Every Tuesday we present “The Auburn Corner,” where we’ll get into a different topic on the Auburn Tigers, break down the previous game, preview the upcoming game, and everything in between.
Last week, there was some hope on The Plains that the Auburn Tigers could turn the season around coming off the first SEC victory against Kentucky and the chance to host Vanderbilt needing to win three of their final four to push for bowl eligibility.
A week later, it feels like we are a whole lot closer to the end of the Hugh Freeze era than we are to Auburn winning anything meaningful. Freeze’s Tigers found a way to lose to a Commodore team at home that did not out-rush them, that they severely out-gained in total yardage, and only turned the ball over to once.
It was another disgraceful coaching performance as Jarquez Hunter just one week after one of the best games a Tiger running back has ever had somehow received just 12 carries and was practically nonexistent in the second half while the offense struggled to do anything.
Freeze tries the same thing over and over and over, and when it fails miserably he tries it again. The only reason he’s not already fired is recruiting momentum, but how can he hold onto all of these recruits as they watch him fail in game week after week? It’s a sad state of affairs and Auburn fans simply deserve better.
The Tigers need to win each of their final three games against Louisiana-Monroe, Texas A&M, and Alabama just to go to a bowl game and it feels more likely that they lose all three than win all three. Freeze is likely going to keep his job barring disaster in the final weeks but will be on the hottest seats in the country entering next season.
As far as I’m concerned, it’s already over for Hugh Freeze at Auburn and his fate is sealed no matter how long it takes to actually play out. The question now becomes how long he can con his way into keeping his job despite being proven to be incompetent week after week.
Michael Brauner is a Senior Sports Analyst and Contributing Writer for Yellowhammer News. You can follow him on Twitter @MBraunerWNSP and hear him every weekday morning from 6 to 9 a.m. on “The Opening Kickoff” on WNSP-FM 105.5, available free online.
