Hugh Freeze says it was 'vital' to have so many early enrollees in 2023 signing class

Hugh Freeze has a heck of a task on his hands with having to rebuild the Auburn program. He got right to work after inking his deal to head to the SEC West power, molding a top-25 recruiting class out of total shambles when he arrived. But the recruiting momentum doesn’t stop there. After landing a slew of high-rated talents in this recruiting cycle, Freeze now wants to get them on campus ASAP.

Which means Freeze is expecting some early enrollees. You know, guys who are able to graduate high school a semester early and can join the team and enroll in school for the winter semester, so they can go through offseason workouts and spring practice with the team.

That few-month window can be so critical for a lot of young players. They can learn how to practice and how to simply survive as a college football player for an entire semester before being thrust into the fire in the fall. So Hugh Freeze would love to see as many recruits enroll early as possible.

So here he was when asked about the possibility of some players enrolling early and what that can mean for their development:

Hugh Freeze on wanting early enrollees

“Huge. I mean, huge. You can go through winter workouts and spring practice. If a kid told me he was mid-year — he went from a two-star to a three-star, you know. I mean, because I’ll bank on our coaching staff, you know, if the kid has some ability. I just think we’ll get the most out of him. He was a three-star. He became a four-star, you know. It just was vital.”

Per Freeze’s evaluation, any player who can enroll early is worth more on the recruiting trail, since those extra practices can help a kid get a huge head start as a true freshman.

Another reason Freeze wants some early enrollees is because he’s trying to make it a quick turnaround for the Tigers. He sees some holes on the depth chart that early enrollees could fill in the spring.

“When you look at our depth chart, that’s a bit scary to me in some places, that we need to get some help for spring ball. And I can’t remember the last count — I think 13 mid-year players, and hopefully we’re not through that part.”

13 guys could join the Auburn team in the next couple weeks as school gets going once again. At least, that’s the hope for Hugh Freeze.