This isn't good.
Paul Finebaum Reveals 'Concern' for Historic College Football Program originally appeared on Athlon Sports.
The 2025 college football season is about to begin in one month. While preparations are ongoing, coaches and programs feel pressure to perform this year.
The Auburn Tigers, under the leadership of Hugh Freeze in his third season as head coach, are currently facing a challenging situation. The team is experiencing its fourth consecutive losing season, a feat that hasn't occurred in over 75 years.
Two of the seasons have been under Freeze, which means there is pressure on him to improve the team's performance. Additionally, the pressure is increasing as Auburn is facing challenges in recruiting this offseason. On "The Paul Finebaum Show," he mentioned that he spoke with some individuals in Auburn who are feeling concerned about the situation.
"There's concern," Finebaum said. "I say this, Freeze can prove a lot of people wrong here in a couple of weeks. The one thing that Freeze needs, though, is not critical to this year because the players aren't available this year, but what he needs is momentum. Because if he has a tweener season, something like 7-5 or 8-4, and you think it's progress but you aren't sure, you can preserve your security with a great big time recruiting year."
Freeze has excelled in recruiting high school players over the past two seasons, successfully securing back-to-back top 10 classes. In comparison, Auburn only managed to land one top 10 class in the five years prior to Freeze's arrival. However, this season has seen a decline, with the Tigers ranked No. 70 in recruiting.
There is reason to be optimistic that Auburn is re-establishing itself as a legitimate football program. The Tigers secured the No. 8-ranked transfer portal class and made several key additions, including quarterback Jackson Arnold from Oklahoma and wide receiver Eric Singleton Jr. from Georgia Tech.
Arnold, a former five-star prospect, started as the quarterback for Oklahoma last season. It was a challenging year for him, as the Sooners were without their top five wide receivers for much of the season and struggled with an injured offensive line. Despite these challenges, he finished the season with 1,421 passing yards, 12 touchdowns, and three interceptions over the course of 10 games.
Singleton Jr. had a standout season at Georgia Tech, racking up 754 receiving yards and three touchdowns. He was also ranked among the top five players in the transfer portal.
If the season doesn’t show promise, the success of previous recruiting classes may not make a difference, and it might also hinder future recruiting efforts. Auburn will kick off its season at 8 p.m. ET on Aug. 29, facing the Baylor Bears in an away game.
Related: Hugh Freeze Opens Up About Mounting Pressure Before Crucial Season
This story was originally reported by Athlon Sports on Jul 30, 2025, where it first appeared.
Category: General Sports
