Hugh Freeze explains why Auburn is trending to become a Top 10 program nationally

Hugh Freeze was hired as the Auburn head football coach in November of 2022. About 20 months later, it seems clear that he has the Tigers headed in the right direction.

Auburn finished 6-7 last season, including a near upset of Alabama in the Iron Bowl. The Tigers signed the No. 8 recruiting class in the country for 2024, per the On3 Industry rankings. And they currently have the No. 6 class for 2025.

Hugh Freeze joined The Paul Finebaum Show on Tuesday and shared why he feels like Auburn is on its way to being one of the top program in the country.

“I think Auburn should be one of the top 10 programs in the country. And to do that, you have to have alignment and resources and support,” Freeze said. “We have the best fans, and our administration are aligned. Our supporters are incredibly positive. And at the same time supportive of us building.”

Freeze is hoping to improve on that 6-7 record in Year 2 at Auburn, and while he’s confident the Tigers will be better, he also isn’t sure his team is ready to compete for championships quite yet.

“Now I tell them all, I think you’ve gotta have patience in this league to build a great program and build it the way we want to build it,” Freeze said. “And I think that’s why they’re optimistic right now and very positive is because they see us trending, particularly in recruiting, whether it’s a top-10 class last year in our first full year recruiting. And obviously we’re hanging around that top-5 in the ‘25 class. And off to a good start in ‘26.”

As Freeze alluded to, Auburn has five commits already for the 2026 recruiting class and holds the No. 2 class in the country. There is still plenty of work to do, and Freeze isn’t afraid to admit that.

But he also feels like Auburn is headed in the right direction and the results will show that on the field soon.

“I do believe it takes stacking classes, like three years in a row, for you to catch up with some of the people that we’re expected to play with and beat,” Freeze said.

Auburn has a challenging schedule in 2024 that includes games against ranked opponents Oklahoma, Georgia, Missouri, Texas A&M and Alabama. Before those matchups, the Tigers will open the season on Saturday, Aug. 31 against Alabama A&M.