Source: Auburn to make QB switch, begin Brown

Eli Lederman, ESPN Personnel WriterSep 13, 2024, 04:06 PM ET

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Eli Lederman covers college football and recruiting for ESPN.com. He signed up with ESPN in 2024 after covering the University of Oklahoma for Sellout Crowd and the Tulsa World.Auburn redshirt freshman

quarterback Hank Brown will start for the Tigers versus New Mexico on Saturday, a source verified to ESPN’s Pete Thamel on Friday.Brown replaces incumbent starter Payton Thorne after the senior passer struggled in the program’s Week 2 loss to Cal.Brown, a previous three-star passer in the 2023 class, will make his very first profession

start in the wake of Auburn’s 21-14 home defeat to Cal last week. Thorne, who started each of the Tigers’past 15 games, completed 14 of his 27 passes for 165 backyards with a touchdown and a career-high four interceptions in the loss.Auburn coach Hugh Freeze initially hinted at a possible quarterback change during his Monday press conference. He remained vague on the scenario later on in the week however hinted at his willingness to do something about it after the Tigers were held under 10 points by an unranked opponent for the very first time since 2018.”There’s an extremely, really brief leash on us playing as inadequately as we carried out in certain minutes because game at that position,”Freeze stated Wednesday during the SEC coaches teleconference.Thorne transferred to Auburn from Michigan State in 2023 and completed 61.1%of his passes for 1,755 backyards and 16 goals with 10 interceptions in his launching season with the Tigers

last fall. He threw for 322 backyards and 4 touchdowns during Auburn’s 73-3 rout of Alabama A&M in Week 1, then sputtered against Cal with four interceptions that matched the most tossed by a Tigers quarterback in a single game given that Brandon Cox in the 2007 season.Brown originally devoted to Liberty in the 2023 cycle before he followed Freeze to Auburn. He went 3-for-5 for 96 yards and two goals in limited work throughout the Tigers ‘season opener. Brown finished seven of his nine

passes for 132 backyards against Maryland in last season’s Music City Bowl.Auburn hosts New Mexico at 7:30 p.m. ET on ESPN2 on Saturday before the Tigers dive into conference play with a see from Arkansas in Week 4. On3.com was first to report the news Friday.