AUBURN -- Neil Caudle isn’t going anywhere.

The Auburn quarterback is disappointed with his standing on the Tigers’ depth chart, but the lifelong AU fan isn’t considering a transfer.

"I see myself here," Caudle said Thursday. "I'll just keep chugging along and keep trying to help the team out."

Caudle, a sophomore, was the odd man out when offensive coordinator Tony Franklin narrowed Auburn’s quarterback competition to a two-man race.

Sophomore Kodi Burns and junior Chris Todd will get most of the reps in practice until further notice. That leaves Caudle with a very different role: Standing on the sideline, signaling plays to the starting quarterback.

It’s the usual role for the third-team quarterback in Franklin’s offense. And while Caudle would rather be throwing passes, he said he has accepted Franklin’s decision.

"He just sat me down and told me right now that Chris and Kodi are the best candidates for the job," said Caudle. "He explained to me what my role will be to help the team out."

Caudle’s only career snaps came last season, in the second half of the Tigers’ blowout win against Tennessee Tech. He was 0-for-3 with an interception.

His numbers have been better this spring — he threw for a combined 385 yards in AU’s first two scrimmages — but according to Franklin, Burns and Todd remained ahead of him throughout spring drills.

"He's a team guy and he understood that I had to pick somebody," Franklin said. "I just had to make a decision to try to give the other guys reps."

Tuberville ready for Mideast trip

Tommy Tuberville’s seven-day trip to the Middle East is still six weeks away. But the Auburn head coach is looking forward to the journey.

Tuberville is one of five college football coaches invited on a Middle East Tour by Armed Forces Entertainment.

AFE is a Defense Department agency that organizes concerts and shows for U.S. servicemen and women stationed overseas. The NCAA Football Coaches Tour, which also features head coaches Mark Richt of Georgia, Randy Shannon of Miami, Charlie Weis of Notre Dame and Jack Siedlecki of Yale, is the first of its kind for AFE.

Tuberville is happy to take part.

"I feel like everybody should do their part," he said Thursday. "I don't know if it will help at all, but … I think it will be a unique trip for all of us.

"I don't know if (the military personnel) will get anything out of it, but it will help us, in terms of understanding a little more about what's going on."

The exact itinerary for the trip hasn’t yet been announced. According to AFE's official Web site, the coaches will visit bases in Kuwait, Bahrain and Qatar.

RB Davis to return soon

A painful foot injury cost Tristan Davis eight spring practices. A slender piece of plastic cost him another.

Davis, who has been sidelined since Feb. 28 by a deep foot bruise, was back in practice Thursday. But the senior wasn’t yet able to participate in contact drills.

Though Davis is healthy, he isn’t yet ready for contact. For that, he needs a plastic insert for his shoe, which will protect his injured foot from further damage.

Davis, who missed 10 games last year with two separate foot injuries, said the latest injury was related to the previous ailments.

"As a running back, we all get stepped on a lot," he said. "It's just unfortunate that I had an injury that was where if it got stepped on again, it was going to hurt worse than anybody else getting stepped on.

"I've just got to learn how to deal with it."

Tuberville said he expects Davis to play in Saturday’s A-Day game. Defensive end Antonio Coleman isn’t so lucky: The junior will miss the rest of spring with a neck sprain, according to Tuberville.

OT Tilley absent

Offensive tackle Lee Tilley didn’t attend Thursday’s practice. The sophomore hasn’t been at practice since AU returned from spring break Tuesday.

Tuberville said Tilley’s absence was related to academics, adding, "It’s a little bit of a doghouse scenario."

Tuberville didn’t elaborate. Last season, when defensive back Lorenzo Ferguson and wideout Terrell Zachery were academically ineligible, Tuberville used the same term to describe their situation. It’s unclear if Tilley is academically ineligible or just focusing on his studies.