Nick Marshall eager to lead 'real scary' offense in 2014

• Marshall threw for 236 yards and four touchdowns on A-Day
• Auburn%27s starting offense gained 657 yards and scored eight touchdowns in the A-Day game

AUBURN - If Saturday was any indication of what the Auburn offense has in store for the fall, one of the most potent offenses in the SEC last season is going to be even better in 2014.

The Tigers starters filled up the box score with an onslaught of 657 yards and eight touchdowns, with 236 yards and four touchdowns coming by air thanks to Offensive MVP Nick Marshall.

Though it's hard to put much weight into any spring game, particularly one where the second-team defense was so depleted with injuries, the level of execution from Marshall and his fellow Tigers starters was evident.

"As y'all can see, we can get real scary," Marshall said. "We know we can run the ball, we're just focusing more on throwing the ball down the field, that's the emphasis for this year."

Even though the opposing pass rush was limited, Marshall was clearly more comfortable in the pocket and displayed better footwork than he did at times in 2013, when he relied heavily on his feet.

It was a positive sign from the Auburn offense, which led the nation in rushing last season but is going to place a bigger emphasis on throwing the ball in Year 2 of the Gus Malzahn era.

"We're expecting a lot out of the passing game," said Quan Bray, who was on the receiving end of two touchdown throws by Marshall. "Because everybody has seen that we ran the ball a lot. … I think it's going to be a sight to see."

As potent as the passing attack was Saturday, the ground game was nearly as strong.

Corey Grant had 128 yards and Cameron Artis Payne added 97 more and each scored. It's clear the Tigers have options for how they'll go about replacing Heisman Trophy finalist Tre Mason.

"We showed a lot of improvement," Artis-Payne said of the offense. "I feel like we kept improving every day that we were out there, whether it was watching film or just working on the little things to keep getting better."

The A-Day game was the culmination of Auburn spring practice, a time of year Marshall did not have the luxury of taking part in last season. Malzahn has been adamant about how important these practices are to the development of his quarterback, and Marshall said Saturday gave him even greater assurance in his receiving corps.

"It gave me more confidence in my receivers," he said. "It gives me more confidence that we can keep going down the field, just keep getting better."

Marshall delivered several crisp passes during his half of action, including four third-down conversions.

Auburn's wide receivers also did a good job of helping Marshall. C.J. Uzomah hauled in a 16-yard strike in midair, D'haquille Williams reined in a 3-yard back-shoulder throw and got his feet in for a touchdown and Sammie Coates made the grab of the day with a one-handed catch over T.J. Davis for a 19-yard score.

"He is playing great right now," Coates said of Marshall. "He is throwing the ball down the field, and he is reading right. If he keeps moving in the right direction, we are going to get better behind him."