AUBURN | Robby Ashford made it clear that he should be considered one of the favorites for Auburn's starting quarterback position this fall during the Tigers' annual A-Day game on Saturday.

The transfer from Oregon earned the Lionel James Offensive MVP award after completing 12-of-16 passes for 132 yards, showing his ability to get out of the pocket and a strong arm. On 3rd-and-27 in the third quarter, Ashford remained in the pocket and threw a dart to Ze'Vian Capers for 27 yards, picking up the first down.

Bryan Harsin says we haven't seen the best of Ashford.

"I think one of Robby's strengths is going to be live, and that's not his fault that we control that," the Auburn coach said. "He's very athletic, and you guys could see that today."

John Samuel Shenker echoed the sentiments of his coach.

"When he's not live, it's kind of hard to see how athletic he is," the tight end said. "He made great decisions today. He's made a lot of progress in the spring."

The performance was even more impressive because Ashford went up against Auburn's first-team defense while commanding most of the second team on offense. The Hoover native spent two seasons with the Ducks but never saw game action.

Coming to the Plains this offseason, he is still learning on the job while also giving complete focus to the gridiron.

"Robby's learning a whole new system," Harsin said. "Robby played baseball, and now he's just playing football."