Noted college football analyst Phil Steele sees two Auburn Tigers leading the charge for an improved team under Hugh Freeze in 2025: first-year transfer quarterback Jackson Arnold and third-year EDGE Keldric Faulk.
Steele sees Arnold having much better results in a far more palatable situation on the Plains. As for Faulk, Steele forecasted a potential NFL future.
“You know, first of all, you take a look at their quarterback that they have in Jackson Arnold and he struggled last year at Oklahoma, right? But I mentioned why he struggled at Oklahoma last year. No offensive line and, basically, his receiving corps wiped out by injury,” Steele said on "The Paul Finebaum Show" this week. “Now Jackson Arnold steps in. He has my No. 12 rated offensive line in the country, my No. 6 set of wide receivers to throw to. I think you’re going to see a vastly improved Jackson Arnold at the quarterback position.
“Defensively, there’s talent there. You look at Keldric Faulk at defensive end up front. He’s a potential first-round draft pick. And they brought in a ton of transfers in the defensive front seven.”
Steele pegged Auburn as the No. 24 team in his poll, and predicted a winning season to avoid five straight years of futility.
“Auburn has not had (five) straight losing seasons since 1946-50. Freeze is doing a solid job building this team and they have my #4 rated receivers, #12 rated O-line and should have solid QB play. The defense remains stout and the special teams should be much improved. Usually when a team is +62 ypg in league play, they are 6-2 not 2-6, so they were much better than their record and make my Most Improved list and are #24 in my Power Poll," Steele said.
ESPN's Heather Dinich sees Auburn having a nine-win ceiling and potentially taking over the Alabama Crimson Tide's role as the Yellowhammer State's premier Power 4 program. Clearly, Steele has a similar outlook.
Either AU is going to play to the odds and get things together, or Freeze is about to face an unprecedented firestorm from a fanbase that's dying for success and will turn on him if they don't get it this year.