Auburn Should Reconsider Its Quarterback Situation Going Forward

With a handful a games left on the slate, it could be best for Auburn to give some of the young QBs in-game reps over Payton Thorne

Payton Thorne has been the starter most of the season, but it could be time to get the young blood a shot / Dale Zanine-Imagn Images

The Auburn Tigers are sitting at 3-6 with one win in conference play and two of their final three matchups will be against ranked opponents.

Needless to say, the chances of Auburn qualifying for postseason play could not be much more slim even though the chance is not zero yet.

One of the main reasons for Auburn’s struggles this season, particularly early on, has been inconsistent play at quarterback. Payton Thorne was benched after throwing four interceptions against Cal but reclaimed the starting job after Hank Brown struggled against Arkansas.

In its final three games, perhaps Auburn could give Brown and other young quarterbacks such as Holden Geriner and Walker White opportunities to get in there under center.

“Payton (Thorne) has played pretty solid, but at the same time you start thinking big picture,” Auburn head coach Hugh Freeze said. “That’s a tough quandary for you as a coach, when you start thinking big picture. One of your players that really hasn’t done anything wrong but we certainly aren’t winning. We’ll continue into next week debating that.”

Thorne, a fifth-year senior who played the first three seasons of his collegiate career at Michigan State, seems to have taken a step back in his second year with the program. While there has not been a significant drop-off statistically for Thorne, the offense is not running better despite having more talent around him, particularly an overhauled wide receiver group.

Brown, a redshirt freshman who earned the No. 2 spot on the depth chart prior to the season, looked good against New Mexico but threw three interceptions in the first half against Arkansas to end his two-week run as Auburn’s starting quarterback.

Giving Brown another opportunity to lead the offense could pay dividends down the line as more game experience would be beneficial if he were to earn the starting job next season.

Geriner has appeared in eight games since joining the program as a freshman in 2022. White has not made his collegiate debut yet. 

Freeze and company have options. Playing each quarterback comes with its own set of pros and cons. Allowing the quarterbacks who will contend with incoming freshman Deuce Knight and a potential transfer to get experience could pay off down the line, but could it lead to another preventable loss? Does that even matter for the Tigers at this point?

Freeze has some thinking to do.