Paul Finebaum firmly places Hugh Freeze on the hot seat after Auburn loss to Alabama in Iron Bowl

Let the record show: Hugh Freeze is 0-2 in the Iron Bowl.

The second-year Auburn head coach lost his second-straight game against bitter in-state rival Alabama with Saturday’s 28-14 defeat inside Bryant-Denny Stadium.

Losing to your hated rival is never a positive sign for job security in the state of Alabama. It’s because of that reality that SEC Network host Paul Finebaum – who spent more than three decades as an Alabama-based newspaper columnist and radio host – is firmly putting Freeze on the proverbial “hot seat.”

“With Auburn, (I) kind of came away with an empty feeling. Really have to wonder about this program’s future,” Finebaum said during his weekly Monday appearance on the Birmingham-based McElroy and Cubelic in the Morning radio show. “Recruiting is one thing, that’s essential, and I know the hype machine is going crazy there (in Auburn).

“But in two or three weeks we’ll have a better look at the portal and recruiting (landscape) and try to figure out what Hugh Freeze needs to do next year to save his job. Because I think he’s clearly on the hot seat.”

With the loss, Auburn (5-7, 2-6 SEC) finished 2024 tied for 13th in the league as the Tigers failed to achieve a bowl-clinching sixth win. Through two seasons on the Plains, Freeze is just 11-14 overall and 5-11 in the SEC. Still, as Finebaum indicated, there remains some positivity around Freeze, mostly by way of Auburn’s 2025 recruiting class, which is currently fifth nationally according to On3’s Industry Recruiting Rankings.

Bryan Harsin wears LANK t-shirt, congratulates rivalry week winners

Former Auburn head coach Bryan Harsin posted a congratulations message to rivarly game winners around the country this past weekend. However, a few eagle-eyed followers noticed something odd about the photo.

In the reflection of the window in Harsin’s photo, it appears that he’s wearing a “LANK” shirt — a piece of Alabama merchandise.

It should come as no surprise Bryan Harsin may harbor ill will toward an Auburn program that fired him midway through his second season on the Plains. Harsin went just 9-12 overall in roughly 1 1/2 seasons befor being fired Oct. 31, 2022 following a 3-5 start to Year 2. Harsin finished his brief stint as Auburn’s head coach with the lowest winning percentage for a non-interim head coach since Earl Brown (1948–1950).

Grant Grubbs contributed to this report.