The historic 2013 A-Day game sure does seem like a lifetime ago, doesn't it?
Fresh off the worst season in program history, Auburn's first A-Day under head coach Gus Malzahn coincided with the sending off of the Toomer's Oaks.
These two landmark events on the same day resulted in a spring game that was attended by 83,401 fans, a nation-high and Auburn school record.
As far as the game itself, very little of what the Tigers displayed on the field that spring day made a SEC Championship seem likely.
One of the biggest questions leading into the game was who, if anyone, would make a statement in the quarterback competition.
Kiehl Frazier and Jonathan Wallace took the majority of snaps at the quarterback position for the Tigers.
Future starter Nick Marshall had yet to even reach campus, and neither of the upperclassmen did much to create separation as Malzahn looked for his first quarterback as the head coach of the Tigers.
Wallace had a solid day, going 11-of-15 for 115 yards and a touchdown, but the junior also had an interception and had the first snap of the day go over his head for a scoop-and-score defensive touchdown.
While Marshall had yet to make his way to the Plains, another JUCO transfer quickly established himself as a potential threat out of the backfield.
JUCO running back Cameron Artis-Payne rushed 13 times for 98 yards and made some big plays receiving the ball out of the backfield.
Incumbent starter Tre Mason, who rushed for 1,000 yards despite the team's 3-9 record in 2012, did not see much action in the 2013 spring game.
At the wide receiver position, several players were vying for their share of passes, after the departure of leading receiver Emory Blake.
Ricardo Louis snagged eight catches for 66 yards in last year's A-Day game, seven yards less than the 73 he'd eventually go during The Miracle in Jordan-Hare.
Louis, Quan Bray, Sammie Coates and Jaylon Denson were among the favored targets for Frazier and Wallace that day.
In hindsight, the defensive star of the 2013 A-Day game ended up having a minimal impact for the Tigers on their run to the BCS National Championship.
Justin Garrett manned the "Star" position in Ellis Johnson's 4-2-5 system that day and was making plays all over the field, including the aforementioned scoop-and-score to open the game.
The defensive line was a shade of what was to come, as talented freshmen Carl Lawson, Montravius Adams and Elijah Daniel had yet to arrive on campus.
Overall, the 2013 A-Day game will likely be remembered for off the field reasons as opposed to the product that was on Pat Dye Field that afternoon.
Little did anyone know at the time that Jordan-Hare Stadium was soon to become a theater of dreams for Auburn's record-breaking fan base.
Eric Wallace is a sports reporter at The Auburn Plainsman. You can contact him via e-mail at sports@theplainsman.com or on Twitter @EWall14.
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