2025 GAME 8 REVIEW: Hugh Freeze Stays

Auburn 33  Arkansas 24.  I want to fully apologize for my overreactive completely erroneous post last week.  Hugh Freeze is not going anywhere.  It was made clear by the people in charge at Auburn through the various Auburn sites that Hugh has their full and unwavering support.  He will not be fired during the season or after the season.  That fact was reinforced by a win today.  I want to congratulate the players who work their butt off all year long.  They do deserve some reward for their hard work and the all the stuff they have gone through this season.  They obviously played hard today and stuck together when things got tough.  I hope they enjoy getting a win.  

I believe they won in spite of one of the worst head coaches I have ever seen at Auburn University.  I guess Hugh Freeze gets some credit for the team sticking together and for his recruiting as compared to Arkansas.  However he is literally the worst x's and o's coach I have ever seen in my life.  I want to make that doubly clear he is literally the worst x's and o's coach I have ever seen in my life.  I believe the Auburn football team won in spite of him and his staff's horrific offensive coaching.  I congratulate defensive coordinator D.J. Durkin for another great job getting his unit ready to play.  They made some big mistakes but made more big plays.

I believe Auburn will beat Kentucky next week.  I believe Auburn could win or lose at Vanderbilt the next game.  I believe Auburn will then beat Mercer and lose in the Iron Bowl.  Auburn will end at 6-6 or 7-5 and go to a bowl game which I think they might actually win since it has been so long (Auburn hasn't been to a bowl game since 2021 and has only won bowl games in 2011, 2015, and 2018 since the 2010 national championship).  I believe this season will then be hailed as a major improvement and Hugh Freeze will give a sermon about perseverance.  I believe a large number of Auburn fans will forget about the horrendous coaching and losses from this season and start looking forward to next season.

I believe in the midst of all this false optimism a number of key players will leave the program.  I believe Cam Coleman will leave.  I believe at least another one of the better wide receivers will leave.  I believe a number of key defensive players we can't afford to pay will leave for the money.  I believe there is a good chance D.J. Durkin will leave.  The majority of the offensive line are seniors and will be gone and I believe they will not be replaced by better players.  I believe the football team Auburn starts next season with will not be as good as the football team this season.  It may not be close.  I believe Auburn will have a new offensive coordinator trying to implement a new system in the middle of all this.

I believe in spite of that our evidently do-not-care-about-winning top boosters, our moronic administration, Hugh Freeze, and a number of our non-competitive fans will actually go into next season expecting a better days...  The 2026 Auburn football team will then run straight into the new nine game conference schedule which they will start by playing five of those nine games on the road against Bama, Georgia, Tennessee, Ole Miss, and Mississippi State with home games against LSU, Florida, Vanderbilt, and Arkansas plus playing Baylor in Atlanta (a home game our brilliant athletic director willingly gave away) and two cupcakes.  Again I believe Auburn will enter that meat grinder of a schedule with a lesser team and the worst x's and o's coach I have ever seen. 

I believe with all that said that next season will be much worse than this one and Auburn will regret not going ahead and firing Hugh Freeze and possibly getting a new coach in place.  All I have heard is how hard it would be to try and hire another coach this year, well wait till the team is worse and the program is in even a lower spot.  It will be harder.  Finally, I believe this will set an already struggling program back even more especially now that Auburn not only has to go on the road to both Bama and Georgia every other year but must also play their five road conference games in those years.  Great job athletic director.  I apologize for a depressing and hopeless post but I call it like I see it.  I hope I am wrong... but I am not.

2025 GAME 7 REVIEW: Another One Bites The Dust

Missouri 23  Auburn 17.  The Hugh Freeze era at Auburn is over.  He might get to coach a few more games but he will not be the coach at Auburn next year.  He might not be the coach tomorrow or next week but I doubt it because I think it would be better for Auburn to dismiss him today which means that is what will not happen.  Unfortunately as I said last week I have as much confidence in our ex-Mississippi State baseball coach athletic director as I do in Hugh Freeze.  What is my evidence to back up that opinion?  One name...  Mike Leach.  I do not mean any disrespect to Leach or want to tarnish his memory but his offense was never going to work in the SEC and that was proven.  I have serious reservations about anybody who would have hired him to lead an SEC program.

Unfortunately that is the guy tasked with hiring yet another head football coach at Auburn.  I can give you a preview of what I am going to say when Auburn does hire another football coach...  I am going to write that I assume he is going to be another terrible coach no matter how good he looks at the moment till he proves otherwise.  I have written nauseatingly bad posts here at STR on both Harsin and Freeze when they were first hired.  They are positive and optimistic and were completely wrong.  I am not going to write another one of those I can tell you that.  The early returns from Auburn boards are definitely inconclusive.  There are champions for every realistic and unrealistic candidate.  I will not waste time arguing the merits of so many "possible" coaches. 

The bottom line is Auburn better hire a good one or the Tiger football program will finish a complete decade down and out.  The secondary concern is mitigating the damage of changing coaches, i.e. losing every good player you have.  That is why, in my opinion, I would fire Hugh Freeze today and make defensive coordinator D.J. Durkin head coach to rally the troops and get a few wins which would produce some positivity around the program.  The current negativity that completely envelopes the program will only grow thicker as the losses pile up under Freeze.  I have heard the opinion that you do not want to do this because then you have to hire Durkin if he wins a few games.  I disagree with that argument and think getting a few wins is more important.  

Let me say that again, I think getting a few wins in this lost season is more important than letting Hugh Freeze play out the string while the powers-that-be "work behind the scenes".  I think you need decisive action right now and people need to see how good this team can be with Freeze out of the picture.  I do think Auburn would win a few with him simply gone.  Auburn invents ways to lose under his leadership and last night was actually the worst so far.  Auburn was far better than Missouri and had the game basically won.  The game actually came down to one play.  ONE PLAY.  Yes we can talk about dropped passes, missed field goals, and more penalties but once again like last week it really came down to ONE PLAY.  That one play summed up why Hugh Freeze is a failure at Auburn.

Auburn was up 14-10 and had the ball with eleven minutes left in the fourth quarter and it was third down at the ONE YARD LINE.  It was just like last week, one yard from victory except this time it was a lot later in the game so this really would seal the win.  You are Hugh Freeze.  You are hanging on at Auburn by your very fingertips.  Your career hangs in the balance.  The chance to bring your team and the fans a big win is there for the taking.  You could sense it.  IT ALL COMES DOWN TO THIS.  I am calling a time out, yes wasting a time out because the game can be won right here.  I am gathering the entire offense around me and I am challenging them with everything I have got to GET THAT YARD.  GET THE WIN.  RIGHT HERE AND RIGHT NOW.  EVERYTHING YOU HAVE GOT.

Instead he just meekly lined up in the shotgun and handed the ball off to Jeremiah Cobb who took a four yard loss and Auburn had to settle for a field goal which gave Missouri the chance to tie the game late and send it into overtime where they won it.  The game should have been won at this point and that is where it all really ended for Hugh Freeze.  He is a soft finesse coach and that is what makes him a loser.  This is the second week in a row he has lost a game because of this.  I pointed out Auburn had it second and goal at the two yard line against Georgia last week before the fumble drive.  However Auburn took a four yard loss there and settled for a field goal too.  I believe these two goal line plays are the biggest reasons Auburn has lost the last two games and the main reasons Hugh Freeze should be fired immediately.

2025 GAME 6 REVIEW: A Tale of Two Halves

Georgia 20 Auburn 10.  This is a tough one.  In fact, one of the worst in this decade, and that is saying something.  There are a lot of different factors to this game that have to be looked at.  They all came together to form another gut wrenching loss to the Georgia Bulldogs.  I sit here and shake my head as I write this.  The record is now three wins in twenty one years against Georgia.  The best rivalry in college football that twenty years ago had the series record exactly even.  Heck even the points scored by both teams were exactly even!  Since that point in time this rivalry has digressed to a point that College Gameday does not even bother picking it.  I am not even sure what kind of rivalry it is anymore since Georgia wins every time.  This one though was worse than usual because of...

THE OFFICIATING

The bias against Auburn by SEC officials is an absolute fact.  Review the games.  This is not a homer fan just complaining about a few calls.  This is now gotten to a point that to win a game Auburn does not have to just beat the other team but they will have to overcome multiple egregiously bad calls.  I mean it has gotten so bad that I actually did not get as upset as many people last night because I just expect it now.  Let us start with the actual worst call of the night even though it was not as crucial...  Kirby Smart came running down the sidelines in the second half clearly calling a timeout to avoid a delay of game penalty... and then somehow successfully argued he was just clapping and was awarded an actual "redo" of the play and did not lose a time out (?????????!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!????????????????????).  In fifty years of watching football I have never seen anything like that.  

I will save the "The Fumble" for last so the next call was the targeting call on Kaylin Lee helping Georgia's drive at the end of the first half.  Here is the problem with that call...  first lets say yes it was close and it is a judgement call but it could be called targeting so call it there.  HOWEVER when a Georgia player leads with his helmet later you absolutely have to call that.  They did not.  In that case you should not have called it either time.  On the one against Auburn you could clearly see that Lee was trying to hit Georgia quarterback Gunner Stockton with his shoulder but Stockton lowered his head.  On the same theme they called a key pass interference penalty on Rayshawn Pleasant where yes he grabbed him a bit but they did not call it on Georgia for doing the same thing.  Again you have to be consistent.

Finally, we have the fumble.  All I can say is that if the same thing happened to Bama, Georgia, Texas, Ohio State, etc... that call would have been overturned and it would have been called a touchdown.  That is not an opinion but an absolute fact and no matter what your allegiance is you know it is true.  What is the point of instant replay if that is not a touchdown?  I mean a touchdown after a clear catch and fumble was taken away from Auburn at Oklahoma (the same type play was called a catch for Oklahoma later in game), Oklahoma was allowed to score a touchdown on a clear illegal play that the SEC admitted was so after the game.  Auburn now in this game had another touchdown taken away with this "fumble" even though something was clear on instant replay.  Those calls all gave or took away touchdowns.  

It sure seems like there is a clear directive to SEC refs that all critical close calls go to the other team no matter what (Auburn still gets some calls just none of the critical ones).  I mean if commissioner Greg Sankey did not want Hugh Freeze back in the SEC this bad I wish he would have just officially banned him rather than punishing the players and fans like this.  I know that is going deep "conspiracy theory" but when things have gotten this bad I am not sure what else to think.  Again if you think Auburn fans are crazy just imagine the calls I am talking about going against the teams I listed...  You know it would NEVER happen.  HOWEVER just like I did after the Oklahoma game I am still going to put more blame on...

THE COACHING

I said after Oklahoma executed the clearly illegal "hideout" play for a touchdown that yes as the SEC admitted afterward was as bad a call as you could make BUT if Auburn would not have screwed up the snap on a punt and given the ball to Oklahoma in scoring range I don't think they can run that play. A botched punt is bad coaching.  In the same vein, if Auburn quarterback Jackson Arnold does not fumble the ball Auburn gets the touchdown or another chance and the refs are not allowed to make a judgement.  The bigger thing for me is you cannot fumble that ball there.  You have to take care of the things you can control and Auburn so much of the time under head coach Hugh Freeze have not and this is just another example.  You simply cannot fumble the ball there.

Auburn coaches and fans, including me, can complain about the officiating but like the Oklahoma game there were plenty of chances to win this game even considering the bad calls.  Everyone talks about the fumble but almost as big as the fumble play was Auburn's second drive of the game.  First though let me say kudos to the Auburn fans and students at this game, the place was deafening to start.  It came through just watching it on TV.  The team also came out with a lot of energy as well plus even more spurred on by the incredible crowd.  Auburn jumped all over Georgia scoring a touchdown on an impressive seven minute 75 yard drive.  The defense then stopped Georgia and Auburn got the ball back still on a high.  The offense then took off on a five minute drive to 2nd and 2 at the Georgia six yard line. 

THIS IS WHERE YOU WIN THE GAME.  This is well before the fumble.  Auburn had all the momentum and...  Damari Alston is stuffed for a four yard loss.  Auburn then gets one more chance to capitalize on this unbelievable start and momentum.  This is where you pull that special play you have up your sleeve that you have worked on the last two weeks for just this occasion!!!  That is what good coaches do but Hugh Freeze instead just ran Alston again and settled for the field goal.  There have been many such situations the last three seasons and this coaching staff has failed in all of them against good teams other than one game against Texas A&M.  However since Auburn is now 1-11 against ranked teams under Freeze I think we can safely call that game the exception to the rule.  

This all really began with not being able to stop a team on 4th and 31 to get an historically great win.  Auburn should be able to stop the Kansas City Chiefs on 4th and 31.  It started with that and Auburn under Hugh Freeze has continued to find ways to lose in just about every big game since then.  Of course after the fumble we got to see another staple of having Hugh Freeze as coach and that is his absolutely unacceptable moping and body language when things get tough.  I know as a coach at any level you have to exude confidence ESPECIALLY WHEN THINGS GET TOUGH.  The head coach is the leader and if he is out there looking like Freeze the team cannot win.  It is completely unacceptable and I cannot believe that he continues to do it.  The offense then only had 14 total yards in the entire second half till the last failed drive which pushed that total to only 40.  I mean that is beyond bad.

Finally, once again I have to point out like I have done all season and summarized in my last post...  Auburn cannot pass the ball.  Auburn cannot pass the ball.  Auburn cannot pass the ball.  Auburn probably would have won last night if Arnold doesn't fumble the ball capitalizing on great team and crowd energy but while those first few drives were successful last night they were certainly not a blueprint for continued success.  I think it was more about great energy and effort.  Those plays were all Gus Malzahn staples.  The passes were short swings or hitches.  There was NO DOWNFIELD PASSING.  Once the script ran out and things got tough Auburn like the last two games was COMPLETELY HELPLESS because they CAN... NOT... PASS... THE... BALL.  

Auburn has some great wide receivers but terrible coaching and nothing at quarterback.  I cannot even imagine how frustrated the Tiger wide receivers are.  What does a real passing game look like?  Just look at Auburn's biggest rivals this season.  Bama and Georgia are certainly not the juggernauts they have been.  That was plain to see as Georgia was absolutely there for the taking last night with Auburn's hot start.  Bama has also obviously struggled at times as well BUT both teams have the coaching where they can call an actual passing play where the quarterback drops back in the pocket, makes a read, and then delivers a down-the-field pass.  Regardless of the officiating, Georgia quarterback Gunner Stockton had to drop back and hit some key down-the-field passes to win last night.  Bama quarterback Ty Simpson had to do the same yesterday at Missouri.  

Auburn under Hugh Freeze simply cannot do it.  They cannot call an actual passing play where the quarterback drops back in the pocket, makes a read, and then delivers a down-the-field pass.  They coaching is not there and Jackson Arnold cannot do it any way.  All the good starts like last night and running all over Baylor to start the season are not going to change the fact that a team can NOT win big games without being able to successfully execute passing plays like that.  I summed all of this up in my last post.  I have wrote about it win or lose every single game of this season.  It has been over 15 years of this bull**** as it started with Gus Malzahn and has continued under Hugh Freeze.  I am so sick of watching this stupid high school offense that I cannot adequately describe it anymore.  

I mean there is no question now, Hugh Freeze needs to go.  I know that no one at Auburn wants to start over again but it is what it is.  Auburn is not going to magically start being successful under Hugh Freeze.  He might luck up and win a big game here or there like he almost did last night but there will be no long-term success under this guy.  I believe this has been proved beyond a shadow of a doubt now.  He has also screwed up bad enough that even offering big sums of money it is going to be hard to talk big-time recruits or transfers into playing in this offense.  They can get good money and play in better offenses elsewhere.  He had his chance and he squandered it.  Auburn needs to get started as soon as possible because dragging this out and hoping Hugh Freeze turns it around will make things worse. 

However as we all know the big problem then becomes screwing up the next hire.  I hold our ex-Mississippi State baseball coach athletic director in just as low regard as I hold Hugh Freeze.  He made two terrible head football coaching hires at State plus he hired Freeze so why should I think he will do nothing but make ANOTHER BAD HIRE??????  That will make things even worse.  Also if we hire another Gus Malzahn disciple like Eli Drinkwitz or Rhett Lashlee I am officially retiring from watching Auburn football till they are gone and you will not have to suffer through reading my posts anymore.  I cannot watch years more of Gus Malzahn offenses which both of these teams run.  Missouri is doing a lot better than Auburn but when things got tough yesterday they also cannot pass the ball effectively.

I am sure though Missouri will look better next week playing a battered and dejected Auburn team coming off this most painful of losses led by Hugh Freeze...  The only question probably left in this Auburn season is how bad is it going to get?  However I guess there is still a small chance Freeze gets a few wins and buys himself more time.  I think the issue is settled but I know the Auburn administration will do anything to put off this tough decision.  Auburn now plays four teams that are not as good as the three they just lost to.  I did say earlier this season I thought it would come down to these next four games however I had no idea these last three losses would be this bad.