It’s now Year 3, and after two full recruiting cycles, the Tigers are supposed to roar again, but so far, the growl has merely been a whimper. Hugh Freeze, not a man to shy away from the truth, has been unequivocal: “I’m not a fool, I think we’ve got to go to a bowl game.” Bare minimum after an 11-14 start to his tenure, and the gauntlet of the SEC looming, even that is iffy. He has brought in back-to-back top recruiting classes and made big splashes in the transfer portal.

Sure, Auburn’s landed some big names, but there’s a real struggle to keep up with the likes of Alabama, who keep pulling off sly power moves in the recruiting game. The Tigers have fought hard, spending big on NIL and bringing in elite talent, but Alabama’s shadow is long, and their recruiting machine is relentless. Hugh Freeze, a beleaguered man, is attempting to translate promise into victories, while each recruiting season is a game of high-stakes poker, and Alabama continues to hold all the aces.

On the June 9th episode of That SEC Football podcast, Will Miles and Cousin Shane dive into Freeze’s Auburn struggles. “I don’t think you’re going to out-recruit Alabama even with Saban gone, and so can you come up and snipe Alabama every once in a while. I mean even if you think about the Malzahn era, he was able to come up and snipe Alabama every once in a while, but it wasn’t a consistent thing,” Miles says.

For years, the Tigers’ dreams of national glory were often dashed in the Iron Bowl, or by the simple fact that, in the old days, the SEC champion was usually the Crimson Tide and that’s Miles mentioned, “Auburn’s likelihood of a playoff or likelihood of a championship goes up with the playoff format. I think having to go through Alabama all the time limited their ability to get there,” he said. “Now, if you’re the third-best team in the West, you still have a shot to make it,” he added. The new CFP format, which will soon expand to 16 teams and likely guarantees more at-large bids, means Auburn doesn’t have to be perfect to get in.

Now, that’s a game-changer for a program like Auburn. Auburn’s title aspirations were regularly derailed by Alabama’s dominance in the past. Now, with more postseason berths available, Auburn can afford a bad day or two. The longer format allows them the opportunity to be dangerous in December, even if they have not overthrown Alabama in the regular season. If Freeze is unable to turn things around, if Auburn can’t begin winning recruiting wars, recording huge upsets, and making genuine progress, there’s a genuine possibility they’ll fall into obscurity. In the SEC, that’s a death warrant.

Auburn’s 2026 class gains momentum

After a dry spell that lasted over two months, Auburn football finally got to celebrate again. The drought ended on Monday when Eric Perry, a three-star athlete from Southaven, Mississippi, announced he was taking his talents to the Plains. Perry’s commitment is a big deal—not just because he’s a playmaker with serious versatility, but because he’s the eighth commit for Auburn’s 2026 class, and the first running back to jump on board.

Perry’s been lighting it up at DeSoto Central, piling up 1,600 rushing yards and 18 touchdowns in just two seasons, with an average of 7.7 yards per carry, and that’s while playing quarterback. At 6 feet, 195 pounds, he’s got the speed and the size to cause headaches for defenses, and Auburn plans to unleash him at running back. Perry had interest from Jackson State, North Alabama, and Sacramento State, but he didn’t even hesitate when Auburn came knocking on his door. “I just wanted to compete at the highest level in the SEC,” he said. “I really didn’t want to consider playing anywhere else.” His cousin played Mississippi State, which further raised the bar, but Perry’s first visit to Auburn sealed the deal.

For Hugh Freeze, this commitment is a shot in the arm. The Tigers’ 2026 class is shaping up with talent from all over, but landing a dynamic athlete like Perry adds a new dimension. He’s ranked as the No. 35 player in Mississippi and the No. 87 athlete nationally, according to 247Sports.