AUBURN — Nothing is more captivating to fans — and reporters — than a quarterback competition. If Kodi Burns and Chris Todd haven’t discovered that yet, they soon will.
Auburn officials have even taken the unusual step of scheduling built-in-breaks for the two competing quarterbacks. Not from passes, drills or scrimmages — but from the media.
Todd and Burns chatted with reporters in the media tent after Saturday’s first practice of the season. Today, they get the day off. On Monday, they begin rotating.
The idea is to keep the quarterbacks from being burned out by a repetitive onslaught of daily questions about the ups and downs of their battle.
Talkative offensive coordinator Tony Franklin has no such luxury, but he’s prepared for the interrogations.
“I thought they both performed well,” Franklin said after nearly three hours of pad-free drills on Day 1. “They both led well. I thought they looked like guys who could win in this league.”
A sophomore from Fort Smith, Ark., Burns played occasionally as a true freshman and had a few big plays in Franklin’s debut victory in January in the Chick-fil-A Bowl. Even so, when Todd arrived from junior college a few weeks later, he widely was expected to win the starting job during the spring. A quintessential “system quarterback,” Todd was intimately familiar with Franklin’s system and the coordinator seemed smitten with his new pupil.
al.com
8/3/08
Magnolia Tribune
