Hugh Freeze buyout: Details of Auburn head coach's contract

Auburn decided to part ways with Hugh Freeze on Sunday, and the Tigers will owe their head coach $15.8 million. The head coach’s buyout was set to drop by $4.8 million annually.

According to Freeze’s buyout, he is owed 75% of his remaining salary. 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.

Auburn would have only saved roughly $400,000 had it waited to fire Freeze on Dec. 1, following the conclusion of the regular season. As part of his contract, Auburn furnished Freeze with a new car each year and also paid for gas, service, and insurance. He received tickets to a private suite for home football games and full access and all monthly dues paid to a country club membership of Freeze’s choosing.

Freeze was making $6.75 million this season and has three years remaining on his contract. The former Arkansas State, Ole Miss and Liberty 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.

Freeze was 15–19 as Auburn’s head coach with a 6-16 mark in SEC play. The Tigers were 1-5 in the SEC this season, picking up their first conference win last week at Arkansas. Auburn was strong all season on defense, allowing just 18.6 yards per game. But Freeze’s offense struggled, ranking second-to-last in the SEC, averaging 340.6 yards per game.

Freeze posted four consecutive winning seasons at Liberty and found success at Ole Miss, highlighted by a top-10 ranking.