Payton Thorne or not at QB, Auburn football needs incoming WRs to remedy offensive issues

NASHVILLE — The first season of coach Hugh Freeze's tenure at Auburn football is over.

There was some good − Freeze can hang his hat on a road demolition of Arkansas in November and snagging the nation's No. 7 recruiting haul in the Class of 2024 − but the lows were low. In contention for the lowest point came Saturday, when the Tigers were beat by Maryland in the Music City Bowl, 31-13, giving them their third consecutive losing season for the first time since 1975-77.

Auburn's offense struggled against the Terrapins, posting nearly as many points as it gave away − QB Payton Thorne threw a 44-yard interception in the third quarter that was returned all the way back for a touchdown to truly put the game out of reach.

The offensive woes are nothing new for the Tigers, who were held to 21 or less points seven times this season.

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Placing blame on just one party is a fool's task. Fingers could be pointed at anyone: Freeze, offensive coordinator Philip Montgomery, Thorne. The list can go on and on.

Regardless of what the fanbase thinks, Freeze was blunt Dec. 16 when asked about the QB situation, giving Thorne a straightforward vote of confidence: "I don’t know if you know this, but we have one of the top returning quarterbacks in Power Five with wins in Payton Thorne," Freeze said. "I believe that if we get the right pieces around him and Holden (Geriner) and Hank (Brown), I think our quarterback room is going to be fine next year. That is my belief. It’s what drives me to get the right pieces around them."

Freeze was less bullish after the Maryland shellacking, saying that the QB situation was "wide open" heading into next season: "I'm constantly evaluating," he said. "Players, staff, everything. If we see that my evaluation was wrong and you have to change gears and reevaluate to make us better, then that is the steps you should take. The quarterback will be an interesting one, certainly, in spring practice."

Thorne, when asked about Freeze's comments and whether or not he thinks he has to earn the starting job again, said his mindset every offseason is the same: "You're trying to be as good as you can. You're not competing against any other quarterbacks," the former Michigan State Spartan said. "That's been my mindset in any competition I've been in. I'm competing against the defense. I'm doing my best to get better as a quarterback myself, and then get the guys around me better, as well. That'll translate into points, that'll translate into wins.

"Like I said, I'm excited for a full offseason with all the guys here in Auburn and with the coaches. Looking forward to that."

Regardless of who's throwing the football next season, a big issue with Auburn's offense in Freeze's first year was that the Tigers lacked difference-makers on the outside. The staff tried to remedy that by adding four transfer receivers last offseason, with three of them primarily playing on the boundary: Shane Hooks, Nick Mardner and Jyaire Shorter.

That trio combined for 10 catches and 143 receiving yards in 2023, and Hooks accounted for nine of those catches and 133 of those yards. In an RPO-based system that often calls for the ball to be thrown deep when the numbers in the box dictate it, a lack of playmakers on the outside is difficult to overcome.

It's why Auburn went out and landed four receivers in the Class of 2024 in five-star prospects Cam Coleman and Perry Thompson and four-star recruits Bryce Cain and Malcolm Simmons. The Tigers are also still in the running for five-star Alabama commit Ryan Williams, who will sign in February, and have added a couple transfer WRs in Sam Jackson V (Cal) and Robert Lewis (Georgia State).

"I love our wide receiver class," Freeze said. "I think it's one of the best in the country that we signed, and certainly that's a place we need some depth and some added playmaking ability. ...

"Yes, the receiving corps coming in, we're absolutely banking on them helping us and making us better and more versatility and we can do more things. But also, you have to play well around at every position ... it's all of it. ... But we are excited about the wide receivers coming in, for sure."

Asking freshmen WRs to be world-beaters isn't fair, but at least one or two of the newcomers need to make impacts in 2024. If the Tigers have more of the same on the outside next season, they'll have more of the same in the win column.

And that begins to spell trouble for Freeze.

Richard Silva is the Auburn athletics beat writer for the Montgomery Advertiser. He can be reached via email at rsilva@gannett.com or on Twitter @rich_silva18.

This article originally appeared on Montgomery Advertiser: Auburn football needs impact from incoming WRs, no matter who's at QB