Nick Marshall is healthy and that means one thing: the junior will be Auburn’s starting quarterback Saturday at Texas A&M.
After Marshall sat out last week’s blowout win against FCS opponent Western Carolina with a minor knee injury and true freshman Jeremy Johnson stepped in and had a fantastic game in his first game action, there were grumblings of a possible quarterback battle.
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Not so says Auburn coach Gus Malzahn. The first-year Auburn coach said after the 62-3 win Saturday that as soon as Marshall was physically ready, he would be the starting quarterback.
Malzahn said he didn’t expect Marshall to be rusty after sitting out the one game.
"He was locked in during practice last week," Malzahn said of Marshall. "He practiced Sunday and looked good. Got another week of practice. We're past the midway point. If it was early in the season, I'd be concerned but not too concerned now."
Marshall is 71 for 120 passing this season—his first at Auburn after transferring from junior college—for 902 yards and four TDs and four interceptions. He also has 288 rushing yards (5.2 yards per carry) and two touchdowns.
Johnson was named the SEC freshman of the week after throwing for 201 yards and four touchdowns for the newly ranked Tigers. Johnson was expected to spent the season using his redshirt, but Auburn coaches decided several days before last week’s game that Johnson would get the nod.
And now, there’s a chance that Johnson will be worked into the offensive gameplan for certain sets.