< PreviousSTATS COMPARISONS AUBURN STATS LEADER RUSHING ATT NET AVG TD LONG AVG/G Jarquez Hunter 108 636 5.9 7 67 79.5 Payton Thorne 81 337 4.2 2 61 37.4 Robby Ashford 42 188 4.5 5 18 23.5 PASSING CMP-ATT-INT PCT YDS TD AVG/G Payton Thorne 117-183-6 63.9 1,269 10 141.0 Robby Ashford 14-26-1 53.9 145 2 18.1 RECEIVING NO. YDS AVG TD LONG AVG/G Jay Fair 28 284 10.1 2 36 31.6 Rivaldo Fairweather 27 277 10.3 3 53 30.8 Ja’Varrius Johnson 10 172 17.2 1 45 24.6 DEFENSE UA A TOT TFL-YDS SACKS-YDS Eugene Asante 42 25 67.0 7.5-38 4.5-30 Larry Nixon III 21 19 40.0 1.5-11 0.0-0 Marcus Harris 18 17 35.0 8.0-30 4.5-23 ARKANSAS STATS LEADER RUSHING ATT NET AVG TD LONG AVG/G KJ Jefferson 129 292 2.3 2 25 32.4 AJ Green 52 286 5.5 2 55 31.8 Rashod Dubinion 79 260 3.3 1 15 32.5 PASSING CMP-ATT-INT PCT YDS TD AVG/G KJ Jefferson 163-250-8 65.2 1,802 16 200.2 RECEIVING NO. YDS AVG TD LONG AVG/G Andrew Armstrong 46 623 13.5 4 48 69.2 Isaac TeSlaa 25 248 9.9 1 36 27.6 Luke Hasz 16 253 15.8 3 59 50.6 DEFENSE UA A TOT TFL-YDS SACKS-YDS Jaheim Thomas 35 44 79.0 6.5-24 3.5-15 Chris Paul Jr. 21 33 54.0 5.5-17 2.0-8 Jayden Johnson 22 23 45.0 1.5-4 0.0-0 Here is a quick look at the top team statistics for the Tigers and the Razorbacks. Quick Look n Total Touchdowns 3129 n Rushing Yards 1,7181,098 n Passing Yards 1,4811,830 20 STATS COMPARISONS AUBURNTIGERS.COM® FAVORITE CHIP OF THE22 COVER FEATURE As the temperatures started dropping into the 50s and 60s this fall in Auburn, the students on campus started break- ing out the heavy jackets. Payton Thorne had to laugh. That’s still t-shirt weather where he’s from. So, how did Thorne, coach’s kid from just outside Chicago, end up in the SEC as the starting quar- terback at Auburn? To answer that, you first need to un- derstand who Thorne is and what it is that drives him. First and foremost, it’s his faith. “My why every time I step out there is playing for my Heavenly Father and just try- ing to give back to Him what He’s given to me,” Thorne said. “It’s been the No. 1 most important part of my life. My parents have instilled that in me. Just going out there to glorify Him and do all I can to be at my best.” For Thorne, though, where his why comes from is threefold. Faith might be the most important part of it and of who he is, but his family has just as much to do with his motivation. There would be no football without his family. “As I’ve gotten older and been able to see and understand more of what my par- ents have done for me, I just can’t be more thankful for them and how they raised me and the things that they sacrificed for me growing up,” Thorne said. “I feel like I owe it to them to put all I can into this and try to make the most out of it.” The last part of the why for Thorne is his will to succeed and his love for foot- ball. He is the ultimate competitor, and it’s that extra drive that led him to Auburn. “I don’t ever want to be average in life,” Thorne said. “I’ve always loved football, and I’ve always wanted to be the best I can. I strive every day to get there. And I don’t think I ever will get there, but if I keep striving every single day to get there – whenever I’m done, I’ll be satisfied with however it ended.” COVER FEATURE AUBURNTIGERS.COM ANCHORED BY FAITH AND FAMILY, PAYTON THORNE FINDS NEW CHALLENGE AT AUBURN BY GREG OSTENDORF Football is all Thorne has ever known. He was born in 2001. The very next year, his grandfather John took over as the head coach at North Central College, a Division III college in Naperville, Illinois. Thorne’s father Jeff, who played quarter- back at Eastern Illinois, joined his father (Payton’s grandfather) as the offensive coordinator. The father-son duo coached at North Central College the next 13 years. In 2014, John retired as the head coach and was replaced by his son who served as the head coach from 2015 to 2021 and guid- ed the program to a Division III national championship in 2019. “It was cool to see my grandpa and my dad – their vision for that program and everything they put into it – for them to get to that point,” Thorne said. “This year, (North Central College) is ranked as the No. 1 team in the country again. They built a powerhouse for the ground up. It’s been cool to be a distant part of that and grow- ing up in that all my life.” There are positives and negatives that come with being a coach’s son. Obvious- ly, there’s a significant time commitment made by coaches at any level – from Di- vision III to Auburn. That’s time away from home. “On Sunday, Monday and sometimes Tuesday, I wouldn’t even see him at night,” Thorne said. “I’d be asleep before he got back home. Part of that did teach me what working hard looked like. I knew he wasn’t putzing around.” At the same time, Thorne had some ben- efits growing up not af- forded to most kids. “You get to go shoot hoops whenever you want to at the gym,” he said. “You get to go play on a turf field whenever you want to. You get to sit in on meetings if you want to. My dad always took me on trips with him to visiting schools, so I got to experience all that my whole life. I got to watch him and my grandpa lead a team, and I’ve learned a ton from them.” After coaching 19 seasons at North Cen- tral College, six as the head coach, Jeff Thorne left following the 2021 season to be the offensive coordinator at Western Michigan. This year, however, he’s not coaching at all. Instead, he’s getting to watch his son play. “It’s been awesome,” Payton said. “It’s been cool to have him as a full-time spec- tator. It’s hard for him because he’s not used to it. He’s learning how to be a fan. I think he’s done a good job so far. I defi- nitely think he’s enjoying it.” Thorne’s father also tagged along on the road trip in the spring that ultimately concluded with a commitment to Au- burn. The two were driving back from Jayden Reed’s NFL Draft party in Miami and made a stop in Auburn to visit head coach Hugh Freeze. Thorne had spent his first four years in college at Michigan State where he was a three-year letterwinner for the Spartans and a team captain in 2021 and 2022, but with that mentality of always striving to be better, he entered the transfer portal after last season. He wanted a new opportuni- ty, a new challenge. It just so happened that Auburn was in the market for a new quarterback. “The first thing is just the Auburn name,” Thorne said. “Growing up, under- standing that Auburn is a huge brand, it’s big-time football. It’s one of those pro- grams that it means something. “And then Coach Freeze. He’s an of- fensive head coach, a guy who has had success offensively and with quarter- backs. It really drew me here. I have a lot of respect for Coach. I got to see cam- pus, see this facility, which is outstanding, and then just get a feel for these people down here – I love the people, I can’t say it enough. It’s been really nice.” It was a perfect match, and Thorne signed with Freeze and the Tigers just days after his visit. Less than four months later, he was named the team’s starting quarterback. Through nine games this season, the graduate transfer has thrown for 1,269 yards with 10 touchdowns while complet- ing 63.9 percent of his passes. However, he’s found a different gear the last two weeks, completing 37 of 53 passes for 424 yards and five touchdowns. More importantly, Auburn has won both games. “It’s been rewarding for sure the past couple weeks,” Thorne said. “I don’t want to say that it’s relief because we still have a lot in front of us that we want to accom- plish. It’s still a work in progress. But it definitely feels good for us as an offense to play better and play closer to what we expect to play and also get back-to-back wins.” Never satisfied. Never complacent. A true competitor in every sense. “I put everything into this,” Thorne said. “I would give just about anything to win. That’s my mindset every day.” AUBURNTIGERS.COM 24 COVER FEATURE COVER FEATUREsave on auto insurance spend on Tiger merch *INSURANCE FEATURE NOT AVAILABLE IN EVERY STATE. Countrywide average premium savings for customers with safe driving discounts and Drivewise vs. those without. Savings vary by state, based on driving behaviors & based on how you buy. Subject to terms, conditions & availability. In some states, through your participation in Drivewise, your driving data may be used for purposes of rating & your rate could increase with high-risk driving. Allstate Fire and Casualty Ins. Co. & affiliates. 3100 Sanders Rd, Northbrook, IL. © 2023 Allstate Insurance Co. Marks are registered trademarks of their respective owners. PROUD PARTNER Safe driving and Drivewise® saves you 40%*28 HEAD COACH HUGH FREEZE Hugh Freeze became the 31st head football coach in Auburn history in No- vember, 2022. Freeze has nearly three decades of continued coaching success, including head coaching experience that has led to conference titles, nationally ranked recruiting classes and bowl appear- ances at multiple stops during his highly decorated career. Freeze came to Auburn from Liber- ty University, where he was head coach from 2019-22. Freeze led the Flames to four bowl games and a 34-15 record. Freeze experienced similar success at each of his head coaching stops prior to Liberty that include Lambuth Univer- sity (2008-09), Arkansas State (2011) and Ole Miss (2012-16). Freeze led each school to double-digit win seasons, while helping Ole Miss to a top 10 national fin- ish in 2015. His on-field coaching record in 12 years is 103-47. Liberty was just one of five FBS teams in the country to win a bowl game each season from 2019-21, joining Alabama, Georgia, Kentucky and Louisiana. It was the second team in NCAA history to win a bowl game during its first three full sea- sons at the FBS level, all coming under Freeze’s leadership. Freeze guided Liberty to a 10-1 overall record in 2020 and the team’s first-ever national ranking as it finished No. 17 in the country. That season, Lib- erty had the best start in program history (8-0), tied the program record for wins (10) and defeated two Power 5 programs in Syracuse and Virginia Tech. For his ef- forts, Freeze was a finalist for the George Munger Collegiate Coach of the Year Award. Known for his fast-paced offensive style, Freeze’s 2020 Liberty team set a school record for rushing yards in a sea- son in 2020 (2,776) and ranked No. 9 in the country in rushing offense. Liberty also ranked No. 15 nationally in total of- fense (482.7 yards per game) and No. 11 in total defense (317.7 yards per game). The Flames were one of three teams in the country to rank in the top 20 in both total offense and total defense in 2020, joining Clemson and BYU. Spearheading Liberty’s outstand- ing offense in 2020 was former Auburn quarterback Malik Willis, who burst into the spotlight leading the nation in rushing yards (944) and touchdowns (14) by a FBS quarterback. Willis earned All-America honors, was named to the Davey O’Brien Award Quarterback Class of 2020 and was on the 2020 Maxwell Award watch list. The Flames posted an eight-win sea- son in 2021 after facing eight bowl-eli- gible teams during that campaign. Lib- erty’s defense finished the 2021 season ranked No. 7 nationally in passing yards allowed, No. 11 in total defense and No. 24 in scoring defense. Offensively, Lib- erty finished 2021 ranked No. 25 in the country in scoring offense and No. 8 in passing yards per completion. Leading the charge for the Flames in 2021 once again was Willis, who was a semifinalist for the Davey O’Brien Na- tional Quarterback Award and the Max- well Award and a top 10 candidate for the Johnny Unitas Golden Arm Award. Willis was a third-round draft pick of the Ten- nessee Titans in the 2022 NFL Draft. In 2022, Liberty finished the regu- lar season 8-4 with wins over Arkansas and BYU; three of the four losses came by a combined five points. The Flames earned a berth in the Boca Raton Bowl. While head coach at Ole Miss, Freeze took the Rebels to bowl games in three of his five seasons, including wins in the 2013 Music City and the 2016 Sugar bowls. Freeze’s time in Oxford was highlight- ed by a 10-3 campaign in 2015, the pro- gram’s first 10-win season since 2003. The Rebels won their first four games of the 2015 season, including a 43-37 road victory over No. 2 Alabama, Ole Miss’ first win in Tuscaloosa since 1988. The Rebels were ranked as high as No. 3 in the national polls in both 2014 and 2015 and finished in the national Top 10 for the first time since 1969 after the Sugar Bowl win. Ole Miss was ranked in the top 25 for 45 weeks over Freeze’s five-year tenure, including a string of 27 straight weeks in the polls for the first time since 1957-62. Freeze collected four nationally ranked recruiting classes at Ole Miss. In 2013 and 2016, his recruiting classes ranked in the top five nationally, the best in program history. Freeze and his staff developed 20 players who earned all-SEC honors, in- cluding All-Americans Cody Prewitt, Senquez Golson, Robert Nkemdiche, Laremy Tunsil, Evan Engram, Laquon Treadwell and Trae Elston. AUBURNTIGERS.COM HUGH FREEZE HEAD COACH® TRUCKWORX.COMNext >