Auburn might have finally discovered a solution to its long-standing quarterback woes in Week 13 against Mercer. In his first career start, true freshman Deuce Knight has given the Tigers something to get excited about under center.

Fans have been excited about the four-star prospect since he landed in Auburn over the summer. He immediately gave them more reason to believe in him by scoring on a 75-yard scramble in the first play from scrimmage of Week 13.

The play was not a designed run, making it an even more impressive play from the freshman. Knight went through his progressions and looked off at least three reads before taking off down the sideline to the end zone.

 

Knight was recruited as one of the top dual-threat quarterbacks of the class of 2025. The 18-year-old was the sixth-highest-rated quarterback recruit and the second-highest-rated four-star prospect.

Entering Week 12, Knight had just 20 passing yards and 16 rushing yards, which all came in garbage time of Auburn's Week 2 win over Ball State. However, he has already made a solid case to be the team's starting quarterback of the future.

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Auburn hopes Deuce Knight will solve quarterback woes

Auburn Tigers head coach DJ Durkin against the Vanderbilt Commodores during pre-game warmups at FirstBank Stadium.
Steve Roberts-Imagn Images

Knight became the third different quarterback to start for Auburn in the 2025 college football season, following Jackson Arnold and Ashton Daniels. By doing so, he also became the first true freshman to start for the Tigers since Bo Nix in 2019.

The Tigers began the year with a lot of hope for Arnold, a former five-star recruit, to lead the offense. The Oklahoma transfer led them to a 3-0 start, but he went just 1-4 in SEC play. Then-head coach Hugh Freeze benched him for Daniels during the team's 33-24 win over Arkansas after an ugly interception.

Daniels has been more effective as a passer, but the results have still not been there. Although Daniels looked good in Auburn's 45-38 Week 12 loss to Vanderbilt, in which he threw for a career-high 353 passing yards, he is 0-2 in a pair of starts.

With Daniels opting to skip the rest of the season to preserve a year of eligibility, interim head coach D.J. Durkin decided to give Knight a crack at the job instead of turning back to Arnold. Daniels appears likely to enter the college football transfer portal at the end of the season, making Knight Auburn's clear quarterback of the future.