Auburn head coach Hugh Freeze has had to reflect. It’s come from the sidelines in Berkeley, the tape on the plane ride home and the film room this week. It’s come from the podium with reporters and under the late afternoon Auburn sun at practice. It’s a reflection at the most important position.

The quarterback position hasn’t gone the way Freeze planned. And that reflection hasn’t created clarity on what to do next.

During his appearance on Auburn’s Tiger Talk radio show Thursday night, Freeze said he had certain packages for Robby Ashford against Cal. And Auburn used some of them. But they went wrong. There was Jarquez Hunter running the wrong way on a 3rd down with Ashford in the game or a slew of penalties that killed any of the little offensive momentum Auburn had.

So this week, Freeze’s key talking point at the position is questioning just how much rotation there should be.

“I do not like the way the other night went with it,” Freeze said Monday. “At the same time, I think Robby has to get his touches. So that is absolutely something that’s on my mind, and we’ve got to figure it out.”

Freeze was asked if he’d consider just using Thorne to maintain some consistency. Freeze has thought about it, but he’s weighing that against wanting Ashford on the field for his athleticism.

On Monday, Freeze said he and the offensive coaching staff had to question why they were changing quarterbacks in the seemingly haphazard manner against Cal in an attempt to find some sort of spark. Throughout speaking engagements this week, Freeze has firmly stated that’s not going to happen going forward.

The rotation against Cal seemed to hurt Auburn’s offense further. Freeze said Monday he planned to spend extra time in offensive meetings this week, and that will likely turn into a focus on keeping Ashford in his specific packages and keeping Thorne as the primary quarterback.

“We need Payton to play better, truthfully, too,” Freeze said. “Now, the last drive he played well. Prior to that I think a few of the throws were inaccurate. I thought he left the pocket early once. And look, I’m not beating up Payton. He played really well that last possession, but we really do need more consistency there throughout the whole game.”

Freeze discussed the point further on his SEC conference call with reporters on Wednesday.

“I think we’ve got to decide who is the guy and obviously I’ve said — and I mean this — Robby needs to get touches. But the shuffling in and out, I don’t think is healthy for anyone,” Freeze said.

His comments on the conference call suggested that Thorne doesn’t necessarily have a secure grasp on the starting job. Largely, that tracks with comments Freeze made all the way back to announcing Thorne as Auburn’s starter when he said Ashford had some of his best practices after losing the job and would force Thorne to continue to earn being atop the depth chart.

Thorne has been the more effective passer compared to Ashford. Over two games, Thorne has completed 19 of 31 passes for 235 yards. Ashford has three passing yards and a 33% completion rate on nine throws. Thorne certainly has the more reliable arm, but Freeze has pointed out his decision-making difficulties leading Auburn’s run-pass-option scheme after each of the first two games.

The next night, on his Tiger Talk radio show appearance, Freeze stated again he was not happy with the quarterback rotation against Cal.

“I don’t think you’ll see that again,” Freeze said Thursday night of the rotation.

His comments on both the conference call and the radio show also again posited both Ashford and sophomore Holden Geriner “nipping at (Thorne’s) heels wanting their chance too.”

So if Auburn has reopened its quarterback battle, it will likely take place largely on the practice fields behind the Woltosz Football Performance Center. The apparent push from Ashford and Geriner toward Thorne’s job doesn’t fully line up with the desire to rely on Thorne more in the game — until Thorne proves otherwise, at least.

Freeze’s comments throughout the week suggest Thorne will receive a much larger share of the quarterback reps this week against Samford. But will Ashford’s role look like it did against UMass: being largely used inside the redzone for running plays?

How firmly does Freeze view any of the quarterbacks at this point in their roles? Samford is going to be another chance to reflect on his own game planning.

Matt Cohen covers Auburn sports for AL.com. You can follow him on Twitter at @Matt_Cohen_ or email him at [email protected]