Idea of Texas A&M, Alabama games having Auburn power brokers reconsidering Hugh Freeze floated by analyst

On SI's Keith Cummings pondered the possibility of Auburn's power brokers reconsidering Hugh Freeze as the Tigers' head football coach -- particularly in the event AU gets blown out by Texas A&M and Alabama during the season's final two weeks.

"Despite Finebaum and others suggesting that everyone is turning the page in the current campaign, lest we forget that Alabama and Texas A&M still remain on the Tigers slate," Cummings wrote. "Consider how embarrassing defeats in both games could possibly offer up a straw which broke the camel's back scenario for the power brokers behind the scenes at Auburn?"

Truthfully, it'd take a blowout loss to Louisiana-Monroe to match for Auburn's power brokers to reconsider their plan to keep Freeze beyond this season. Cummings comes to the conclusion that firing Freeze isn't the move in the immediate future.

That 2025 recruiting class needs to touch down on campus. The 2024 class needs another year to develop. Freeze cannot be fired if those recruits plan on remaining committed to Auburn.

Hugh Freeze would be fired by Auburn if his recruits de-committed en masse

It's not an impossibility that these recruits are having second thoughts, though there's no smoke to that fire quite yet. That's good for Freeze. If he loses the recruiting proof of concept, he's left with little to sell his employers on.

Sure, AU has already wasted buyout money on the last two head coaches. But spending a bit upfront to generate profits later with the actual right hire cannot be off the table on the Plains.

This isn't to say Freeze isn't that right hire. Turnarounds happen quickly, and Eli Drinkwitz is the blueprint that proves patience can be a glorious virtue in this sport.

But the change needs to be positive as soon as it possibly can be. For Freeze's sake, that better be 2025 and beyond.