Inside Auburn football practice: New quarterback shares first-team reps in hurry-up drill

AUBURN — Auburn football's fifth day of preseason practice was eventful, with plenty of personnel shuffling and developments.

Here are our biggest observations.

New QB competition development

The portion of practice that's open to media tends to begin as Auburn's 11-on-11 period is ending. T.J. Finley was the first-team quarterback each of the first three days, with Calzada running second-team offense. But for the first time, Robby Ashford practiced the hurry-up drill with Auburn's starters Wednesday.

Auburn has been mixing up its offensive line starters and backups during these drills, so this could be a similar case of sharing reps at quarterback. For instance, Brandon Council and Kam Stutts played first-team guard during this drill, even though the consensus is that those two are in a position battle to start on the left side while Keiondre Jones is the lock at right guard.

Point being: An automatic word of caution against sweeping conclusions based on one practice period. (Finley seemingly took his turn before media arrived.)

But Ashford was named the offensive player of the day after Sunday's practice, and Harsin has praised his dual-threat capabilities. "He had a couple throws the other day that were really special," Harsin said Tuesday. Don't rule out the Oregon transfer.

MORE QB OBSERVATIONS:Bryan Harsin studied every Auburn quarterback practice rep Tuesday. So did we.

PRESEASON PRACTICE:Freshman getting the most attention at Auburn football practice is a three-star recruit

Auburn's top quartet of linebackers 

Cam Riley played alongside Owen Pappoe as a first-team linebacker. When the position groups split up for fundamental drills, Auburn's linebackers are divided into two sub-groups, seemingly drawing a clear line after the top four.

The order in which they took turns during drills: Pappoe, Riley, Eugene Asante then Wesley Steiner. Steiner demolished a piece of equipment and almost flipped it.

The North Carolina transfer Asante is making a strong impression. Also worth noting: New linebackers coach Christian Robinson is high-energy and seems to bring a lot of enthusiasm to his players during practice.

Bryan Harsin works with punt returners

Reporters got a first look at Auburn's punt returners Wednesday. While the rest of the team practiced inside for the first time, Bryan Harsin worked with the return specialists on the outdoor practice field. 

The large group included receivers Tar'Varish Dawson, Ja'Varrius Johnson, Koy Moore and Jay Fair; defensive backs Donovan Kaufman and Keionte Scott; and running back Tank Bigsby. Running backs coach Cadillac Williams was also out there.

11-on-11 highlights

A pass went through tight end Luke Deal's hands and was almost intercepted by Cayden Bridges, a starting safety contender.

Edge rusher Eku Leota sacked Ashford. When Calzada entered at quarterback, a bad snap turned into another sack. 

Malcolm Johnson Jr., Dawson and Shedrick Jackson played first-team receiver. On the second team, freshman Camden Brown made a great catch on a deep fade to the back corner of the end zone.

Old-school jams

For those wondering about the soundtrack to Auburn's practices, vintage jams blasted Wednesday.

The featured hit? Pearl Jam's "Even Flow," Led Zeppelin's "Immigrant Song," Hinder's "Lips of an Angel," Van Halen's "Panama" and Metallica's "Master of Puppets."

If I had to guess the playlist curator, I'd say Harsin is pulling the strings.