Auburn football HC Hugh Freeze on Payton Thorne's Week 5 performance
Auburn football head coach Hugh Freeze talks about QB1 Payton Thorne's performance against Oklahoma
It wasn't the result that Auburn football fans wanted, but at the end of the day, there are still positives to take away from the Tigers' gameplay against the Oklahoma Sooners. Since the very first game in August, all eyes have been on returning quarterback Payton Thorne.
The fifth-year senior had a strong start against Alabama A&M, but played poorly enough against California to get benched in favor of redshirt freshman quarterback Hank Brown. Though Brown played a solid game against New Mexico, the first half of the Tigers' SEC opener against Arkansas proved to be too much and Payton Thorne was forced back into the fire.
Despite the confusion and the back-and-forth between Thorne and Brown, the pair have remained level-headed and supportive of each other through it all, and Thorne spoke to the media about what he learned through the experience of being relegated to QB2.
Thorne got the starting nod against Oklahoma and came into the game with a fire in his belly. For the first time, it seemed, Thorne made quick decisions, ran into contact, and played aggressively for his teammates and Auburn. Head coach Hugh Freeze shared with the media what he said to Thorne in the locker room following the disappointing loss.
"I told him after the game that I thought, not just him, I thought he laid it on the line for our kids, our team, our program," Hugh Freeze said, per Auburn Rivals. "He sacrificed his body; he gave himself up many times to give us first downs. I thought he really, really played solid. Obviously he wishes he had one throw back, as everybody does."
Freeze went on to say that moving forward, Thorne is expected to be the firm starter over Brown, something he truly earned over the weekend in the Oklahoma game.
"It's kind of what we expect out of him at the start of the season and moving forward -- and moving forward it's what we'll expect," Freeze said. "It's hard to say he's not the starter in these kinds of games. I think he gives us the best chance to win as long as he keeps taking care of the football like he did."