The Hugh Freeze era at Auburn hit a new low Saturday in the Tigers' 17-7 loss to Vanderbilt. Not only was it the program's first-ever loss to the Commodores at home, it also gives Freeze a worse record through two seasons (9-13) than predecessor Bryan Harsin had when he was fired (9-12).
To add insult to injury, it also marked Freeze's third-straight loss to a team quarterbacked by Diego Pavia.
Freeze took over a struggling program coming off back-to-back losing seasons for the first time since Y2K, but has largely been unable to stem the tide. After a 6-7 season in 2023, the Tigers have tanked in 2024. Auburn is 1-6 this season against power conference competition and is highly unlikely to make a bowl game with matchups against No. 10 Texas A&M and No. 14 Alabama left on the schedule.
Despite making a bowl game last season, Freeze parted ways with both coordinators and took over playcalling responsibilities. While the yardage has increased, the Tigers still rank No. 13 in the SEC in scoring offense. Against Vanderbilt, the Tigers won the yardage battle by 100 yards and still reached the end zone only once. Auburn was just 2-of-13 on third down and missed two field goals.
With the loss to Vanderbilt, the Tigers have clinched a fourth straight season with five or more SEC losses. That hasn't happened at Auburn since 1930. While the program has earned a reputation as one of the most buyout-happy in college athletics, Freeze's might still be prohibitive. The Tigers would owe Freeze $20.3 million if he is fired on Dec. 1, 2024.
Granted, a central part of Harsin's firing after only 21 games came due to his struggles on the recruiting trail. Freeze reeled in a top-10 high school recruiting class in 2024 and sits with the No. 5 class in 2025. As long as he can keep the group together, Freeze's job is likely safe -- at least into 2025. Still, he is overseeing arguably the greatest period of failure in Auburn history right as the Tigers have to deal with an expanded SEC. Auburn is tied with Kentucky for 14th in the 16-team league.