Hugh Freeze addresses Auburn recruiting, defends against low rankings

Recruiting has long since been the name of the game in college football, but particularly in the SEC. The Auburn Tigers know that, as does head coach Hugh Freeze, which is part of what makes their current struggles to recruit frustrating.

This comes at a time when the House settlement is taking effect in college sports. Auburn and Freeze need to adjust and, while it hasn’t worked out on the recruiting trail just yet for Auburn, Freeze believes in the school’s plan and that things will end up working out.

“It’s hard to feel great when you’re not one of the top-ranked recruiting classes,” Hugh Freeze said. “And I think Auburn should be. But I’m confident in our administration and the way that they lead and trust them immensely that we’re doing things the right way. At the end of the day that’s really what we have to do, in my opinion, is we can’t put ourselves in jeopardy. We’ve got great interpretations from our administration and our legal team on what the settlement really means and how we should operate, and that’s what we’re doing. And if others are operating in a manner not with that, I’m hopeful that they’ll be called out on that at some point.”

Auburn currently has the 79th-ranked recruiting class in the 2026 cycle. That’s 16th in the SEC. Ultimately, it is likely being hurt by just how few recruits Auburn has, with only seven players currently committed. Nobody else in the SEC has fewer than 10 commits. That’s also a season removed from Auburn producing the eighth-ranked recruiting class in the entire country.

“It does seem kind of strange that we’re like some of the lowest range of numbers. I mean, we’re like, you know, really, really low compared to some. And I’m trying to figure that out, but I do think it will shake out in the long run,” Freeze said. “But it is complicated and hard to sit there and feel great about. But I feel great about our relationships and I feel great about Auburn, and I know the families know that. And I do think just after we win games this fall, which I’m confident we will, I think it’ll all kind of shake itself out.”

While the House settlement in a new challenge to overcome, Hugh Freeze has found himself getting criticized amid those recruiting struggles. In particular, some fans are upset with his golfing numbers. In the month of June alone, a very slow month for coaches, Freeze reportedly golfed 10 times. Kirby Smart and Kalen DeBoer have combined for six golf outings in all of 2025.

Hugh Freeze explains how House settlement has impacted Auburn, ability to recruit

The House settlement has certainly taken its toll. That’s something that Hugh Freeze is still trying to find a way to deal with moving forward.

“It’s quite different. First of all, you want to make sure you are operating with what the settlement says, and we think we are. We’re going by what we believe to be the accurate interpretation of it. It’s not really to our advantage to what we’re doing right now because others, I think, are operating in a different manner. But the main thing that I don’t think people understand is retaining your current roster. It used to not affect high school recruiting. You were going to sign your 20-25 guys. But now, with the salary cap, you have to look at a room like our wide receiver room where on paper, we’re not losing a single kid, and we’ve got to retain those guys because I like that room a whole lot,” Freeze said.

“So you don’t have the means, so to speak, to go after the number of high school receivers that you would normally go after because you can’t really – again, on paper, we’re not losing anyone and I don’t want to lose one. I really like that room. I love our young d-linemen. It’s kind of difficult. You’re sitting here trying to sign a class when you really don’t know what your current roster will be in January. So that’s a challenge, but you have to operate within the manner of what the settlement really says and the interpretation that we’ve received, and that’s what we’re doing.”