AUBURN, Ala. — Jeremiah Wright has skilled a bit little bit of every part since arriving at Auburn in 2020, simply not a variety of successful.
“4 totally different coaches, COVID, quarantines, a torn ACL, some ups, however a variety of downs, too many downs,” Wright mentioned with a reflective snort.
“It is taken a variety of endurance.”
And no one wants to inform Wright, a sixth-year senior offensive guard for the Tigers, that endurance is as ample within the realm of SEC soccer as flowing streams are in a desert. That is very true at a spot like Auburn, which is one in every of simply six applications nationally (Alabama, Clemson, Georgia, LSU and Ohio State are the others) to have gained at the very least one nationwide title and performed for one more over the previous 15 years.
It is also a program, as Hugh Freeze enters his third season as coach, that has suffered via 4 straight dropping campaigns and gained greater than 9 video games solely as soon as previously seven years. Auburn has gone greater than three full seasons with out being ranked within the AP ballot, this system’s longest such drought in 47 years. That stage of irrelevance does not sit nicely with anyone on the Plains.
“There could also be one feeling outdoors our complicated, however I can inform you there is a a lot totally different feeling inside our complicated, what we’re working towards and what Coach Freeze is constructing,” Wright mentioned. “We’re loads nearer than folks suppose to getting Auburn again to the place it is presupposed to be, and that is successful championships.”
WHEN FREEZE TOOK the Auburn job in 2023, he mentioned it could take three full recruiting courses to get the workforce’s expertise stage to some extent the place it rivaled the upper-tier applications within the league. The Tigers’ final two recruiting courses had been ranked within the prime 10 nationally by ESPN, and Auburn additionally scored large within the switch portal this offseason with the No. 7 class within the ESPN rankings. Within the rankings of this offseason’s newcomer courses, combining transfers and incoming freshmen, Auburn was No. 3.
“I really feel loads higher than I’ve about our expertise, our dimension, athleticism and depth,” Freeze instructed ESPN. “However look, we nonetheless had possibilities to win some large video games towards some actually good groups the previous two years and did not get it completed. That is the reality of it, and we will not run from that as coaches. I personal it no matter what the expertise was or wasn’t.
“I nonetheless consider we’d like yet another [signing] class to get to the place we should be, however I do not sense any panic.”
In a program during which dysfunction has run rampant at occasions and the so-called cooks — influential donors and trustees — have thrown their energy round in a crowded kitchen, Freeze mentioned he has obtained nothing however assist. Auburn paid its previous two head coaches, Gus Malzahn and Bryan Harsin, a mixed $36.8 million in buyouts after they had been fired.
“The folks right here at Auburn have been nice,” Freeze mentioned. “I imply, there’s nothing that may ever shock me on this league, however we have got to go compete and be adequate to win a few of these video games this yr that we have not previously two.
“I am not naïve.”
Freeze’s boss, athletic director John Cohen, says he’s extra centered on what Freeze is constructing and the way he is constructing it than his 11-14 document (6-13 towards power-conference groups) over his first two seasons. Freeze’s predecessor, Harsin, was 9-12 (4-11 towards power-conference groups) earlier than being fired eight video games into his second season in 2022, giving solution to interim coach Cadillac Williams for the ultimate 4 video games.
From the time Harsin was employed to the beginning of Freeze’s first season in 2023, 48 scholarship gamers left, and 10 of the 18 signees from Harsin’s 2021 recruiting class wound up departing — components not misplaced on Cohen when he surveys the primary two seasons below Freeze.
“There are two methods I consider our soccer program proper now: Can we nonetheless have the youngsters within the locker room? And the reply to that was a convincing sure on the finish of final yr, particularly with the way in which these youngsters helped within the recruiting course of. And No. 2: Are we certainly evaluating and recruiting top-10 courses? And the reply to that’s sure,” mentioned Cohen, a two-time SEC Coach of the Yr in baseball at Mississippi State earlier than stepping into administration.
“If these two issues are taking place on this league, you’ll have eventual success. I do suppose we began from behind the eight ball. I am not being essential of the youngsters who had been right here and caught it out. I am actually pleased with that. However we didn’t have Auburn-type expertise right here, and it was apparent that one thing was taking place the place youngsters had been operating out and in of this program. Our elite youngsters right here at Auburn aren’t leaving this system anymore.”
Auburn had 23 gamers depart through the switch portal this offseason, however just a few had been anticipated to be common contributors for the Tigers in the course of the 2025 season. Bradyn Joiner was a part-time starter at offensive guard a yr in the past and earned Freshman All-SEC honors. He transferred to Purdue, whereas Caleb Picket, who began six video games at security final season, transferred to Arkansas.
Freeze has been extra energetic within the switch portal after admittedly being gradual to adapt to it when he first acquired to Auburn. That hesitancy was one of many causes he employed Will Redmond away from LSU to be this system’s common supervisor of participant personnel following his first season with the Tigers. Auburn signed 19 gamers out of the portal within the 2024-25 cycle, and 4 are anticipated to play pivotal roles on offense this season: quarterback Jackson Arnold (Oklahoma), offensive sort out Xavier Chaplin (Virginia Tech) and receivers Eric Singleton Jr. (Georgia Tech) and Horatio Fields (Wake Forest).
“The factor you see is the competitors, the way in which guys go after one another on the apply subject and maintain one another accountable,” mentioned Singleton, one of many top-rated portal receivers after catching 56 passes a yr in the past for the Yellow Jackets. “We all know what we’re able to and that we now have the expertise to beat anyone.”
Singleton grew up watching Auburn soccer. His cousin, Darvin Adams, was Cam Newton’s prime receiving goal on the 2010 nationwide championship workforce.
“I do know what this program is about, and that is placing within the work after which taking it to the sector and successful,” Singleton mentioned. “That is the Auburn I grew up watching, the Auburn I need us to get again to, so being part of this program means loads to me. I am right here to assist that turnaround.”
A MORE TALENTED roster ought to assist, however Freeze mentioned enjoying with extra effectivity, consistency and self-discipline might be essential if the Tigers are going to win a few of the video games they could not end the previous two seasons.
Not that anyone on the Plains wants a reminder, however it took a miracle landing go within the remaining seconds by Jalen Milroe on fourth-and-31 for Alabama to beat Auburn within the 2023 Iron Bowl, which got here only a week after the Tigers suffered an embarrassing 31-10 dwelling loss to New Mexico State. In that very same season, Auburn was tied with Georgia late within the fourth quarter, dashing for 219 yards towards a stacked Bulldogs protection. However the Tigers could not cease Brock Bowers on Georgia’s 75-yard landing drive within the remaining minutes and misplaced a 27-20 heartbreaker at dwelling.
Final season, Auburn misplaced three video games by a landing or much less and was victimized by turnovers. No loss higher illustrated the Tigers’ 2024 season than the 27-21 dwelling setback to Oklahoma. Auburn squandered an 11-point lead early within the fourth quarter, and the decisive blow was a 63-yard interception return for a Sooners landing on a Payton Thorne go.
The Tigers completed one hundred and twentieth nationally in turnover margin and misplaced an SEC-high 22 turnovers. And with common place-kicker Alex McPherson lacking all however one recreation with ulcerative colitis (he is wholesome and again this season), Auburn was additionally final towards SEC competitors in subject purpose accuracy (8-of-17) and final in crimson zone offense (16-of-24). The Tigers scored simply eight crimson zone touchdowns in eight SEC video games.
Based mostly on ESPN colleague Invoice Connelly’s postgame win expectancy, a method that determines how probably a workforce was to win primarily based on a recreation’s key statistics, Auburn ought to have gained about eight video games (7.8) as an alternative of 5, making it essentially the most underperforming workforce within the nation by that metric.
“We did a variety of the issues that get you beat, and but we nonetheless averaged 6.7 yards per play on offense,” Freeze mentioned. “Solely 4 different power-conference groups averaged extra.”
These 4 groups — Ole Miss, Ohio State, Miami and Louisville — had been a mixed 43-12.
“After which there was us,” Freeze mentioned.
Regardless of all that yardage, the Tigers scored 17 or fewer factors in six of their 12 video games. One of many priorities within the offseason was to strengthen a passing recreation that put up respectable numbers (sixth within the SEC with 251.5 passing yards per recreation), however failed to provide in key moments and had 13 interceptions in 12 video games. Early within the season, the Tigers shuffled forwards and backwards between Thorne and Hank Brown at quarterback, and 9 of their 13 interceptions got here within the first 5 video games.
Auburn will look to Arnold, ESPN’s No. 3 total prospect within the 2023 class, for an improve at QB. Issues did not actually click on for Arnold at Oklahoma. He was benched within the SEC opener towards Tennessee final season, and though he returned to the beginning lineup almost a month later, it was a wrestle.
The Sooners had been decimated by accidents at receiver and allowed 46 sacks, which ranked 132nd nationally. Arnold additionally had three totally different offensive coordinators at Oklahoma, and he mentioned coming to Auburn is a much-needed reset. How nicely he bounces again will go a good distance towards figuring out whether or not the Tigers are able to make a transfer within the SEC.
“I do know it did not go the way in which he wished at Oklahoma, however you watch him spin it and the way in which he can prolong performs, and he is precisely what we had been on the lookout for,” Freeze mentioned.
Freeze plans to spend extra time with the quarterbacks on the apply subject this fall and mentioned he’ll name a lot of the performs (offensive coordinator Derrick Nix will name some). Freeze delegated a variety of these obligations when he took over this system as he tried to put in his infrastructure.
“I believe it is important that Jackson and the entire quarterbacks are listening to my ideas,” mentioned Freeze, noting that true freshman Deuce Knight was extraordinarily spectacular this spring. “I like what I’ve seen from Jackson, and we’d like him to have success early on. I believe he may actually catapult from that.”
One of the crucial improved teams on the workforce ought to be the receiving corps, and Freeze mentioned Thorne unfairly took the “brunt of the deal” final season over the Tigers’ struggles on offense. To be truthful, scoring factors has been an issue in each of Freeze’s seasons at Auburn. The Tigers have scored 21 or fewer factors in 10 of his 16 SEC video games. By comparability, when Freeze had issues rolling at Ole Miss in 2014 and 2015, the Rebels scored greater than 30 factors in 9 of their 16 SEC video games.
“There have been occasions final yr the place Payton was prepared to tug the set off on one thing that ought to have been there, and we might have been a bit younger at receiver and did not fairly run the suitable depth of a route or the suitable route,” Freeze mentioned. “The distinction I see proper now in Malcolm [Simmons], Perry [Thompson] and even Cam [Coleman] is monumental. They’re beginning to perceive the sport and the system. I believe Jackson goes to be the beneficiary of that.”
Auburn has spent handsomely on its 2025 roster, within the $20 million vary, and Freeze admits to having a greater understanding of the way it all matches collectively. Following the 2023 season, the Tigers had been within the operating for quarterback Cam Ward, who wound up transferring from Washington State to Miami and was one in every of 4 finalists for the Heisman Trophy final yr.
“I simply did not know if that was the suitable factor to do [paying millions to Ward] as a result of it was so new to me,” Freeze mentioned. “So that you’re sitting right here, and on the time you suppose you are working off a sure quantity, and I wasn’t the sort and neither was our collective, to throw issues on the market that we weren’t sure we may do. I used to be large on constructing the category from the highschool ranks and selected to essentially concentrate on the highschool youngsters and thought we may win with Payton … and we had our possibilities. However we had been much more aggressive in Yr 2.”
Freeze is also optimistic that some new and youthful faces will contribute on protection in 2025. Cornerback Raion Strader (Miami, Ohio) and linebacker Caleb Wheatland (Maryland) are transfers who carry a variety of expertise. Three true sophomores — linebacker Demarcus Riddick, cornerback Jay Crawford and security Kaleb Harris — have All-SEC potential, and Freeze loves what he has seen from his freshman class. Linebacker Bryce Deas, cornerback Blake Woodby, security Anquon Fegans and defensive tackles Malik Autry and Jourdin Crawford may all make instant impacts. One of many extra improved gamers on protection, in line with Freeze, is senior Keyron Crawford, who will play the hybrid “Buck” outdoors linebacker place. This was the primary spring apply with Auburn for Crawford, who transferred from Arkansas State after the spring final yr.
“I like our personnel. We have been capable of get a lot of the guys we wished and preserve the fellows we wished,” Freeze mentioned. “The retention half is as vital as something.”
Freeze mentioned the addition of Redmond — who helped construct LSU’s roster and was named FootballScoop’s Participant Personnel Director of the Yr in 2022 — quickly after the 2024 winter portal closed has freed him as much as coach, not be slowed down in discussions about NIL offers, and be extra concerned within the day-to-day operation of this system.
“I stop speaking to gamers about cash. I used to be strolling on the market to apply and them totally different, teaching them totally different,” Freeze mentioned. “Now, I am nonetheless within the loop clearly, however I inform the gamers up entrance, ‘I do not care what you make.’
“It is just like the previous saying, ‘I do not care what they paid for the horse, however I am going to resolve when the horse runs.'”
Freeze, 55, was recognized with prostate most cancers in February and mentioned in a variety of methods he sees the larger image with extra readability than he as soon as did. His medical doctors instructed him that his most cancers is a low aggressive kind, so Freeze will wait till after the season to resolve whether or not he’ll have surgical procedure. At that time, medical doctors will reexamine his situation and plot a course of remedy.
“I am in a great place, and I really feel the identical means about our soccer workforce,” Freeze mentioned. “It is essentially the most settled since we have been right here.”
One among his greatest gamers, junior defensive finish Keldric Faulk, agrees that is essentially the most secure this system has been since he arrived as a four-star recruit from Highland House, Alabama. However Faulk, who headed up a protection that completed twenty seventh nationally in scoring a yr in the past, mentioned there is a large distinction in “being settled” and “settling.”
“We count on loads out of one another, greater than anyone else,” Faulk mentioned. “We would like everyone to count on loads out of us as a result of we’re not scared to get onto one another. However the distinction is everyone knows it is out of affection and pushing one another to get to the place we need to get, and never out of hate.
“There’s been an excessive amount of hate — perhaps not hate, however disappointment — within the Auburn household recently, and it is on us to vary that.”
