ATHENS — Auburn hasn’t left the “loveliest village on the Plains” all season. It has played five games and all of them have been in the friendly confines of Jordan-Hare Stadium.
Only, those confines aren’t as friendly as usual. Fans a bit restless these days, having witnessed their Tigers going 2-3 against that home-cooked schedule.
This should provide some context for coach Hugh Freeze’s penitential opening remarks at his weekly press conference on Monday. Scheduled to discuss this week’s game against Georgia, Freeze instead spoke 685 words before getting around to mentioning the No. 5-ranked Bulldogs.
The first 680 or so words were used by Freeze to placate an angry fan base over the way things have gone to date, which may or may not have bottomed out with Auburn blowing an 11-point, fourth-quarter lead to lose to Oklahoma on Saturday.
“Man, Saturday hurt our kids, our staff, and I’m sure it hurt our incredible fans,” Freeze said during his opening statement. “To have five straight home games to open the season, they’ve been just marvelous. Our students, our band, our cheerleaders, they’ve been incredible. And I’m sure they were hurt, just like our kids felt gutted, staff and everybody.”
The Tigers’ schedule was much-discussed during the offseason. When it was first released, the rest of the SEC had to do a double take to make sure they were reading it right?
Yep, five home games in a row to start.
Auburn fans were encouraged. While the middle and tail end of that schedule could rival any in the conference for toughness, that congenial beginning seemed to provide a nice wide runway for a good takeoff. The Tigers should be – and in fact were – favored in all five games.
Freeze acknowledged as much when he was asked at SEC Media Days in Dallas in the summer about the Auburn’s unique home slate.
“I think we have some of the greatest fans, and they’ll show up,” Freeze said in July. “They’re going to be there. Jordan-Hare is a difficult place to play. We have to have the environment (because) I do believe that five-game stretch is critical to our success of the season.”
It has proved critical, but far from successful. Losses to California (21-14) and Arkansas (24-14) were inexplicable at the time. But nothing was as baffling as the collapse against Oklahoma.
Entering the fourth quarter with a 21-10 lead, the Auburn faithful watched in horror as the Sooners scored 17 consecutive points in a comeback that included a 60-yard run and a 63-yard “pick-six.”
That stretch also included two missed field-goal attempts by the Tigers and some questionable clock management by Auburn down the stretch.
After some of the previous losses, Freeze was accused of blaming his players for the issues that contributed to them. That includes a turnover margin of minus-11 off nine interceptions and six fumbles.
Whether it was from the resulting criticism for throwing his players under the proverbial bus or sincere criticism, Freeze took more ownership of those shortcomings Monday. In the same breath, however, the second-year coach said he is trying to build “Auburn men.”
“We’re judged on results, and it’s my responsibility to bring results to this program that not only restore the glory of the Auburn football team on the field,” Freeze said. “But also, I firmly believe that part of my job is to build up Auburn men. That is one thing that I do believe and see occurring, even through the hardships that we’re going through. And it’s something that we take very seriously. … I feel like we’re accomplishing good things there.”
Georgia coach Kirby Smart did not mention anything Monday about Freeze’s ability to develop Auburn men. But Smart was very complimentary of the veteran coach’s ability to build very good football teams.
Smart and Freeze are quite familiar with each other on the football field. They went head-to-head when Smart was coordinating Alabama’s defenses and Freeze was the Ole Miss head coach from 2012-15. Freeze still was the Rebels’ coach when Smart took over as Georgia’s head coach in 2016. On Sept. 24, 2016, Smart took his first Georgia team to Oxford and Freeze’s Rebels handed the Bulldogs what remains the worst defeat of the Smart Era, a 45-14 loss.
“Got a lot of respect for Hugh,” Smart said Monday. “Gone against him for a lot of years. Obviously, their record (this season) may not … speak for what this team is, but they’ve got a really good football team.”
Freeze’s first Auburn team certainly gave the Bulldogs all the could handle. The Tigers led then No. 1-ranked Georgia 17-10 until the final minute of the third quarter, and the teams were tied until Brock Bowers put the Bulldogs ahead for good on a 40-yard touchdown catch with 2:52 to play in what ended as a 27-20 victory last year.
That was UGA’s seventh consecutive win over Auburn. The Bulldogs enter Saturday’s game as a 23.5-point favorite, according to VegasInsider.com.
If the Tigers can get a handle on their turnover issues, they remain a very dangerous team. Auburn leads the SEC and ranks second in yards per completion (16.38). For the time being at least, they’re still starting Payton Thorne at quarterback. As a junior last year, the 6-foot-2, 203-pound dual-threat athlete gave the Bulldogs fits at Jordan-Hare, accounted for 92 yards rushing and another 82 passing. But his good work this season has been undone by six interceptions, and redshirt freshman backup Hank Brown has had three passes picked off as well.
“I think the guy’s a really good football player and a really good athlete,” Smart said of Thorne. “Whatever noise or criticism they get from people, I don’t respond to that because I watch what’s on tape. He played really well against us last year. The three games I’ve seen him play this year, he has done a tremendous job of knowing when to go with his feet and when to make throws, decision-making. He’s a really good quarterback that’s a good athlete. When you have that combination along with the skill players they have, it becomes hard to defend.”
Whatever wrongs that have been committed by Thorne or Freeze or Auburn certainly would be forgiven if the Tigers could somehow pull off a win over Georgia at Sanford Stadium. Saturday’s 3:30 p.m. kickoff will represent the 129th renewal of the game known as “the South’s Oldest Rivalry.” The Bulldogs have won 16 of the past 19 games in the ancient series but still lead only 64-58-3 in one of the closely fought rivalries in college football.
Regardless of the outcome, Freeze is urging the Auburn faithful to remain patient.
“Our fan base has done their part, which makes not being 5-0 very hard to swallow,” Freeze said Monday. “We certainly had our chances to do that. My ask is to stick with us through the growing pains and support our guys and efforts and our recruiting efforts, because the results are going to come. We’re not that far off.”
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