Hugh Freeze jumped on the headset in the waning moments of his first A-Day game as Auburn’s head coach and presented an option to his coordinators, Philip Montgomery and Ron Roberts.

With the defense clinging to a 24-21 lead late in the third quarter — the final period of a weather-shortened scrimmage — Freeze asked the pair if they wanted to line it up with the starters for a winner-take-all final play from the 3-yard line. There was a long pause on the headsets before Freeze prodded for a response from the two veteran coordinators.

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They ultimately decided to punt — or, well, kick. They didn’t want to go for the win, instead opting to let kicker Alex McPherson attempt a walk-off, 33-yard field goal. McPherson drilled the kick, and A-Day ended in a 24-24 tie in which everyone went home a winner. Steak dinners for all.

“Happy with the way it ended,” Freeze said afterward.

And just like that, Auburn’s first spring of Freeze’s tenure culminated on the rain-soaked field at Jordan-Hare Stadium. The Tigers held 15 practices over the course of six weeks as Freeze and his staff worked to install their systems and their culture, as well as evaluate the program in the early stages of this new era on the Plains.

While Freeze said at the onset of spring practices at the end of February that there wouldn’t be a depth chart this spring, AL.com has put together a projected post-spring two-deep for the Tigers. This depth chart is based on observations from open periods of practice over the last six weeks, as well as information gathered from speaking with coaches and players over the course of the spring season.

Here’s where we see things standing entering the summer:

OFFENSE

Quarterback

Robby Ashford, sophomore

T.J. Finley, junior OR Holden Geriner, redshirt freshman

The 411: The quarterback competition is far from over, but Ashford appears to be the frontrunner. He opened spring as the first quarterback in the rotation, and he closed it as the first on the field with the starting offense on A-Day.

Running back

Jarquez Hunter, junior

Damari Alston, sophomore OR Brian Battie, junior

The 411: Auburn has to feel good about its running back room after the offense rushed for 292 sack-adjusted yards and averaged 6 yards per attempt on A-Day. Hunter is poised to take the lead role after Tank Bigsby’s departure, while Alston and Battie should both have roles in the offense.

Tight end

Rivaldo Fairweather, junior

Luke Deal, senior OR Tyler Fromm, senior

The 411: Fairweather, a transfer from FIU, has been a revelation this spring. He’s a big-bodied, 6-foot-4 weapon with an impressive catch radius and athleticism that should help expand Auburn’s passing game. It’s a deep tight end room, and veterans like Deal and Fromm will be factors with Auburn using some two-tight end sets.

Wide receiver

Camden Brown, sophomore

Nick Mardner, senior

Wide receiver

Ja’Varrius Johnson, senior

Tar’Varish Dawson Jr., sophomore

Wide receiver

Koy Moore, junior

Malcolm Johnson Jr., junior

The 411: Auburn’s wide receivers were hampered some by injury this spring. Brown was limited due to an ankle while Malcolm Johnson Jr. was sidelined with a collarbone injury. Brown still impressed, and Mardner brought some welcome length to a group that returns its top-two receivers in Ja’Varrius Johnson and Moore. Don’t be surprised if Jay Fair or Landen King make some noise here in the fall, either.

Left tackle

Dillon Wade, junior

Garner Langlo, sophomore

Left guard

Jeremiah Wright, junior

Jalil Irvin, senior

Center

Avery Jones, senior

Connor Lew, freshman

Right guard

Tate Johnson, junior

Kam Stutts, senior

Right tackle

Gunner Britton, senior

Izavion Miller, junior

The 411: Auburn’s three transfer additions (Wade, Jones and Britton) quickly settled into starting roles this spring, with veterans Wright and Johnson typically with them in the first group. Johnson, who dislocated his elbow early in spring but made a surprising return, did not participate on A-Day, making room for impressive freshman Lew to get the starting nod. Lew has some versatility at the interior spots, just as Miller can move around to either tackle or guard spot. Both should be valuable depth pieces along with Stutts.

DEFENSE

Defensive end

Marcus Harris, senior

Jeffrey M’ba, junior

Nose tackle

Jayson Jones, junior

Lawrence Johnson, senior

Defensive tackle

Justin Rogers, junior

Mosiah Nasili-Kite, senior

The 411: Auburn brought in some Power 5 experience to reload the defensive line this offseason, with transfers Rogers, Johnson and Nasili-Kite all working on the two-deep throughout the spring. M’ba settled in at end after moving around some in his first year, while the combination of Jones and Rogers at the two tackle spots provides some serious size on the line for the Tigers.

JACK linebacker

Elijah McAllister, senior

Keldric Faulk, freshman

The 411: A pair of newcomers lead the way at a position of need for Auburn, which is still “deficient in true pass-rushers.” McAllister provides some welcome SEC experience after transferring from Vanderbilt, while Faulk — a true freshman — was one of the biggest standouts of the spring and received some first-team reps on A-Day.

WILL linebacker

Cam Riley, junior

Robert Woodyard Jr., redshirt freshman

MIKE linebacker

Austin Keys, junior

Wesley Steiner, senior

The 411: Keys, an Ole Miss transfer, quickly settled in with the top group alongside returning veteran Riley, while Steiner and redshirt freshman Woodyard were the typical second pairing in Auburn’s linebacker rotation this spring. Even with the designations between the first- and second-teamers here, expect much more rotation at linebacker this season.

Cornerback

Nehemiah Pritchett, senior

Kayin Lee, freshman

Cornerback

D.J. James, senior

J.D. Rhym, sophomore

The 411: Auburn was thin at corner this spring despite bringing back starters James and Pritchett. Rhym was sidelined with a lower-body injury for much of the spring, while Lee — a freshman early enrollee — really turned some heads and will be counted on right off the bat this fall.

STAR

Keionte Scott, junior

Donovan Kaufman, junior

The 411: Scott and Kaufman have been “1A and 1B” at the STAR/nickel role in Roberts’ defense, while others like Caleb Wooden and Austin Ausberry also got reps there this spring.

Safety

Jaylin Simpson, senior

Cayden Bridges, sophomore

Safety

Zion Puckett, senior

Marquise Gilbert, junior

The 411: Simpson and Puckett seem to have the top spots shored up, while Gilbert and Bridges were the typical second group at safety. Auburn could still add another player in the transfer portal, but the back end should remain a strength this season.

SPECIAL TEAMS

Kicker

Alex McPherson, redshirt freshman

Evan McGuire, sophomore

Punter

Oscar Chapman, senior

Daniel Perez, redshirt freshman

The 411: McPherson is taking over the full-time kicking job after stepping in late last season for the injured Anders Carlson, while Chapman is back for his fourth year as the Tigers’ starting punter. He really impressed Freeze with his punting during special teams period before the official start of A-Day.

Kick returners

Brian Battie, junior AND Keionte Scott, junior

Ja’Varrius Johnson, senior AND Jay Fair, sophomore

Punt returner

Ja’Varrius Johnson, senior

Keionte Scott, junior

The 411: We didn’t get to see much in terms of kick and punt returns this spring, but Battie should be a lock on kick returns considering he was a consensus All-American in that role at USF in 2021. Hunter was Auburn’s top kick returner last season, but with him stepping into the lead role at running back, don’t count on him pulling double duty. Johnson and Scott both have punt return experience at Auburn and could easily handle that this fall.

Tom Green is an Auburn beat reporter for Alabama Media Group. Follow him on Twitter @Tomas_Verde.