Everything Auburn head coach Hugh Freeze said on College Gameday

Auburn head coach Hugh Freeze joined the College Gameday panel on ESPN Saturday morning–as if he hasn’t been busy enough.

Freeze has been on the road recruiting in the state of Alabama. He has simultaneously trying to build his coaching staff at Auburn.

He found time in his busy schedule to fly down to Arlington, Texas where College Gameday was set up for the Big-12 Championship game between Kansas State and TCU.

Here’s everything he said on the show.

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Rece Davis: Your hiring had was greeted by some pushback, you’ve had some well-documented missteps both on and off the field. How will those form and impact the way you plan to run the program while at Auburn?

Hugh Freeze: Well, obviously I think the best learning tool in life is probably when you didn’t get things right and you had any type of failures. If you handled them the right way with the integrity of owning it, making the necessary changes, and playing the next play. I think over the last seven years, that’s what it’s led to for me. Just really being a guy that wants to lead a passionate disciplined life. That has faith, family, and friends at the forefront, and your commitment to being evident in every action and every decision. I think that translates into the team room with a coach that’s very transparent and saying ‘look, let me tell you when coach got it right and when he got it wrong.’ I really liked it a lot better when I got it right. It’s been most of my life, but obviously the other times, the ones we probably learn the most from–because the fruit is really grown in the valley. I think kids have responded to that with my transparency.

Rece Davis: What stipulations or guard rails are there on any use of social media or communications you might have?

Hugh Freeze: A lot of people in the office work with me on that now and I like it that way. It’s hard for me to keep up now with everything that’s going on. I didn’t know a few coaches had already changed to different places because I can’t keep up with it. I’ve got my hands full with a lot of other things right now. It will be a joint effort.

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Kirk Herbstreit: You’ve been a head coach in the SEC, had a lot of success, you’ve been on the outside.. What do you have to do to compete at Auburn to get these Tigers back to being the team that their fans expect them to be?

Hugh Freeze: Recruit. We’ve got to go get players and revamp the roster. The good thing is in this new day and time you can do that pretty fast. At Auburn, look, there’s only five schools in the last 12 years that have played for a national championship and won it, and played for one and not won it. Auburn is one of those five. So, for all the recruits that are listening right now, you can play right away, and help us get that back there. The tradition is there, the passion is there, the resources are there, and now we have yo pull everyone together and head in the same direction and go get great players.

Pat McAfee: Whenever you think about 2022 college football, now you’re at Auburn, a lot comes with that job. In the modern world with NIL deals, transfer portal, how much did that come into a role in you making a decision, and how will you use that to make the team better?

Hugh Freeze: The NIL and the $120 million brand new facility that we have, which is like Disney World, I get lost every single time I go in it. You need to come see it, it’s off the charts good. The support by AD Cohen, John has been incredible through the whole process. President Roberts and our board are incredibly supportive. The NIL deal and the facilities are all great, but truthfully, Auburn is a special place. I think it’s a place that our family–Jill, Ragan, Jordan, and Madison, we always felt like every time we go to this place, we would fit here. We had that feeling all along. Obviously though NIL is a big deal. I’ve started meetings with players and everyone is interested what that looks like for them. I think it’s not the greatest reason to choose a place, but I hope they get everything that comes their way. We should be about creating value for them with their experience at Auburn.

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Desmond Howard: Tell me the role that your family played in making this decision

Hugh Freeze: I don’t make any important decision in regards to our family without Jill being totally onboard. Then we bring our three daughters and two of their husbands in and that is exactly what we did. I want to say Liberty University is one of the greatest places we have ever experienced for us at the right time for us. We won a lot of games and whoever inherits that will get some great, great kids, administration, and fans. When this started happening, Jill and I kept saying if the door opens, we just feel like this is the right place and a right time for us.