Auburn has found the right guy to run its football program in [autotag]Hugh Freeze[/autotag].
Freeze comes to the Plains with plenty of experience, and is already starting to show signs of that in recruiting and building team morale. It seems as if his return to the SEC is shaping up to be an exciting one.
All that is left to do now is for him to prove his worth on the field. Barrett Sallee of CBS Sports believes that Freeze can rebuild the Tigers program after the setback caused during the Harsin era. Sallee places Freeze at No. 8 in his SEC head coaches rankings ahead of the 2023 season.
Freeze enters his inaugural campaign on the Plains looking to revitalized a program that fell on hard times during the Bryan Harsin debacle. Freeze was 39-25 at Ole Miss from 2012-16 with New Year’s Six bowl appearances in 2014 and 2015. He led Liberty to eight or more wins in each of his four seasons (2019-22) and played a big role in the Flames’ move to Conference USA.
Considering that Freeze is returning to the SEC after being away for six years, being listed in the middle tier is a respectable nod.
Here’s a complete look at Sallee’s SEC head coach rankings:
| 1. | Nick Saban (Alabama) |
| 2. | Kirby Smart (Georgia) |
| 3. | Bryan Kelly (LSU) |
| 4. | Lane Kiffin (Ole Miss) |
| 5. | Josh Heupel (Tennessee) |
| 6. | Mark Stoops (Kentucky) |
| 7. | Jimbo Fisher (Texas A&M) |
| 8. | Hugh Freeze (Auburn) |
| 9. | Shane Beamer (South Carolina) |
| 10. | Sam Pittman (Arkansas) |
| 11. | Billy Napier (Florida) |
| 12. | Eli Drinkwitz (Missouri) |
| 13. | Clark Lea (Vanderbilt) |
| 14. | Zach Arnett (Mississippi State) |
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