’s a lot riding on him early.
Daniels, the former Stanford starter, looks like he would be the first choice if something were to happen with Arnold. While his arm talent and passing consistency aren’t on the same level as Arnold, Daniels is a true dual-threat with legitimate experience. Knight might be a better vertical passing option, but he isn’t as polished as Daniels at this point in his young career. Daniels is shaping up to be a good insurance policy for 2025, while the goal is to develop Knight into the QB of the future.
