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Auburn quarterback Nick Marshall throws the ball during his A-Day MVP performance two weeks ago. (Julie Bennett/jbennett@al.com)

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The remarkable thing about

Nick Marshall

's breakout season as Auburn's starting quarterback is that Marshall was learning on the fly.

Marshall's athleticism, his arm strength, his poise under pressure were never in question.

And now that he finally has the time to dig deep into all of the little things that go into playing quarterback in Auburn's offense, Marshall emerged from spring as a different player than the one who won the job last August.

"Nick feels a lot more comfortable," Auburn coach

Gus Malzahn

said during his Tiger Trek appearance in Dothan on Wednesday. "Even in the spring game, the casual eye could see, he's a lot more relaxed, he's throwing on the bounce, his eyes are in the right place with his progression."

Marshall's arrival in the summer never gave him a chance to really sink into the intricacies of playing quarterback in Auburn's offense. He spent the summer getting acclimated to his teammates, the first three weeks of training camp battling for a job and the rest of the season preparing for games as he produced 1,068 rushing yards, 1,976 passing yards and 26 total touchdowns.

But he never stopped trying to pick up on the little things, even though there wasn't a lot of time to focus during Auburn's magical turnaround season.

When the offseason arrived, Marshall had a list of things he wanted to improve before spring practice started, and

to get a head start on his improvement before spring practice began.

By the time A-Day arrived, Marshall was ready to turn in an impressive 13-of-22 throwing performance that netted 236 yards, four touchdowns and no interceptions, hitting a variety of targets along the way.

"I'm a way better passer than I was a year ago," Marshall said. "I just took down all of the little things that the coaches said and put it into my progress."

Finally comfortable in the offense, Marshall also put together a list of technical issues he wanted to improve this offseason.

Every time Marshall gets ready to throw, he's going through a mental checklist on technique, focusing on a lot of little things that can help him be a more accurate passer and reach his goal of completing 65 percent of his passes in his second year.

"Footwork, keeping my shoulders square, not dropping my elbow when I deliver the ball and trying to follow through on every ball," Marshall said. "As you can see, every time I follow through, the ball, it'll be somewhere the receiver can get it."

Marshall's receivers have noticed the difference.

His ability to throw the ball drew rave reviews from his receivers during the spring.

"He is throwing the ball down the field, and he is reading right,"

Sammie Coates

said on A-Day. "If he keeps moving in the right direction we are going to get better behind him."

All of that work in the offseason helped.

But so did a full offseason in the playbook. With Marshall confident and comfortable in his reads, his progressions and Auburn's playbook, all of that natural talent can take over and allow him to reach his potential as a thrower.

"He was a lot more reactive this spring," Malzahn said on the SEC teleconference Wednesday. "You could tell he wouldn't really have to think hard about progression of everything. It was coming more natural. We're hoping it will be even better than that in the fall."