Hugh Freeze shares update on Payton Thorne’s status ahead of ULM game

Will Thorne lead the offense on Saturday when the Tigers battle the ULM Warhawks?

Will Auburn be without its signal-caller for its game with ULM on Saturday?

During this week’s preview press conference on Monday, Auburn head coach [autotag]Hugh Freeze[/autotag] shared that quarterback [autotag]Payton Thorne[/autotag] was limited during bye week practices due to shoulder issues stemming from the Tigers’ loss to Vanderbilt on Nov. 2.

Freeze was hopeful earlier this week that Thorne would be ready to play, but his tune changed Wednesday during the SEC teleconference saying that Thorne was “not as far along as I’d hoped.” However, a report from Auburn Undercover revealed that Thorne will get the nod for Auburn’s game against ULM on Saturday.

Freeze said Auburn’s backup quarterbacks got plenty of reps during bye-week practices in place of Thorne, giving Freeze several options to fill the void should Thorne’s shoulder issues blend into the ULM game.

“The second open week we actually got the other guys quite a bit of reps in the three practices we had. Then we had a little scrimmage to close it out,” Freeze said. “Offense versus defense, other guys that don’t typically get reps, and offense won that scrimmage on a pass play from Walker (White) to one of the young receivers. It was good to see them get reps. We got Holden (Geriner) and Hank (Brown) quite a few also.”

Thorne ranks No. 8 among SEC quarterbacks with 1,825 yards and is tied for 6th with 13 touchdowns. Two other quarterbacks have seen action this season, [autotag]Hank Brown[/autotag] and [autotag]Holden Geriner[/autotag]. Brown started two games for the Tigers this season while Geriner has seen action in two games.

Auburn faces ULM at 11:45 a.m. CT on Saturday and will be broadcast on SEC Network.

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