Auburn Tigers News: Thin at secondary, Hugh Freeze on changing the offense
In today's edition of Auburn Tigers News, Hugh Freeze addresses the depth at the secondary and whether or not he will change the offensive game plan
Over the weekend, the Auburn football team lost another member of its secondary, a position group that was already relatively thin heading into the 2024 season. Colton Hood transferred to Colorado, Tyler Scott was injured during fall camp, and now Champ Anthony is expected to be out for the rest of the season after undergoing surgery for a leg injury sustained in the Arkansas matchup.
Now, the pressure on the young defensive backs to step up will be even greater, according to head coach Hugh Freeze.
"We are thin. Antonio Kite and JC Hart are going to have to play a lot of snaps," Freeze said, per The Montgomery Advertiser. "We have to get Jay Crawford ready as a freshman. That's really what we are down to. Those four guys are going to get a lot of reps because we would kind of like to keep Keionte (Scott) at nickel. That's where we are right now.”
Freeze on the offensive game plan
On the other side of the ball, it's the same old story. The Tigers' offense struggled mightily on Saturday between quarterback play, turnovers, and other mistakes that shouldn't be made. However, Freeze isn't laying the blame on the game plan, but instead is looking for better execution from his players.
Moving forward, Freeze is doubling down on his faith in his coaching staff and game plan, and does not expect to change much heading into the Oklahoma game this Saturday.
“I told our staff this morning, I love being in the fire with them,” said Freeze, per Auburn Rivals. “And if you're not willing to be in the fire in this profession and this league, you probably need to go, I don't know, do something different. I love the way they come to work. I love the energy they bring. And we're not changing anything.
"Obviously, addressing the turnovers and the third downs that cost us this game. We'll address those, but we're not changing who we are and what our culture is and what we believe in. So, not really changing anything.”
The Auburn football team takes on Oklahoma in Jordan-Hare Stadium for the first time this Saturday at 2:30 p.m.