Life comes at you fast in sports, a perfect example right now is Auburn. Late last week, I wrote about the excitement that was slowly returning to the program because of the four dynamic true freshman wide receivers (you can read here). But just as quickly as that excitement grew, it is now gone.
In that article I also mentioned that maintaining that excitement would likely come down to the play of quarterback Payton Thorne and his utilization of the Tigers’ new weapons. On Saturday during a 21-14 home loss to Cal, it became apparent that Thorne would not be able to accomplish this.
A year after completing 9 of 14 passes for 94 yards, two touchdowns and one interception during a tough 14-10 victory in Berkeley, Thorne regressed by completing 14 of 27 passes for 165 yards, one touchdown and four crushing interceptions. A week after the dynamic freshman quartet combined for nine receptions for 268 yards and three touchdowns, they combined for three receptions for 66 yards and no touchdowns.
Yes, the level of competition improved exponentially from Alabama A&M to Cal, but that is still unacceptable. The coaching staff and Thorne can be blamed, but whatever direction you want to point your finger at, overall, it just wasn’t good enough. The excuse of not having weapons is long gone, and while Cal’s defense is good, it also isn’t elite.
So where does Auburn go from here? New Mexico is next, but that is unlikely to prove anything no matter how the offense looks. The real questions will return when the SEC schedule begins on September 21st against Arkansas. The Tigers will need to find answers quickly, because after that comes Oklahoma, Georgia and Missouri in consecutive games.
But if Thorne hasn’t figured it out by now, the likelihood of him doing it in the coming weeks is minimal. How long head coach Hugh Freeze sticks with Thorne suddenly becomes the big question around Auburn? He should turn to Hank Brown or Holden Geriner sooner than later, as it will give either (or both) a chance to prepare for the 2025 season.
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Trying to establish either Brown or Geriner will also help a new quarterback develop a better relationship with the quartet of true freshman wide receivers. And that is especially important in the day of the transfer portal. What are the chances that all four stick around for another season if there are huge question marks at the quarterback position heading into 2025? Minimal to none. Auburn can also grab a new quarterback through the next portal window, but that’ll create some uncertainty with the current roster and their portal plans.
The next two months will likely not be as exciting as Auburn fans had hoped they’d be, but the decisions that are made regarding the quarterback position now will prove to be vital for 2025 and beyond.
