07/25 at 12:33 AM

HOOVER — Seven quarterbacks, some who played last season, some who received plenty of work this spring and some who are just months removed from their high school graduation, will have a shot at Auburn’s vacant position when camp opens next week.

Any time now, Gene Chizik would love to have one starter and six backups.

“I’d like a guy to step up tomorrow,” Chizik said Friday before his formal press conference at Day 3 of SEC Media Days at the Wynfrey Hotel. “It’s wide open. It’s kind of a unique dynamic.”

And “muddled,” Chizik said.

Juniors Neil Caudle and Kodi Burns battled to a proverbial draw in the spring, leaving the door wide open for Chris Todd, who sat out while recovering from shoulder surgery, and Auburn’s three incoming freshmen (Tyrik Rollison, Clint Moseley and Robert Cooper).

Caudle and Burns are the presumptive frontrunners, though Chizik said he considers all seven to have a shot.

“The ones that will have an advantage will be the ones that had reps in this offense. That certainly has helped,” Chizik said. “We’ve got young, talented guys coming up and we’ve got some guys that are talented that didn’t even play in the spring like Chris.

“We don’t know.”

Offensive coordinator Gus Malzahn repeatedly said in the spring that he does not want more than one starter heading into the season. On Friday, Chizik agreed, but wouldn’t rule out the possibility.

“Nothing’s off the table because you don’t ever want to go back and backtrack on something you said earlier,” he said. “All possibilities are open … but we know what we’d like to do. We’d like to settle on one quarterback.”

There’s no timetable to make a decision, other than having it made as soon as possible.

“We’d like to have it ironed out quick,” Chizik said.

Deep snapper leaves team
Deep snapper Dax Dellenbach, who did not see the field as a redshirt last season, has left the team, Chizik said.

Auburn lists three other deep snappers on its 2009 roster, including a freshman walk-on named Jake Lembke. Robert Shiver, who graduated this spring, handled the job last season.

Dellenbach is the fourth player to be removed from the roster since spring practice. Linebackers Christian Thompson and Marcus Jemison and defensive lineman Jomarcus Savage were reported as off the team last month.

Billings back
Wide receiver Montez Billings, who sat out the entire spring with an unknown academic issue, will participate in fall practice, Chizik said.

“He’s definitely going to play this fall. That’s for sure,” Chizik said. “We’re still working through some of the other issues, but he will be playing this fall.”

Billings, a senior, is Auburn’s leading returning receiver. He caught 24 passes for 277 yards last season and figured to be a frontrunner for the first-team offense before his absence.

Billings, a public administration major, graduated in May.

Handful of players nursing unspecified injuries
Per his standard protocol, Chizik did not divulge specifics when asked about certain players’ injuries Friday.

Cornerback Aairon Savage (Achilles tendon), wide receiver Tim Hawthorne (ankle), safety Mike McNeil (broken leg) and quarterback Barrett Trotter (ACL) are all considered “works in progress.”

Chizik said it wouldn’t be fair to the friends and families of the players to divulge the specifics of their respective injuries.

Multiple scouting Web sites have reported that both Savage and Trotter are out for the season.

Fall practice closed
Auburn will shift its fall practices away from the old intramural fields and out of the public eye.

All of Auburn’s fall practices, which kick off Aug. 5, will be held at the Auburn practice fields behind the Athletic Complex and are closed to fans and media.

Chizik opened three, 25-minute intervals to reporters this spring. Under Tommy Tuberville, the first two weeks of practice were typically open to reporters.

Most signees on campus
Chizik said most of his 2009 signing class is on campus and ready for camp, but would not comment on those still yet to enroll.

He also would not comment as to whether Auburn has added to that class. As reported Monday, offensive tackle Aubrey Phillips (Olive Branch, Miss.), who received his unconditional release from Florida State last week, said he planned to transfer to Auburn and play this season.

“We’re working really hard to get them cleared,” Chizik said. “The ones we signed are the ones we got. We don’t consider them added until they show up.“

Change of heart
When he met with reporters Friday morning, Chizik refrained from discussing the Tim Tebow controversy.

He changed his mind when he reached the podium 10 minutes later — albeit begrudgingly.

“Tim Tebow is a great quarterback and I did vote for Tim Tebow,” Chizik said. “I certainly don’t want to open myself up for discussion for here and ever more. Those things are confidential. As big of a deal as has been made of this, Tim Tebow is a great quarterback.

“He’s one of the best in the country. Let’s just leave it there.”

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