ESPN Names Auburn's Hugh Freeze on Hot Seat List

The Auburn Tigers, coming off a disappointing 5-7 season, is at a breaking point. If head coach Hugh Freeze can’t show improvement with an improved roster, he could be in trouble.

ESPN’s Pete Thamel released an article on Friday detailing all the possible coaching turnovers, as well as the current job market– and Auburn was a notable inclusion on his list of teams that may find themselves searching for a new coach this year.

“Hugh Freeze faces a classic win-or-else season at Auburn,” Thamel wrote, “The Tigers have strong talent upgrades from both the portal and recruiting. But Auburn is not a traditionally patient place, so Freeze's 11-14 record there needs to improve quickly. He'd be owed just under $15.4 million, which is expensive but not something Auburn would flinch at if there are modest results again. Don't expect him to be around if Auburn has another losing season.”

Auburn, facing just the 11th-toughest schedule in the SEC, will have a more than ample chance to prove itself this season, especially with the additions of key transfers and recruits, though perhaps none as notable or consequential as Oklahoma transfer quarterback Jackson Arnold.

Freeze has placed his faith in Arnold and must hope this faith isn’t misplaced. If the once highly touted quarterback recruit can’t produce, Freeze will be in an even hotter seat than before. However, he still has a few chances to make up for other misgivings against teams like Oklahoma and Vanderbilt, as well as big-ticket matchups like Texas A&M, Alabama, and Georgia.

In that scenario, though, Freeze would likely be on a very short leash and would have to win much more difficult matchups just to claw through and barely hang on to his job– and even then, the Baylor game would haunt his potential to stay at Auburn.

Conversely, if Freeze can take down the Bears on Friday and gain some forward momentum, he may find himself the proud leader of an eight- or nine-win team, though there will still be much work to do if Freeze wants to rival blue bloods like Alabama and Georgia, cementing himself as Auburn’s head coach for years to come.

Quite a bit of the team’s momentum hinges on the Baylor game, in which all of Coach Freeze’s promises and progress will have a chance to bear fruit, but if they don’t, and Freeze’s highly talented team flounders this season, expect defensive coordinator DJ Durkin to take over until Auburn can finally find itself a coach that’ll win games.

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