It has always been expected that in 2024 Payton Thorne would be back as Auburn’s starting quarterback.
All indications led to Thorne returning for another season when Robby Ashford hit the portal and Hugh Freeze decided against recruiting a transfer quarterback. Freeze confirmed this before fall camp.
At an Auburn AMBUSH event in Alexander City in early July, Freeze informed reporters that Thorne had the starting quarterback position all to himself.
Later, Freeze said that Thorne would receive “the nod” as Auburn’s starting quarterback during SEC Media Days.
But the question of who would come after him remains unanswered.
Nonetheless, Auburn quarterback coach Kent Austin gave some information on the quarterback room hierarchy of the Tigers during a meeting with reporters on Thursday.
Naturally, it appears that redshirt sophomore Holden Geriner and redshirt freshman Hank Brown are the front-runners for the QB2 spot.
According to Austin, “Right now, they’re probably on the same level.” “I would say they’re probably at the same spot if you were to put a gun to my head and force me to choose between the two categories.”
When comparing the two from last fall, statistically speaking, Brown was superior as he completed 7-for-9 for 132 passing yards, all of which came in his only Music City Bowl game.
In contrast, over the course of five games, Geriner went 5-for-15 for 75 yards and one interception.
Even though they may be tied right now, Austin is expecting to part ways.
That will come apart. It always does, according to Austin. Seldom do two guys go through the full camp without experiencing some sort of separation at some time. That might be the case this time, but after a few more live periods are under our belt, ask me about it in a few weeks.
Walker White, a true freshman, appears to be trailing the bunch, but Austin believes the former four-star has a bright future ahead of him.
He is quite thorough. makes copious notes. Sometimes he asks “Why?” too much, given his age and developmental stage at the moment, Austin claimed.
“He has extraordinary physical talent. He’s large and powerful. He has a really strong arm. He is accurate by nature. If necessary, he is able to escape difficulties. However, as you are all aware, physical prowess at quarterbacking is limited.
Even while there is currently a lot of rotation among the four quarterbacks during workouts, Austin believes that this situation will eventually need to change.
“Four guys cannot be prepared. When the season starts, you really can only get two men ready, and it won’t matter much, Austin remarked. “We need to get in at least one scrimmage. After that first one, we’ll assess the guys and see where they’re at.”
On Saturday, Auburn is anticipated to scrimmage a little bit during practice.
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