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Auburn quarterback contenders Clint Moseley and Kiehl Frazier have picked up where they left off in the spring, except Moseley's throwing shoulder is in much better shape.
The two resumed their competition Wednesday when the Tigers opened preseason camp minus two recent recruits and with a couple of welcome additions.
''The desperation is there,'' said Moseley, a junior who started six games last season. ''Yeah, there's definitely a sense of urgency. I realize that my time is coming in a couple of years here at Auburn. So yeah, it's there but it's not going to completely change the way I go about it.''
Frazier had the advantage of being healthy in the first spring under new offensive coordinator Scot Loeffler while Moseley's throws were limited by a sore shoulder. Frazier takes a more low-key approach in discussing the competition.
''I don't think it's really amplified,'' Frazier said. ''Every rep counts and we try to make them matter just as much in the spring as we do in the fall. But really, every rep individually we want to make it our best rep.''
Moseley said Dr. James Andrews told him that keeping his shoulder healthy is up to him.
''It's just a matter of rehabbing and just every day getting better the more I get in the training room,'' Moseley said. ''I understand it's on me, so I've just got to get in the training room as much as I can. It's feeling a lot better than it did in the spring.''
There were two notable absences as camp opened. Coach Gene Chizik said freshman quarterback Zeke Pike and cornerback Jonathan Rose have left the program and plan to transfer. Pike enrolled in January but Chizik sent him home after his arrest for public intoxication in June.
Chizik said the decision was made in the last week to 10 days.
Rose was one of last year's top signees, but played sparingly as a freshman.
Chizik didn't elaborate on why they left.
He was more effusive about two other players who haven't played football in a while.
Walk-on wide receiver Melvin Ray, a 2008 Alabama signee and former minor league outfielder, joined the Tigers at a position with some room for help. He was a 33rd-round draft pick of the Los Angeles Dodgers and joins the team after attending Auburn since last year.
Frazier said he expects the 6-foot-3, 205-pound Ray to be ''a big contributor for us'' once he learns the offense.
''It'll be really interesting to see,'' Chizik said. ''He's a physical specimen in terms of size for a wide receiver. It's been a while for him. To come out of baseball and sitting out all last year, the jury's out. We'll see but we're glad to have him on our team.''
Offensive lineman Shon Coleman, a prized 2010 signee, has been cleared to participate fully in practice for the first time since he was diagnosed two years ago with leukemia.
Chizik said Coleman, who participated in noncontact drills, has boosted his weight to 305 pounds.
''He loves football and he's just enjoying being out there and loving the fact that he's got an opportunity to play the game again, which is outstanding,'' Chizik said. ''And he's done really, really well. He's got to knock some dust off, too, but overall we're really proud of where he's come from.''
Veterans said a different attitude was evident during summer workouts. Senior cornerback T'Sharvan Bell said the captain-led practices were the best he's seen during his career.
''I think just the leadership and the guys that are willing to follow the leaders,'' said Bell, whose 2011 season ended with a knee injury. ''You don't have guys talking back saying, `How you going to tell me to do something you're not doing?' We've got guys just showing up and getting their work done, no bickering back and forth. We've got the leaders, and whoever's not a leader's been following.''
