Phil Steele thinks Auburn can reach bowl game, will not contend in SEC West in 2023

Auburn is eager to begin a new era in 2023 under coach Hugh Freeze. Following a tumultuous two-year stint under Bryan Harsin, the Tigers are confident they’ve found the guy to turn things around.

Now the question remains: what is a realistic expectation for Auburn during Freeze’s inaugural season? The Tigers went a combined 11-14 in two years with Harsin, and coming back from that will clearly take time. Still, college football expert Phil Steele sees there being plenty of reason for optimism heading into this season.

“He’s got a tough schedule. They rank it No. 11 in the country,” Steele said on 99.1 The Sports Animal in Knoxville. “He’s also a first-year head coach. Gotta learn the players and the players have to learn the system. I think he steps into an interesting situation. Remember last year? Once Auburn lost to Penn State, basically coach Harsin was a dead man walking. You had to wonder how much the team believed in him. Everybody knew he was gonna get fired and the only question was when. All of a sudden, they went on that long losing streak. Finally brought in an interim head coach. Boom. They win a couple of games and gave Alabama a good game at the end.

“I think (Freeze) steps into a good situation because the team can believe in their head coach. He’s gonna be around. They have to believe.”

Freeze comes to Auburn following four seasons as the coach at Liberty. He also brings SEC experience as the head coach at Ole Miss from 2012-16. He led the Rebels to a Sugar Bowl victory and beat Alabama, the Tigers’ biggest rival, not once, but twice in that span.

Auburn loses some key pieces heading into 2023, including running back Tank Bigsby. However, it could be worse, as Steele pointed out they return 17 starters from this past season. They also add a new quarterback in Michigan State transfer Payton Thorne and former Western Kentucky offensive tackle Gunner Britton, the No. 29 player according to On3’s Transfer Portal Rankings.

Steele doesn’t see that turning Auburn into an SEC contender just yet, but making a bowl game is at least a realistic possibility.

“He’s got 17 starters returning and he’s brought in some good transfers as well,” Steele said. “So I think the talent’s there at Auburn, but I don’t think the talent’s there for them to get back to being an SEC West contender this year. I think they can get back to a bowl game and definitely improve upon the 5-7 record last year. Probably get to like 7, perhaps 8 as a top end for them. A better season at Auburn, but not quite up to the fact of playing with your Alabamas and LSUs and, as I mentioned, Texas A&M.”

Steele’s prediction will be put to the test when Auburn kicks off the 2023 season on Sept. 2 against UMass.