Payton Thorne describes his play style to Auburn fans

Auburn‘s offseason transfer portal acquisition quarterback Payton Thorne has won the starting quarterback job for the Tigers. But the jury is still out on whether or not he has won the admiration of the Tigers fan base.

So, in order for the Auburn faithful to get more of an understanding of who he is, Thorne recently revealed what attributes his game brings to the program and what he’s all about when on the field.

“I would say, first and foremost, I’m definitely a competitor. I want to win more than anybody, and I hope that my actions show that. But I’m just excited to go out there. I want to win,” said Thorne.

“It is my job to get these guys the ball accurately and on time and try to make the guys around me; try to make him look good.”

Thorne was able to beat out last year’s starting quarterback, Robby Ashford, for th position, and he was able to do so while working to get caught up on learning the new offense. It’s not as if Ashford had a leg up learning Auburn’s offense, as the team also underwent a complete regime change in the offseason but rather, Thorne had a late start after missing much of Auburn’s spring ball practices.

Auburn and head coach Hugh Freeze would like nothing more than for Thorne’s competitive demeanor to shine bright on the field for the Tigers this season. But to do so, he’ll have to improve on his numbers from last season which clocked in at 2679 yards, 19 touchdowns, and 11 interceptions when he was still with the Michigan State Spartans.

Hugh Freeze: ‘My gut said it’s time’ to name Payton Thorne as Auburn’s starting quarterback

Thorne beat out Ashford and Holden Geriner for the starting job, and Freeze explained why he chose the Michigan State transfer during a press conference last week. He made it clear he still trusts all three quarterbacks but he felt he needed to make a decision.

“I believe in all three of those guys. There are days where there has been very little separation,” Freeze said. “I just believe, man, my gut is usually right and usually when I follow my gut? And I’m not saying my gut is right that Payton is the guy for all 12 games. But my gut is saying it’s the time to do this, to get us best prepared for the opening of the season.”