Paul Finebaum blown away by Auburn, Hugh Freeze being 'on fire' on recruiting trail

In Hugh Freeze‘s first offseason with the Auburn Tigers, he brought in the No. 17 recruiting class in the nation for 2023 according to On3’s Team Recruiting Rankings. Now currently boasting the No. 6 ranked class in the nation for the 2025 class following a strong recruiting weekend in his own backyard.

Four-star linebacker JaMichael Garrett from Gulf Shores committed to the Tigers along with the No. 2 ranked player in the state Jared Smith. A run on the recruiting trail that has definitely impressed college football analyst Paul Finebaum.

“It has blown me away,” Finebaum admitted Monday on McElroy and Cubelic in the Morning. “I feel like right now Auburn is literally on fire recruiting, and that is such an integral part. And some can argue, ‘Well hey, let’s look at the charts, let’s look at this.’ Recruiting is about momentum.”

Freeze’s most recent 2024 class ranked No. 8 in the nation and featured four wide receivers ranked within the top 35 at their position. Taking a significant jump in his first full offseason as the Tigers’ head coach with the program’s strongest class since 2020.

But what’s impressed Finebaum the most has been Freeze’s ability to recruit within the state and win battles with rival Alabama.

“Recruiting is about having people believe that you are on the right track as opposed to the wrong track. And when you turn a couple of players, when you do something that hasn’t happened very often, and beat the rival in state,” Finebaum said. “Alabama fans can maybe mitigate it and say, ‘Well, we recruit differently now.’ And that may be true, but it plays to the bass and when you have momentum that means more people get involved, more people become invested and I think right now that is the story at Auburn.”

New Alabama head coach Kalen DeBoer himself has been doing an excellent job in maintaining the recruiting standard in Tuscaloosa following the retirement of Nick Saban. But at the moment Freeze is dominating the battle within the Yellowhammer with 11 commits from Alabama compared to three for the Crimson Tide. Including nine of the top 15 players in the state.

“I’m not trying to say a 7-5 or an 8-4 record this year is going to change things. I mean, Hugh Freeze needs an improvement on the football field,” Finebaum added. “But as long as everyone believes this program will get there eventually, and I do based on what I’m seeing, then I think everyone on the Auburn side has to be thrilled.”

Off the field, things are definitely looking up on The Plains. But it will be fascinating to see how soon wins in recruiting translate to wins on the field for the Tigers, particularly in the next few Iron Bowl matchups within the state.