Hugh Freeze has agreed to a deal to become Auburn’s next head football coach

[The Miami Ute]

This is kind of shocking to me, considering that he just signed a huge eight year extension last month. I hope Liberty had some legal language in that contract that allowed them to take Auburn to the bank. Honestly, I was fervently hoping that Auburn would take Lanning from Oregon and put them in coaching search mode once again.

[SalUteopia]

I think Auburn botched the Kiffin hire, or maybe Kiffin just overplayed his hand. Freeze is a good coach, and I don’t think Auburn cares about his off-field issues. He has SEC HC experience, and they probably also factored his Bama wins. I also wanted Lanning to Auburn, but he was probably spooked by the Auburn boosters. I still think he will bolt to the SEC within the next few years.

On the coaching carousel topic, I’m very surprised by Fickell to Wisconsin. Mostly because he didn’t leave for ND last year. Also hearing rumors about Urban to Cincinnati. Then, Sanders being offered the Colorado job is just bizzare. I don’t think he takes it. Also, Nebraska may finally go bowling with Rhule at the helm now. 

[Utah]

Unpopular take coming:

Luke Fickell is the coach I would always use at a guy to go after before hiring Scalley. I think Utah is too good of a program to just hire Scalley. We can do better…maybe not better per se, but better in more proven. And the response I’d always get is, “He’d never leave Cincinnati, he would only go to Ohio State, blah, blah, blah.”

He just took the Wisconsin job, which is not a great job. They don’t spend on NIL, they don’t admit borderline kids, and you have to play tOSU, Penn St, Mich, etc. And the pay is suprisingly low. It’s not much better than what Cincinnati pays. Utah is a much better job, especially if the PAC-10 stays together, with a much easier path to the playoffs than Wisconsin. 

My point? Don’t think someone isn’t obtainable just because some knob on tv says they are. Coaches want to coach at elite institutions. And will take less money than you’d think to do so. And Utah is an elite institution. Great facilities, great pathway to the playoffs, great bowl tie ins, and an above average state for recruiting with California and Texas right there. 

This is a great job and to settle for Scalley just because he…knows the “culture”…that is risky. Go get the best coach you can. 

My calls when Whitt retires: Chris Petersen. David Shaw. Luke Fickell. Then the next round would be the Jeff Traylor, Jay Hill. Then I’d look at Tim Albin, Morgan Scalley, Andy Avalos. 

 

[UteThunder]

David Shaw???

The same one that went 4-8, 3-9, and 3-9 in his last 3 full seasons at Stanford? That David Shaw???