Hugh Freeze on his message to Auburn fans that want to win now: 'I think we have the right plan'

Auburn is 2-4 after falling 31-13 on the road at No. 5 Georgia over the weekend. This dropped the Tigers to 8-11 overall under second-year head coach Hugh Freeze.

Freeze has drawn criticism from those in and outside of the fanbase for the way Auburn has performed under his leadership. A season and a half into his tenure, he’s still calling for fans to believe in his team and trust the process.

“I think we’ve got the right plan,” Freeze said ahead of the Monday Morning Quarterback Club meeting. “I actually think we’re further along now. Having said that, it’s also — I have to also clarify that [the fans] should be frustrated that we turned the ball over 13 times in three games, and that’s three losses that easily could have been wins. We have to own that as coaches and players.

“But in the process of building this — I knew when I took the job, they were very clear with what had gone on the previous four years in recruiting and transitions with people leaving. I knew that the task was tall, particularly when you want to compete against teams that have had top 10 recruiting classes for multiple years in a row. We’ve had one, and we’re on our way to number two, and that’s the way we want to build it.”

The turnover issues for Auburn are certainly not lost on Freeze.

Quarterbacks Payton Thorne and Hank Brown have combined for nine interceptions this season — and Thorne’s six lead the SEC through six weeks this season. Brown’s three picks came all in the first half of his lone start of the season in the loss against Arkansas, but Freeze believes that they can get things right and put it past them if his players are willing to put in the work.

“I stay focused on that and our team and our kids,” Freeze continued. “I get that there’s a ‘Give it to me now’ culture, we all feel that way. And I wish I could. I really do, and maybe we will surprise some folks here in the second half of the season because I do think we’re getting better, but I think you better control what you can control and I can’t control other people’s expectations but I can control the continuous build of this program.”

For now, Auburn will enjoy its bye this week before traveling to a Missouri team that dropped out of the top 10 after losing 41-10 against Texas A&M last week. Mizzou has a get-back game against UMass before their Week 8 matchup.