Hugh Freeze's Auburn Tigers football team is perhaps the most improved in the conference outside of LSU in 2025, on paper at least.
Not every paper lists that fact, though.
CBS Sports' Will Backus' post-spring SEC rankings has AU at No. 10 in the conference, ahead of only Tennessee, Missouri, Vanderbilt, Arkansas, Kentucky, and Mississippi State.
"Auburn has the talent to compete this year. The previous regime's recruiting shortcomings are no longer an excuse. Hugh Freeze has had plenty of time to build the roster in his image. That includes taking a swing on Oklahoma transfer quarterback Jackson Arnold, a former five-star prospect, this offseason. Arnold showed flashes of brilliance with the Sooners, but he never quite reached the level befitting a player with a blue-chip pedigree. Maybe Freeze can unlock that extra level for Arnold. If he does, Auburn will finish higher on this list, as the pieces are in place elsewhere," Backus wrote.
Florida finished 10th in the SEC during the 2024 season and went 7-5 in the regular season with a bowl game win. Given how hard Hugh Freeze has hit the recruiting trail and how successful he's been, that happening in 2025 would likely satisfy the Auburn Family.
Freeze is at the "needs tangible results" phase of Auburn's extended rebuild that Bryan Harsin's incompetence caused. Start 2-2, and he'll be in a bad spot. Even though some believe Freeze will make it to 2026 regardless, there's power in movements. Ask the #StopSteele movement.
Calls for Freeze to be fired would be infinitely stronger than #StopSteele ever could've dreamed of being.
If these spring rankings are a window into the future, Auburn may be in good shape if the SEC overperforms collectively as a conference.
The ceiling could, and perhaps should, be higher heading into year three of the Freeze era, though.