Why Auburn football HC Hugh Freeze backtracked on open WR rotation

Several of Auburn football's star wide receivers saw very little playing time in Saturday's matchup

Auburn football's Freeze Four had an outstanding debut in the season opener against Alabama A&M. Perry Thompson, Cam Coleman, Malcolm Simmons, and Bryce Cain combined for 268 yards on nine receptions and three touchdowns in week one, but the action was nowhere to be found in week two.

Nearly all of the Tigers' receivers hit the field in the first game, and head coach Hugh Freeze told the media to expect an open wide receiver rotation for the rest of the season where decisions would be made play-to-play or based on ability and fatigue. However, Freeze was forced to eat his words in the matchup against the Cal Golden Bears.

Though Coleman was a mainstay in the rotation, Thompson played one snap and Simmons played five while Cain didn't see the field at all. According to Freeze, the open rotation was yet another casualty of the poor offensive performance.

“When you get as few of possessions as we had, that's not really the ideal plan,” said AU coach Hugh Freeze of the shortened rotation, per Auburn Rivals. “I think we have others in Perry and Malcolm and Sam and Caleb that also can perform at a high level -- and Camden.

“We never got in any kind of rhythm to where we got in a good rotation with those guys. That is not the way we like to play a game, with just those three getting the majority of the snaps. It just was way too many three-and-outs, one-and-outs. Nobody was ever tired because we didn't have enough offensive snaps.”

After Coleman's shoulder injury at the end of last weekend's game, we can expect to see a lot less of the star WR and it could be time for Thompson and Cain — who were both underutilized against Cal — to have their breakout game.