The month of January for Auburn football has been filled with staff changes across the board.
Several have been replaced while others have been promoted. Among the changes are the departures of former Tiger players [autotag]Cadillac Williams[/autotag] and [autotag]Zac Etheridge[/autotag]. Changes such as those have caused an uproar from the Auburn fanbase, and an SEC analyst feels that it is only right for head coach [autotag]Hugh Freeze[/autotag] to address their exits.
Radio show host Paul Finebaum was a guest on Monday morning’s edition of McElroy and Cubelic in the Morning on Jox 94.5 in Birmingham, where he discussed the recent moves within Auburn’s coaching staff. He says that Freeze could lower confusion within the fanbase by explaining the moves, especially the one concerning Auburn’s interim head coach during the final two games of the 2022 season.
“When you have one of the most famous players in your history depart without explanation and then another one who is, I believe a captain and very popular, you have to explain these things, or if you don’t you’re going to lead people to wonder,” Finebaum said. “I don’t need to remind you (Cole Cubelic) because you were at the epicenter of the Cadillac Williams thing on national television 14 months ago how popular he was and what an emotional story that is.”
Even though the loss of Williams and Etheridge stings Auburn fans, Finebaum understands that those moves are expected due to the need to hire new coordinators. Despite the change, Finebaum still feels that Auburn is on the right track with its recent hires.
“I think that’s part of it. I think when you unload your top two coordinators and there’s change and there’s chaos, you really are going to draw the wrath of the crowd,” Finebaum said Monday. “Having said all that, I think some of the changes have been positive. I think Hugh Freeze realized he needed an upgrade and I think he’s got it. I still think the sour taste at the end of the season is pretty hard to deal with, but I would still argue that if you take a deep breath and look forward, Auburn is in very good shape.”
Auburn has hired [autotag]Derrick Nix[/autotag] to serve as offensive coordinator while [autotag]Charles Kelly[/autotag] returns to his alma mater to take over the co-defensive coordinator role. Matt Zenitz of 247Sports reported Sunday that former Texas A&M defensive coordinator [autotag]DJ Durkin[/autotag] is a target to work alongside Kelly in a coordinator role.
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