Hugh Freeze told reporters on May 10 at the Regions Tradition Pro-Am in Hoover the different areas of focus Auburn football will have during their next foray into the transfer portal ahead of the 2023 season — and those consist of a position that has already seen a portal addition by the new Tigers coach in the 2023 cycle along with several that haven’t.
“We would like another receiver, or two,” Freeze said. “Maybe another D-end. Maybe another linebacker, DB. We’re open to — we’re open. I think we’re pretty set at O-line now, and the quarterback room for sure. But we’re always open to looking.”
Freeze had added Nick Mardiner from Cincinnati to the receiving corps but could certainly use another established option given the unproven WR room. As for the defensive end and Will linebacker positions, there have not been any additions yet. The secondary has similarly not added any transfers, though there are several incoming freshmen defensive backs.
Auburn football head coach Hugh has done an ‘admirable job’ reshaping the roster in a short time
AL.com’s Tom Green gave props to Freeze for so quickly reshaping the roster since being hired in late November to be the head Auburn football coach — with Green calling the job Freeze has done “admirable.”
“It remains to be seen how things shake out between now and the start of fall camp, and Auburn’s roster will remain a work in progress — but Freeze has thus far done an admirable job in reshaping the roster in a short time, with 45.6 percent of the current roster made up of newcomers, when accounting for 2023 signees and transfers,” Green wrote.
There are remnants of Bryan Harsin’s, and to a lesser extent, even Gus Malzahn’s, eras still playing a small part in the Tigers’ current roster makeup, but by and large Freeze has left his mark on the Auburn football program. A stark turnaround in 2023 will be directly attributed to the trade-off of an unproven Power Five coach from the Mountain West to an SEC wartorn leader who has knocked off Nick Saban while at a program with less pull than AU.
From the sounds of it, Freeze isn’t done yet making sure the tide is turned in East Central Alabama as college football moves toward a 12-team College Football Playoff and expanded Southeastern Conference.