Payton Thorne’s fourth-quarter pick-six is what many Auburn fans recall from the Tigers’ 27-21 loss to Oklahoma on Saturday.
Despite the outcome, Thorne stood by his decision on the throw, explaining his thought process during an interview on The Next Round Tuesday.
“Honestly, if I had that play over 10 times, I probably would’ve made the same choice 10 out of 10,” Thorne said.
Payton Thorne’s comments about his fourth-quarter pick-six drew plenty of reactions on social media, but he stood by his decision when speaking to reporters before practice on Tuesday.
He acknowledged that his reasoning might sound strange to fans who watched the game.
“It doesn’t make any sense, right? Like, why the hell would you do that? I agree with that,” Thorne said. “Looking back on the play, I followed the plan we had talked about all week. It’s just a tough situation, and it stinks.”
“Quite honestly, if I had that play over 10 times, I probably would have done the same thing 10 times out of 10…”
Auburn Quarterback Payton Thorne walks us through what he was seeing prior to throwing the Pick 6 vs Oklahoma: pic.twitter.com/a6W85Xt66S
— The Next Round (@NextRoundLive) October 1, 2024
Thorne broke down the play, attributing the interception to Oklahoma’s Kip Lewis making an impressive read after initially showing pressure.
“Lewis was lined up in the A-gap before the snap, engaged with the offensive line, and then backed off to make a play on the ball,” Thorne explained. “I saw the linebacker coming, found our choice route, and threw it. They had a good call on. He did a great job of showing he was blitzing, putting hands on our offensive lineman, and then dropping back.”
After the game, head coach Hugh Freeze didn’t place much blame on Thorne, but he expressed regret over the play call.
“I shouldn’t have put him in that position and given him that option,” Freeze said.
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