Everything Auburn Head Coach Hugh Freeze Said After Iron Bowl Loss to Alabama

The Tigers head coach spoke about his team's performance in the postgame press conference.

Auburn Tigers head coach Hugh Freeze walks off the field after the game as Auburn Tigers take on Alabama Crimson Tide at Bryant-Denny Stadium in Tuscaloosa, Ala., on Saturday, Nov. 30, 2024. Alabama Crimson Tide defeated Auburn Tigers 28-14. / Jake Crandall/ Advertiser / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

TUSCALOOSA, Ala.— Auburn fell to No. 13 Alabama 28-14 on the road in the 89th Iron Bowl on Saturday evening.

Following the game's conclusion, Tigers head coach Hugh Freeze spoke about his team's performance during the postgame press conference.

Here's a full transcript of what Freeze said.

Opening Statement:

"Obviously, disappointing tonight. Disappointing season. The ones who've played their last game of eligibility in college football, we had some special, special young men in that group. I hate to see them hurt and not go out on a higher note. "Obviously, last week, Jordan-Hare was fun for them and good for them, but certainly these Iron Bowl experiences are special. Hate to see them hurting the way they are currently. I just want them to know — I hope that they can understand — what they went through and how they handled it, the adversity and the disappointments, was a testimony to their character; how they continued to fight and to what they showed this young group of kids we have; how to handle things when they don't go your way. They were very special to us in that regard, and the way they continued to fight. "Again, disappointing we get to end the season like we did. Lot to build on, for sure, with those young guys and the class that we can sign next week. Nonetheless, that hurt is still there."

On red zone struggles:

"Could have been a different game, for sure. You put those in the end zone when we had the opportunity three times in the first half, I believe. We had Dre open, just missed him, on one of those. I regret calling the tempo play on third-and-1. Wish I'd have slowed it down. There was enough time, and I still could have held my timeout and got us into something that was probably better, like the two-point play we hit later on. But I think the difference in the game was their third-down conversions. Think at one time, they were, like, eight-of-11 or something, I don't know what it ended up (12-of-18). I think the difference in the game was their ability to stay on the field on third down, and us not being able to score touchdowns in the red zone."

On who called the plays:

"Calling plays is always a combination, and I called the tempo play. Trick play, obviously we didn't coach it well enough. There was a post safety there, so you don't throw that. You throw the screen back to Payton. And I think it would've had a shot to have a pretty big play, but obviously, we didn't coach Jarquez well enough on that."

On the third-down issues:

"It wore on us, I really think, the last two weeks. And we were so thin. I mean, we're thin. And you could tell. We looked gassed at times. And you knew how good Milroe was and what he could do with his feet and his arm. It just multiplies things when you can't — and some of them were third-and-longs —get off the field. Fatigue, and it just wears on you and obviously limits the possessions we have with opportunities, too."

On cornerback Jay Crawford's injury:

"Haven't got the report, but we were already very thin at that spot, and it hurt losing him."

On not cashing in off turnovers:

"Very frustrating. That's what will sit in your stomach, that we didn't score and the opportunities we had. A few calls here and there, you know. The trick play. The third-and-one tempo. You will second-guess yourself all the time on things like that, because we could've made that 28-21 there. Would've loved to have seen what would've happened. Certainly not saying it would've won the game, but it would've made it interesting, for sure."

On recruiting and the transfer portal:

"We're going to try to sign a top, best high school class we can first next Wednesday. It's very hard to answer that because as you know, you have no idea what your roster will look like a week from now, so it's kind of difficult to answer. But the first priority is let's get this signing class in next Wednesday, and we'll go from there on what's next."

On his favorite moments of a disappointing season:

"The relationships, first, that grew throughout the season. The favorite is obviously the seniors' last game in Jordan-Hare. Seeing the joy that they had from that experience was pretty special."

On the difficulty of establishing the run:

"I'm anxious to see the film. They played a seventh guy pretty close. I'm going to have to watch the film. They either won in some one-on-ones or some double teams. They did a really nice job up front, for sure."

On what Freeze expects on signing day:

"It's hard to say. You feel optimistic about everything we've done, but how in the heck do you really know in today's times? We've just got to work to the end. The good thing is there's a portal that opens, too, if you don't get all the ones that you wanted. I've said I wanted to build through high school. I feel pretty good about most of our relationships, but, again, you never really know."

On the program's future:

"We think we're improving with a lot of young kids that are very talented. Again, you've got to go recruit. I've said it before: Some of the teams we're playing, and in this particular game, they've had top-5 recruiting classes a lot of straight years. We've had one top-10 class and hopefully we're getting ready to have a second. Nobody really wants to hear that, but I know it's true. At the same time, we had chances to win games with who we are. That's the frustrating part for everyone, me included."

On having a losing season:

"I'd say humbling, frustrating, some of those words. I'm big on not getting your identity from a scoreboard, and I want our players to understand that because they get talked about. I sign up for it. I just don't think 20 years from now they're going to think about necessarily the wins and losses that we had, and I know that's not the world we live in. You guys get paid to cover us, and you get paid to write the good, that bad and everything in between. Ultimately, I hope they become true Auburn men in life, first and foremost. And I know that lessons like we learned this year can help with that because life's not fair sometimes and it hits you hard. We've had some experiences with that. You can say it's humbling and frustrating."

On former Auburn running back Brian Battie being at the game:

"It was kind of a surprise to the team. I talked to his mom a week or so ago. She asked what I thought about it. Obviously, we welcomed him as long as they felt OK about it. It was a joy to have him, see him walking. Last time I saw him, that was a challenge for him. That's a victory in his life, for sure. It was good to have him with us."