Hugh Freeze is definitely feeling the heat right now. It’s obvious that his job security has been shaky since the season wrapped up. With a disappointing record of 11 wins, 14 losses, and no bowl wins in his first two years, things aren’t looking great for him. As he heads into his third year, he’s in for a bumpy ride. It’ll be interesting to see if his efforts in the transfer portal pay off, but nothing’s for sure. Plus, there’s been a lot of chatter among analysts about how Auburn’s performance stacks up against other SEC schools during his time as head coach.

Freeze has built a pretty abundant roster this offseason. However, all of them need to be tested through the fall before we can see some light at the end of the tunnel. Their growth and quality of development can solve a lot of the Tigers’ issues. The best they can do is to lift some weight from Freeze. But for now, the future looks heavily uncertain, and so does Freeze’s longevity in the seat. As we are inching toward another exciting college football season, analysts look to put the SEC coaches in descending order in terms of worth. While Kirby Smart remains the top dog at many colleges, Freeze’s number largely varies.

USA columnist Blake Toppmeyer kept Freeze at No. 12 behind Oklahoma’s Brent Venables, while John Adams elevated him to No. 7. What made the most sense? Chris Gordy of Locked on SEC went on to explain, “The hardest one to rank (Hugh Freeze). Because Freeze has been successful everywhere, he’s been to. Arkansas State and Miss Liberty. He’s won big at every stop he’s had, except for Auburn, so far. 6-7 and 5-7 in his two seasons. The track record shows he’s a good head coach.” Freeze led the Red Wolves to the Sun Belt Conference championship and a bowl game appearance in his debut year. He led the ASU offense to the helm of the board in pass attempts, total plays, first downs, and whatnot!

But that has gone for good. Freeze needed to translate that power to Auburn. But he couldn’t, mounting another disappointing season under his belt. The 5-7 ending continues to haunt him till the end of his tenure here. A series of fourth-quarter mistakes put his image in serious jeopardy. “If we judge him off his two seasons so far at Auburn, I think he belongs in the bottom four just just being real here now,” Toppmeyer wrote the bottom line.

Despite a rocky start in his career on the field, Freeze remained a fearless recruiter throughout his tenure. He ended up snagging 12 commitments since July. Four of them were for the 2026 class, and the rest belonged to the immediate year. Adams, another analyst, does think this one argument would be enough to put him in a better place on the SEC coaches list. Toppmeyer, however, kept disapproving of it.

Auburn HC Hugh Freeze’s SEC coach debate stretches longer 

Freeze had a tough time in his personal life as well. He is battling a grueling phase of prostate cancer. But the Auburn head coach isn’t running out of hope, both on and off the field. After the spring game wrapped up, he said he feels optimistic that their roster is capable enough to fight super-competitive SEC rivals. Because it doesn’t look the same anymore.

The massive reshuffle should do its job. Regardless, Freeze’s $20.3 million safety net can feel less of a burden than his horrible years to the Auburn higher-ups if he can’t turn heads at his third as well. There is hope, there are dreams, there is effort, and there is a soul-stirring effort. But the past ghosts kept coming back and made the journey an upheaval again.

“When I saw Freeze ranked at No. 7, I thought it must be a typo. Either that, or Adams is being held hostage somewhere on the Plains,” Toppmeyer said. “Are we talking about the same Freeze who lost to New Mexico State in 2022 at Liberty and in 2023 at Auburn and lost to Cal-Berkley at home last season? Freeze was a pretty good coach once upon a time at Ole Miss, but that’s been a minute. It’s been a decade. That said, Auburn looks to improve this season. Kelly being ranked ahead of Sarkisian also seems based on a past perception.” 

Freeze’s legacy at Ole Miss features their first major bowl appearance, a first 10-win season. However, that has to materialize for the Tigers if Hugh Freeze doesn’t want to taint his legacy further.