What Kentucky's Mark Stoops Thinks of Auburn's QB Competition

As the Auburn Tigers continue to let Jackson Arnold and Ashton Daniels battle it out to be the team's starting quarterback, the Kentucky Wildcats are preparing to see both ahead of Saturday's matchup in Jordan-Hare Stadium.

Kentucky head coach Mark Stoops gave his take on the battle during his portion of Wednesday's SEC Coaches Teleconference.

"I mean you don't think things are going to change drastically," he said. "There's always different little nuances from game to game. I think both quarterbacks are more than capable of running the ball. Jackson has maybe a little more top end and definitely has some top end speed.  You can see on tape with the explosive plays that he's created with carrying the football. And then Ashton is very big and very physical, tough to get down in the pocket. A good runner just in a different way.  So, both very, very good players and they have very talented players around them as well."

Arnold, who has started all eight games for Auburn this season, was replaced by Daniels late in the second quarter of the Tigers' eventual win over Arkansas last week after throwing a pick-six. Daniels, making his Auburn debut, went 6-for-8 for 77 yards as the Tigers came back to win behind five second-half field goals from Alex McPherson and four takeaways in the fourth quarter.

Auburn Tigers quarterback Ashton Daniels replaced Jackson Arnold against Arkansas. | Nelson Chenault-Imagn Images

Auburn head coach Hugh Freeze announced on Wednesday he has not made a decision between the two but that he remains confident in both transfers.

"They both are really great guys that prepare well. They're getting us in the right things," Freeze said. "They're setting the protections the right way. They're both making accurate throws for the most part. And so, it's really hard to decipher the difference when you are in practice."

A big part of Arnold's issues is his inability to sustain momentum past the first quarter and low scoring output. With Arnold as the quarterback, the Tigers have not scored over 17 points in an SEC game and only had 10 points at the time of his benching.

"If you look at how Jackson's opened the last three games, it's been pretty phenomenal, and he's played pretty flawless in those. But then in other moments, we just hadn't gotten over the hump and won games," Freeze said. "Ultimately, we all get judged on how the win-loss deal says on the scoreboard."

Auburn Tigers quarterback Jackson Arnold has started every game this season. | Nelson Chenault-Imagn Images

However, Freeze has been wary to give the full keys of the offense to Daniels due to his late summer transfer, even considering redshirting him this season until playing him on Saturday. Still, the Stanford transfer seems to have momentum on his side heading into Saturday.

"We're look for kind of a spark, and Ashton, I think, has the capacity to play really well, too," Freeze said.

Kickoff between Auburn and Kentucky inside Jordan-Hare Stadium at 6:30 p.m.

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