Auburn AD John Cohen releases statement after Hugh Freeze firing

An hour after news of Hugh Freeze‘s firing as Auburn‘s head football coach broke, Tigers athletic director John Cohen released a statement confirming the news Sunday afternoon. Freeze was relieved of his duties earlier Sunday in the midst of his third season on The Plains.

“I have informed Coach Freeze of my decision to make a change in leadership with the Auburn Football program,” Cohen wrote in a brief release Sunday afternoon on the team’s official website. “Coach Freeze is a man of integrity, and we are appreciative of his investment in Auburn and his relentless work over the last three years in bolstering our roster. Our expectations for Auburn Football are to annually compete for championships and the search for the next leader of Auburn Football begins immediately.”

Freeze’s ouster came after another disappointing offensive showing in Saturday’s 10-3 loss to Kentucky, which hadn’t won an SEC game prior to beating Auburn. Cohen’s statement also confirmed news that defensive coordinator D.J. Durkin will serve as the Tigers’ interim head coach the remainder of the season.

Auburn’s record has gone from bad to worse in each of Freeze’s three seasons on The Plains, as he finishes his three-year tenure with a 15-19 overall record and a dismal 6-16 mark in conference play, including a 1-5 start this season. Since going 6-7 overall and 3-5 in SEC play in his first season (2023), the Tigers went 5-7 overall and failed to make a bowl last season, a trend that looked to continue this season.

After not negotiating a buyout, Auburn owes Freeze $15.8 million or 75-percent of his remaining salary, according to On3 insider Pete Nakos. The Tigers will be required to pay Freeze $406,105 per month until Jan. 31, 2029. Freeze signed a six-year contract when he accepted the job in November 2022 through the 2028 season.

Freeze was making $6.75 million this season and had three years remaining on his contract. The former Arkansas State, Ole Miss (2012-16) and Liberty (2019-22) head coach was hired to turn around a program that had not posted a winning record since 2019. Freeze struggled to achieve that in his three seasons on The Plains, failing to post a winning record and win a bowl game.

Auburn’s search for a next head coach will begin immediately. The Tigers’ next leader will be their 30th head coach in program history.

— On3’s Grant Grubbs and Pete Nakos contributed to this report.