Hugh Freeze again addresses expectations for Auburn entering spring game

Fans down on The Plains are about to get their first look at Auburn under Hugh Freeze with the Tiger’s spring game scheduled for this weekend. Even so, the new head man says he hopes that the fans take almost nothing away from the experience.

Confused? That’s fair. That’s why Freeze explained that thought during his press conference on Tuesday. For one, he doesn’t want anyone to be let down because of the high expectations they have for him and the roster. For two, Freeze knows they aren’t going to show their full hand and fully expects that they’ll look completely different in the fall than they will this weekend.

“Don’t expect too much. Truthfully. When you have unrealistic expectations and they’re not met?…Unrealistic expectations lead to frustration. And so I just don’t want anybody to be frustrated,” Freeze said. “We’re, heading into the next year, probably quite good at getting in a huddle and slowing things down. You might see that on Saturday. Is that who we really are as an identity? I don’t know. But you might see some of that.”

“We really just don’t want to show too much of what we might think we’re really good at. That’s truthfully me being candid,” said Freeze. “They’re gonna see us hit, they’re gonna see us tackle. They’re gonna see us run the ball and throw the ball. Will it be exactly the same that they see this fall? I sure hope not. I hope it’s better and probably a little different.”

Auburn has a long way to go before they’re the team that everyone expects them to be under this new regime. Still, that’s not tempering any expectations. Fans are ready for the Tigers to be competitive again after the last few seasons under Bryan Harsin. With three straight seasons going where they haven’t reached seven wins, they want to see Auburn return to a competitive place both nationally and in the SEC.

With that said, Freeze is doing his best to temper the excitement while also showing his appreciation for it. Anyone who comes to ‘A-Day’ at Jordan Hare Stadium or watches it on stream is going to get some form of the show they’re looking for. He just wants everyone to know that it’ll be a very basic, straightforward look at his Tigers to end their spring period.