Josh Pate slots Auburn QB Byrum Brown at No. 9 in his SEC quarterback rankings

Auburn quarterback Byrum Brown is receiving early-season attention in the form of an SEC quarterback ranking from college football personality Josh Pate. In a segment published Tuesday, Pate listed his SEC quarterback order and placed Brown at No. 9, characterizing him as part of the league’s upper group of report-callers.

Pate’s framing matters because his rankings are built for an SEC audience that cares less about isolated highlights and more about who can sustain production across weeks. By placing Brown in the top 10, Pate is effectively positioning him as a contributor Auburn can build around in the conference’s deeper rotation of quarterback talent.

Pate also addressed the broader ranking picture, explaining where he sees Brown relative to his SEC peers. While the ranking itself is a talking-point exercise rather than a league evaluation, the order indicates how pundits are interpreting the pecking order at quarterback entering the new campaign cycle.

The No. 9 slot suggests Pate views Auburn’s starter as above the middle tier in the SEC but not at the top of his conference list. That is a meaningful distinction in a league where quarterbacks are often judged by week-to-week decision-making, consistency under pressure, and the ability to convert opportunities into points, especially against stronger defensive fronts.

For Auburn, the ranking is less about a number and more about perception. In conference media coverage, quarterback placement can influence the expectations attached to a starter, from how coaches are discussed in interviews to how opponents prepare game-plans. It can also shape how fans weigh Auburn’s offensive ceiling when they compare the Tigers to Alabama, LSU, Georgia, and other teams featured prominently in SEC quarterback conversations.

Still, it is important to note what this ranking does and does not represent. Pate’s list is a media ranking, not an official SEC metric and not a compilation of NCAA or league statistical rankings. Without additional context from the full show, the most defensible takeaway is the relative placement within Pate’s own quarterback pecking order.

Looking ahead, the ranking invites a simple test: how Brown performs as SEC defenses adjust and games narrow into matchups where quarterbacks are asked to win on schedule and in adverse situations. As Auburn moves through conference play, the rankings will likely be revisited in real time, with Pate and others either reinforcing the placement or reshuffling their quarterback hierarchy. For now, Brown’s spot at No. 9 establishes him as a recognized SEC starter rather than an afterthought.