Dan Mullen predicts SEC West will cause problems for Hugh Freeze at Auburn

Reviews early on for Hugh Freeze at Auburn have been glowing. The immediate roster has gone up a level since Bryan Harsin left the Plains. Recruiting has gone really well too, with the Tigers flipping two five-star prospects from Alabama and Georgia this summer. Things could not be going better at the moment.

There are still football games to be played, though. ESPN’s Dan Mullen has questions about Freeze at Auburn, at least in the short term. He says playing in the SEC West is no joke, even for a program like Auburn that has had success in the division.

“Hugh Freeze, great fit at Auburn,” Mullen said. “He knows the league, he has success, he’s beaten Alabama. He checks every single box. The problem he’s going to deal with is they’re playing in the SEC West. Which is, hands down, the toughest (division) within a conference from top to bottom.”

Mullen knows plenty about coaching in the SEC West. He spent nine seasons at Mississippi State and had to grind through the division on a yearly basis. While he never was able to win and reach the SEC Championship game, Mullen still won a good chunk (nearly 46%) of SEC games during his time in Starkville.

Expectations are going to be high for every program. And while Mullen is not suggesting Auburn will finish dead last in 2023, he knows some teams have to struggle.

“There are seven fan bases that think their team is going to win not just the SEC but a national championship and expect that,” Mullen said. “Someone has to finish last… Someone in that league has to finish last and it’s like the apocalypse has happened. And we all know the Auburn fan base.”

Auburn has finished in the bottom half of the West for two consecutive seasons. If they wind up doing the same this year, it would mark the first three-year streak since the SEC formed divisions in 1992. Freeze is not looking to set any kind of negative records in his first season.

Mullen still likes the Freeze hire on a long-term basis. He’s just giving a little pause heading into 2023 for a first-year head coach relearning the ropes of the SEC West.

“I think Hugh can have long-term success there,” Mullen said. “I think he’s a great fit for the school. Where their talent is and who they play week in and week out.”