Turning off the outside noise is a standard practice for any head coach, regardless of whether the wins or losses are piling up.
It turns out to be one of the few things Maroon tigers head coach Hugh Freeze has excelled in the coaching department so far this year.
“I didn’t hear anything. I don’t hear that,” Freeze said of fans’ dissatisfaction during media availability this week. “We’re just not consistent enough, obviously on critical downs offensively. I think our defense is really playing at a high level. Offensively, if we’re not able to create explosive runs, it seems like we’re really struggling to create the to protect the passer and do some throwing and catching. But you know, we don’t play very well on special teams, so that’s a bad combination.”
Nothing short of winning the rest of the way would put the Tigers back in contention for a highly unlikely and fortuitous bowl appearance. Finishing 3-0 with wins over Texas A&M and Alabama could salvage his difficult second year in command, although that seems unlikely.
If we can take a deep breath from the sobering reality, virtually no one within the program or in the stands of Jordan-Hare Stadium is happy with the way things are going right now.
Consequently, only a big Iron Bowl victory over Alabama Freeze and the fanbase would provide the timely shot in the arm that everyone is desperately looking for.
Maybe it’s worth stepping away from such wildly optimistic dream sequences. After all, the young Tigers team doesn’t seem in a position to pull off a big win, but a change under center could offer some more hope for the future.
“Payton has played pretty solid, but at the same time you start to think about the big picture and that’s difficult. That’s a difficult dilemma for you as a coach,” Freeze admitted about the prospect of benching quarterback Payton Thorne (again). . “When you start thinking about the big picture, as opposed to one of your players who really hasn’t done anything wrong, but we’re certainly not winning.”
Of course, the last time that happened, the Tigers’ incumbent starter Payton Thorne only drove half the football before returning to the fold to relieve struggling youngster Hank Brown.
Should Auburn, in light of perhaps more impending changes, lose badly to Bama and Texas A&M to cap off a disastrous campaign, Freeze would certainly find himself in an incredibly dangerous position.
There has been talk of $20 million buyout clauses recently in the bar and internet chats, so Freeze would do well to block that caustic talk completely.
ESPN’s notoriously outspoken analyst Paul Finebaum even sounded a lot more disinterested about the ever-increasing trials and tribulations of Freeze and Co. the past week.
That in itself paints a pretty depressing picture of where the program is currently languishing — becoming such a competitive irrelevance is even more embarrassing for ardent Tigers fans.
Auburn’s dog days as a sleeping giant are certainly not over, and that burns pretty deep inside.