Auburn landed a huge commitment on Friday when former Michigan State starting quarterback Payton Thorne announced he will be joining the Tigers and first-year coach Hugh Freeze for the 2023 season. Thorne entered the transfer portal earlier this week as the spring window closed, and he joins a heated quarterback battle at Auburn that includes returning starter and dual-threat weapon Robby Ashford.
Thorne signed with Michigan State in 2018 and started parts of the last three seasons for the Spartans. He has 6,493 career passing yards, 49 passing touchdowns and 24 interceptions from 2020-22. He also added 270 yards rushing and scored six times on the ground. He started all 12 of Michigan State’s games last season, throwing for 2,679 yards with 19 touchdown passes and one rushing score.
Thorne’s best season at Michigan State came in 2021 when he led the Spartans to a New Year’s Six bowl win over Pittsburgh in the Peach Bowl. He threw for 354 yards and three touchdowns in the win over Panthers, which capped off an 11-2 season for Sparty. He finished that breakout season with 3,232 yards passing and 27 touchdown passes.
The 6-foot-2, 210-pounder was a three-star prospect in the Class of 2019 out of Naperville, Illinois.
What does Thorne’s commitment mean for the Tigers and Spartans?
Freeze sets up a battle
It was no secret that Freeze has been interested in the transfer quarterback market not only during the most recent portal window, but the fall window that opened shortly after the end of the regular season. That became even more apparent when T.J. Finley, who started six games in two seasons, announced that he is leaving the program earlier this week. Finley’s move opened the door for a more experience signal caller to come in and…
..
