Auburn's Hugh Freeze says new QB Payton Thorne has impressed with his 'attention to detail'
The Tigers pulled their projected starting quarterback for 2023 out of the transfer portal.
Alongside 19 other valuable additions Hugh Freeze and his staff landed.
Payton Thorne, former Michigan State quarterback turned Auburn Tiger, is projected by a variety of outlets to be the Tigers' starting quarterback week one vs UMass despite not having taken a single rep in practice. Statistically, he's better than what the Tigers had coming back - Robby Ashford and Holden Geriner.
Freeze was asked at SEC Media Days about what he's seen out of Thorne since adding him through the portal this offseason.
He hasn't been able to see him throw, but Freeze says he's been impressed with how detailed Thorne's work has been through the summer.
"Well, I can't watch him throw, so I haven't seen him. What I've been impressed with is his attention to detail," Freeze said. "Desire to learn the system to be a leader. To have position group meetings. He has those leadership qualities."
Freeze noted that Thorne got on campus and immediately went to work, not just studying the playbook, but also studying the people he will be surrounded by this fall.
"You know, one of the first questions he asked me is if I could get him someone to get him a picture of everyone that works in the building and their name, because he wants to know their names," Freeze said. "I mean he just got some intrinsic things about him that you really like that I know is going to enhance that room. But like I've said, I mean I hadn't coached him a single practice yet. And so it would be unfair for me to, you know, even act like I knew kind of where everybody stood with that but absolutely love what I've seen, you know from him in the leadership world."
SEC Media Days is being hosted this year in Nashville, Tennessee for the very first time.
Auburn Daily is here covering Media Days all week long. You can catch updates, quotes, predictions and more here on auburndaily.com.
More from SEC Media Days
Daily Wire's Jake Crain predicts Auburn to finish third in SEC West
Jayden Daniels shared his thoughts on playing in Jordan-Hare Stadium
Jake Crain believes Auburn football can be 'sneaky' under Hugh Freeze
SEC commissioner Greg Sankey discusses the elimination of divisions in future conference scheduling
College football expert 'doesn't see' eight wins on Auburn football's 2023 schedule
The Tigers kick off the 2023 season on September 2nd at home vs UMass at 2 p.m. CT on ESPN.
Here's a look at the entire 2023 schedule:
Sept. 2nd vs UMass
Sept. 9th at California
Sept. 16th vs Samford
Sept. 23rd at Texas A&M
Sept. 30th vs Georgia
Oct. 14th at LSU
Oct. 21st vs Ole Miss
Oct. 28th vs Mississippi State
Nov. 4th at Vanderbilt
Nov. 11th at Arkansas
Nov. 18th vs New Mexico State
Nov. 25th vs Alabama
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