With each week that passes, it’s become more clear that backup quarterback Joey Gatewood will have a role in Auburn’s offense. It might not be the role he prepared for, but it’s one that Gatewood has come to appreciate for what it is: a chance to grow.

After losing the battle for the starting quarterback position to Bo Nix at the end of the summer, Gatewood said someone told him: “When you go into a situation like this, it’s something, either you can go through it or you can grow through it.”

That stuck with him.

“I decided, you know, I'm not going to be the one to let this affect me,” Gatewood said. “I'm going to grow through this whole experience.”

Gatewood said he looks at this season as one big learning experience that will make him a better quarterback in the end. With that in mind, he goes to practice each day and prepares as if he’s the starting quarterback.

That attitude is necessary because at any given time, Gatewood is one play away from being the starter, a fact that coach Gus Malzahn repeats and one that Gatewood knows well.

But besides that, Gatewood said that mindset doesn’t just make him better; it also makes the people around him better— including Nix.

The two quarterbacks work together every practice to “handle business and get it done,” Gatewood said. There aren’t any hard feelings between the two — Gatewood said he likes Nix a lot and thinks he’s a good leader.

Even though Nix is the starter unless that “one play” happens, Malzahn and his coaches know what a weapon they have in their backup quarterback, and they’ve been finding ways to capitalize on the skills that Gatewood brings.

“He presents a completely different deal,” Malzahn said after the win over Texas A&M. “He’ll have a package each week.”

In the first three games, the Tigers took advantage of Gatewood’s skill as a runner. He rushed for 124 yards on 19 carries over the three games, including a 100-yard game against Kent State.

“Obviously he’s a really good runner, and that’s what he’s known for, and when he gets in there he runs the ball really hard,” Nix said after the Kent State game.

Gatewood had just one completion for five yards heading into the game against Texas A&M.

When Gatewood came out against the Aggies, they were prepared for him to run — and he did, but just once for a total of four yards. He did his real damage through the air.

On a drive where Auburn switched its quarterback several times, Gatewood took over for Nix at the Aggies’ 6-yard line. Based on what he had done against other teams, the Aggies geared up to stop Gatewood from running into the end zone.

As three defenders came running towards him, Gatewood faked a sweep to running back Shaun Shivers before throwing it to a wide-open John Samuel Shenker in the end zone. The touchdown put Auburn up 14-0 in the first quarter and allowed it to go into halftime leading 14-3.

It was also Gatewood’s fourth touchdown in four games and his first touchdown pass of his college career.

Nix was waiting on the sidelines to congratulate him, and Malzahn called it an “impressive play.”

“It was awesome,” Gatewood said.” You know, it was very exciting for me, that moment, because I was running. And just to have that opportunity and share it with my teammates, it was awesome.”

Gatewood said he could see plays like that being used in the future, but in general, he sees the offense starting to click and knows that he has a role in it.

“I feel like we’re heading in a really good path, the right path,” Gatewood said.