Evaluating Auburn's 2024 QB situation, if Hugh Freeze 'fumbled the bag' in the transfer portal

Auburn will enter the spring with a certain uncertainty at quarterback considering their options down on The Plains. The question now is which player they go with or, like last season, if they’ll go looking in the portal?

On3’s Andy Staples and Jesse Simonton took a look at the Tigers’ quarterback room during ‘Andy Staples On3’ on Tuesday. Staples likened the situation as a similar one to last season but noted how that isn’t necessarily a good thing considering how things have turned out regarding QB Payton Thorne.

“This is the way it was last year. They did not have Payton Thorne yet this time last year,” recalled Staples. “They got him after spring practice after he and Keon Coleman hit the portal following Michigan State’s spring practice.”

“In this case? It felt like there was a big vote of confidence from Hugh Freeze toward Payton Thorne between the end of the regular season and the bowl game. Then, after the bowl game, it’s like, ‘Oh god no,'” Staples said. “We’ve got reevaluate this entirely.”

Simonton concurred but took it even a step further than that. While he gave Freeze credit for doing a lot well at Auburn so far, specifically in recruiting and especially recruiting receiver talent, Simonton thinks that he has dropped the ball at quarterback to this point of his tenure.

“Auburn fans aren’t going to like to hear this. They’ve already been in my mentions and gotten mad at me. I think Hugh has kind of fumbled the bag on this,” Simonton said.

“He has done a great job assembling all of this talent around the quarterback position. They sign this insane wide receiver class with multiple five-stars – you flip (Cam) Coleman from Texas A&M, you get (Perry) Thompson as another in-state guy. Yet, who the heck is going to throw them the ball?” asked Simonton.

Thorne returns as last season’s starter after throwing for under 1,800 yards to go with 16 touchdowns and 10 interceptions. Holden Geriner, Hank Brown, Jackson Barkley, and John Colvin will all join him back in the position room after losing Robby Ashford and Sawyer Pate to the portal. Sam Jackson, a transfer from California, and Walker White, a four-star freshman and Top-10 QB recruit, will also come in.

The Southeastern Conference’s rule on transfers would hamstring who else Auburn could add in the portal come the spring cycle. That’s why their starter may likely already in the building. However, according to Staples, it might not be who you’d think.

“It does seem like they’re going to have to get somebody but they can’t get anybody from the SEC because of that rule,” said Staples.

“Walker White, the freshman from Arkansas, I think, may have a shot here,” Staples said. “If you look around? I don’t see a lot of non-SEC quarterback competitions shaking out in a way that you’re going to get somebody that you like. So Walker White may have a shot to just grab this thing as a true freshman. He’s going to be there in spring practice so he’s going to have a chance to learn the offense.”

Questions need answers or ideas at Auburn in regards to who their starting quarterback is going to be next fall. That places plenty of pressure on Freeze to get it right based on how the position has played out to this point of his tenure.

“I think we know what Payton Thorne is as a quarterback at this point,” Simonton said. “Do they decide that that’s stable enough for them to roll into this season? Or do they go with one of the two young guys on the roster and say, ‘Hey, we’ll take some lumps’ but we see that growth potential?”