Five Possible Destinations for Payton Thorne

Payton Thorne has started the last two seasons at Michigan State, yet due to redshirting and the covid year he still has 2 years of eligibility left. Thorne has thrown for an impressive 6,000 yards and 49 TDs for the Spartans under Mel Tucker. At this juncture of the offseason, Thorne will not be short of suitors. Teams who either didn’t like what they saw in spring ball or knew they wanted a veteran with experience will, at the very least, reach out and let him compete for the job in the Fall. Here are five places we might see him end up.

Minnesota

After multiple decades of Tanner Morgan at QB (wait that can’t be right, even if it sounds right), P.J. Fleck must find a new starter. By all accounts, Athan Kaliakmanis looked decent in the spring but beyond that there is little depth and no proven signal callers. Flack has utilized the portal less than almost every other team, believing in developing and nurturing his own recruits. As a recruit Thorne did carry an offer from Minnesota, as well as being recruited by this staff at both Western Michigan and Minnesota. From a depth and possible starter perspective, this move makes a lot of sense.