17 important comments Hugh Freeze made during Auburn football fall camp

AUBURN — The media will speak to select Auburn football players on Wednesday, head coach Hugh Freeze will participate in Tiger Talk located inside the Woltosz Performance Center on Thursday, and come next Monday, it will be game week as the Tigers prepare to host UMass on September 2. The game will kick at 2:30 pm on ESPN.

Before game week arrives, let’s revisit some important things Freeze said throughout fall camp.

“This is the most uncomfortable fall camp I’m going into and it’s because of the new world.”

Minus Stephen Sings, everything about this Auburn roster is brand new. In addition, Auburn will feature 42 players (22 signees and 20 transfers) that weren’t on the roster last fall, providing even less context when it comes to expected SEC production.

“I feel very comfortably with who he is, his leaderships, his desire and preparation, his football IQ, but you have to make plays.”

Payton Thorne won the QB1 job, and what Freeze said at the beginning of fall camp is the main reason why. Thorne’s pedigree certainly plays a part, with his father being a former FBS offensive coordinator, and grandfather being a successful head coach at North Central College, a Division III school in Illinois.

“I’m excited about our O-line. I think we’ve improved ourselves there. I don’t know how much we closed the gap with that.”

Exiting fall camp, Freeze’s comments ring truer than ever. The positive developments of Jeremiah Wright, Izavion Miller, Jaden Muskrat, Connor Lew and others, plus the reliability of Gunner Britton, Dillon Wade, Avery Jones, Kam Stutts and Tate Johnson have the Auburn offensive line in as good of shape as its been in years. How much have they improved? We’ll find out part of that answer during the first three weeks, but SEC play is when the complete answer will come into focus.

“We have to improve our mental toughness in the secondary.”

Freeze challenged his defensive backs at the beginning of fall camp. It’s a veteran group that he wanted to see raise their level of play. After the first week, Freeze challenged them again, “called them out,” as he said. By the end of fall camp, Freeze was praising Nehemiah Pritchett, DJ James, Keionte Scott and others for raising their level of play. It sounds like Freeze’s motivation worked.

“You have to behave like a champion before you can become one.”

This quote from the very beginning of fall camp resonates, especially when you consider what Freeze said after Auburn’s final scrimmage of fall camp. Freeze talked about the team complaining too much on the field, instead of correcting mistakes off it. He wondered aloud about his team’s mental toughness to put good and bad plays behind them and move on to the next play quickly and with maturity. Freeze stated that in both scrimmages, the energy level wasn’t where it needed to be, despite having good energy in most practices. Given some of Freeze’s concerns, his comment at the start of camp still lingers.

“Truthfully, I will tear them down some in this camp. No intentionally and not with a mean-spirited heart, but you will break people down.”

It certainly appears that was Freeze’s approach over the last two-plus weeks. Following the final scrimmage, Freeze talked about being the “practice jerk,” that motivational head coach that focused more on macro-level issues on a day-to-day basis. He backed up his “tear them down” comment by being more involved and more universally critical than maybe he’s ever been as a head coach. We’ll see how the new approach pays off this fall.

“Taking care of the ball and play within the offense, take what you should take on a given play.”

That will be the thing to remember about the Auburn offense as it pertains to the quarterbacks. Turnovers should be limited because the offense is designed to take what the defense gives, and take shots when necessary. Patience will undoubtably be a virtue in this offense.

“Pleased, pleased. … I think we have a solid room there.”

There might not have been another position group, maybe the offensive line, that received more consistent praise than the running backs during fall camp. Jarquez Hunter, Damari Alston, Brian Battie, Jeremiah Cobb and Sean Jackson all had their moments in the sun. Some are better than others, but it appears Freeze really believes all five of those guys bring something different and unique to the table.

“They’re playing like 15 guys it feels like. … We’re rotating a lot of guys in there. That’s a good thing in this league. The stuff we’re doing gives us problems at times, there’s a lot of movement going on. I’m pleased with how they’re working.”

Despite being pleased with the success of the running game during both fall scrimmages, Freeze commended the defensive line and their progress, too. There isn’t a “stud” per se on this Auburn defensive line, but there do seem to be quality bodies. That might be the key to their success. Freeze’s reference to the amount of players being rotated in along the defensive front could be a sign of things to come. Time (and SEC offensive lines) will tell.

“Jalen McLeod and Stephen Sings have changed that or the better for us. They can get after the quarterback.”

There wasn’t a position that needed rebuilding and reloading more-so than the jack or rush-end position for Auburn. The emergence of Jalen McLeod and Stephen Sings during camp is enormous. If those players continue to develop and carry their “high motor” into SEC play, it’ll be a huge development for the Tigers’ defense.

“He’s been one of our leaders. … This guy drives the culture that we want.”

There might not be a player poised for a breakout season more-so than Alston at running back. Both on the field and off it, Alston is stepping up to the plate. He’ll be an exciting player to watch this season.

“We desperately have to get to that point.”

Freeze answered with that comment following a question about searching for or having playmakers at wide receiver. He went on to say Auburn’s shortage of 1,000-yard receivers during its history was “shocking” to learn about, specifically the fact that Ronney Daniels in 1999 was the last time an Auburn wide receiver topped the 1,000-yard mark in a single season. Transfer Shane Hooks stepped up with three touchdowns in the two fall scrimmages, but Freeze is still searching for more.

“When we get a chance to go into that stadium and play, there needs to be some juice.”

It’s unfortunate that during the only two scrimmages for Auburn inside Jordan-Hare Stadium this fall, the energy levels of the team were in question. The season opener will be the next time Freeze and his team compete inside the stadium.

“Irregardless of how good the last one or how bad the last one was, do we have the ability to put that in the trash and play the next one. Teams that do that have a better chance of winning the game. We’re still learning to do that.”

Freeze reacted passionately with this answer when asked what he’s learned about his team during fall camp. He was frustrated about his team’s desire to still dwell on negative plays too long without moving onto the next play. This is where Freeze talked about his team complaining too much after a negative play, specifically saying, “there’s nothing we can do about it, I don’t need to hear about it, and you don’t need to talk about it. If we do talk about it, it needs to be on the sideline.” Freeze wants his team to become more mature, something that may only happen as the season goes unfolds.

“Robby, if he handles things the right way, has to be on the field some. He’s different.”

Freeze continues to say that if Robby Ashford handles the quarterback situation with maturity, there’s a place for him within Auburn’s offense this fall. It’s clear that Freeze and the coaching staff believe Ashford adds value on the field. However, it’s obvious that Freeze, by adding the caveat of “if he handles things the right way,” is at least somewhat concerned with Ashford’s ability to handle the situation with maturity. This goes back to the spring when Freeze publicly challenged Ashford to grow as a football player, on and off the field. The impact Ashford has on this football team is largely in his own hands at this point.

“Truthfully, the last four years, I haven’t had to be the practice jerk. But I’ve found out that I need to be that here.”

Freeze’s transparency continues to be pleasant to listen to during press conferences. This comment was one of those moments, as Freeze said he’s figured out with this team, his role has to be more motivational and less in the weeds offensively, as his tendency has been in the past. Calling people out, or as Freeze said, “calling people up,” was the norm during the last two weeks. Freeze credited better practices late in fall camp with his willingness to be more engaged in motivating the team.

“It’s easy to coast, and I thought they coasted some the first week. I thought they turned it on this last week like they should.”

Freeze said Nehemiah Pritchett and DJ James really turned it on during the final week of camp. Auburn’s secondary, full of veterans, should be leading the charge in all facets. Along with Pritchett and James, Keionte Scott, Zion Puckett and Donovan Kaufman have played a ton of football. Their leadership will be an important part of Auburn’s success on defense.

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