Hugh Freeze Addresses His Viral Comment About Defeating Nick Saban and Alabama
Auburn head coach Hugh Freeze might have ignited the Iron Bowl rivalry when he mentioned on a recent sports show that he should have four victories over Nick Saban’s Alabama teams. To prevent this from becoming bulletin board material, Freeze took the opportunity to clarify his remarks.
During an appearance on The Paul Finebaum Show, Hugh Freeze clarified that his comments on Marty and McGee were misunderstood. He explained that he was trying to express regret for not doing enough to secure four wins when he had the opportunity. Freeze cited his previous Ole Miss team’s 24-3 lead over Alabama in 2016, which they eventually lost, and last year’s defeat on a fourth-down touchdown as examples of games where he felt he “didn’t coach well enough.”
“Sometimes you say things that don’t come across the way you intended, and you feel crazy for saying them,” Freeze said, according to On3 Sports. “You have to capitalize when you have the chances. Yes, we definitely had opportunities to get four wins. In my third year at Ole Miss, we were up 24-3. Honestly, I didn’t coach well enough.
“It felt like we should have won that game, and I should have managed the clock better.
And last year, I should have coached well enough to take advantage of the opportunity we had and secure the win.”
A significant reason Auburn was drawn to Hugh Freeze when searching for a new head coach after the 2022 season was his track record against Nick Saban. Freeze’s Ole Miss teams famously defeated Saban’s Alabama in back-to-back seasons, making him one of the few coaches to accomplish that.
However, with Saban no longer in the picture, Freeze will now face Kalen DeBoer in the 2024 edition of the Iron Bowl, and it will be an away game.
