Photo by Todd J. Van Emst | Special to the News Illustration by Steven Barnett | Opelika-Auburn News

Who will be Auburn’s quarterback?

The question has dominated the Tigers’ preparations for the 2008 season, starting the moment the ’07 season ended.

The race dominated spring practice, summer workouts and two-a-days. Players and pundits alike expressed their opinions and searched for supporting evidence, while head coach Tommy Tuberville and offensive coordinator Tony Franklin kept their thoughts to themselves.

Kodi Burns or Chris Todd? Chris Todd or Kodi Burns?

“Everybody is fired up trying to find out who that guy is,” Tuberville said earlier this week.

At long last, the moment of truth is here. Auburn opens the 2008 season at 6 p.m. today against Louisiana-Monroe, and all eyes will be fixed on the man behind center Jason Bosley.

So, is it Burns, the sophomore with the quick feet and the inconsistent arm, or Todd, the junior-college transfer with almost a decade of experience in Franklin’s offense who’s recovering from a mysterious arm injury?

And the answer is … Yes.

Yes, Burns will be Auburn’s quarterback. And, yes, Todd will be Auburn’s quarterback.

“They’re both going to play,” Franklin said. “I think that’s the most important thing.”

Neither player has separated himself during preseason practice, according to the coaches.

“Usually you can look and point and say ‘Hey, this is the guy we can look at and feel can do a much better job for us,’” Tuberville said. “That hasn’t been there — and it hasn’t been that both have done badly or both have done great. It’s just that both have done well and been very consistent.”

Of course, plenty of questions remain. How will a two-quarterback system work? Who will take the first snap of the season?

Tuberville and Franklin may have some idea, but neither tipped his hand this week.

“It will probably be more important who finishes the game rather than who starts the game,” Franklin said.

Burns’ strength remains running the ball, but he’s improved as a passer. Everyone concerned says he’ll play a bigger role in the passing game than he did as a true freshman in 2007.

Then, he ran a whopping 54 times, but threw just 26 passes. He completed 10 of those throws, but knows he’ll have to improve that percentage in Franklin’s pass-happy offense.

He isn’t worried.

“I know I can pass the ball,” he said. “I know I can play quarterback in the SEC.

“I’ve got my confidence back. I got that in the spring, and now I’m over the hump. I’m ready to start the season, go out and start passing the ball like any other quarterback.”

As for Todd, he says he’s almost entirely over the shoulder problems that plagued him in the spring. Tuesday, Todd said his shoulder is “90 percent” healthy. Like Burns, he’s looking forward to showing what he can do.

“You work all year round for the season to come around,” he said. “When they finally do, it’s really exciting because that’s what you work for all the time. That’s kind of your reward for all the work you put in.”

Neither quarterback has seemed worried about the prospect of splitting time. And Tuberville says he’s absolutely not concerned that the rest of the team will start choosing sides.

At his annual dinner with the team’s seniors, Tuberville mentioned the possibility of a quarterback controversy dividing his locker room. The players told him not to worry.

“The big thing is, (the quarterbacks) help each other out,” Tuberville said. “Both know they’re going to get their opportunities.”

A few days after Tuberville’s chat with the seniors, junior tailback Ben Tate sparked a short-lived controversy when he appeared to choose sides in the competition.

Last Sunday, Tate told reporters, “I think everybody can pretty much see who should be the guy out there.”

Todd and Burns took the high road, and the rest of their teammates insisted that the competition isn’t a distraction or a source of conflict.

Both quarterbacks have had to deal with teammates and fans who are desperate for inside information on the race, eager to offer their take on exactly who should win the job. But the two signal-callers just try to block out the unsolicited suggestions.

“Obviously, everybody has their opinions on everything — I have my opinions on certain people, too,” Todd said. “You have to be careful with it and you can’t egg it on a lot because you don’t want to divide the team and have half of them go on this side and half of them go on that side.”

Burns also plays things cool.

“You have to handle it in a friendly manner,” Burns said. “You can’t give it away and say, ‘I should be the guy, you’re right.’ I just tell them thanks, but there are two quarterbacks, so they have to go with that.”

It may not always be easy, but Auburn’s players and coaches — quarterbacks included — are determined to make the most of an unusual situation.

That includes the head coach. Tuberville said this week that he’s never had co-No. 1 quarterbacks at any time in his 30-year coaching career. But as he proved when he hired the pass-happy Franklin to run his formerly ultra-conservative offense, he’s up for a new experience.

“I’ve never been in this situation,” Tuberville said. “But I’ve never run this offense, either.”

| 737-2561