Auburn enters the second year under coach Hugh Freeze with an uptick in talent at some of the most important offensive positions, but the quarterback situation remains the same with veteran Payton Thorne back as the projected starter. The Tigers’ signal-caller experienced a down year in his debut season with the program, but Auburn committed to him for the 2024 campaign when it shied away from the transfer portal recruiting battles that headlined the winter and spring windows. Freeze explained that decision and said he valued the development of his own players over jumping into a “bidding wars” for quarterbacks who may not fit the program’s culture.
“I believe in our quarterback room,” Freeze said on McElroy and Cubelic in the Morning. “I believe in (quarterbacks coach) Kent Austin. I believe that if you have the right pieces around Payton, that we can have success. I think you saw some glimpses of that, and I don’t think we had a total package around him really.
“The options that you’re presented with: Develop Payton, develop Holden, develop Hank and develop Walker or go spend a million dollars on this guy. I couldn’t bring myself to doing that because I wanted to put all the pieces together. Now, I’m not saying I won’t do that in time, but just currently, I think the guy is proven. I’ve watched his Michigan State film a thousand times, and when he had two NFL receivers there, he was pretty dang good.”
Thorne completed 61.1% of his passes for 1,755 yards and 16 touchdowns in his debut season with the Tigers. All of those marks were down from the career-highs he posted across his three years at Michigan State. He also tossed 10 interceptions for the third-straight season.
The supporting cast around Thorne is much improved this offseason, though, particularly at the wide receiver position. Five-star signee Cam Coleman headlines a tremendous talent haul, while three other blue-chip wideouts round out the newcomers from the high school ranks. Top-100 transfer KeAndre Lambert-Smith also figures to contribute immediately. All of that incoming talent softens the blow of missing out on a potential quarterback upgrade through the transfer portal.
Freeze also echoed the sentiment from LSU coach Brian Kelly that dishing out hefty NIL packages to transfers may not be a tenable approach, anyway.
“I just don’t feel comfortable with some of the bidding wars for some of the top guys in the portal,” Freeze said. “Not that we’re not very fair, it’s just, I want to build the whole roster and try to do it with guys that fit, somewhat, your culture.”
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Auburn did, however, find matches in 14 incoming transfers as part of the nation’s No. 28-ranked class. Lambert-Smith is the top newcomer in that haul while tight end Rico Walker is the lone other four-star prospect.
