ESPN's Paul Finebaum Thinks Hugh Freeze, Auburn 'Saved the Season'

Hugh Freeze and the Auburn Tigers earned a brief respite from the venom of ESPN's Paul Finebaum with a convincing win over the Kentucky Wildcats.

Hugh Freeze and the Auburn Tigers finally closed out a game they had in control with a 24-10 road victory over the Kentucky Wildcats. / Jordan Prather-Imagn Images

Heaven knows, had the Auburn Tigers coughed up another loss to the Kentucky Wildcats at the weekend, the ceiling would have almost certainly fallen in on head coach Hugh Freeze.

Always laying in wait for Freeze to slip up ESPN's designated pot-stirrer Paul Finebaum, and while his inevitable attack would have been one for the ages, the Tigers 24-10 over Kentucky defused his media time bomb.

"It felt like that win (over Kentucky) saved the season, because losing to a really down Kentucky team would have just finished everything off," Finebaum said during an appearance on McElroy and Cubelic in the Morning. "Right now, you can look at the schedule and find wins if you want, you can be pessimistic if you want, but there's nothing like just ending a losing streak and ending what felt like a hopeless feeling. And I think that's really significant."

As it transpired, Freeze showed how tough he was by recovering from a serious bout of food poisoning in time to scheme the Tigers to their well-earned maiden SEC victory this season.

Breathing a little life back into the Tigers season was absolutely critical for long term survival of Freeze as the head coach with the ambitious program.

So on Monday, Finebaum with his tongue only slightly in cheek, took the opportunity to give Freeze and Co. their flowers for facing down adversity and righting the listing Auburn ship ahead of their clash with the Vanderbilt Commodores on Saturday.

"Everyone's aware of what Kentucky has done, and that's not really the point," Finebaum insisted. "The fact you can go on the road, look like a real football team and not give games away is significant."

To Finebaum's point, it's something Auburn hadn't been able to accomplish in three-previous SEC games the Tigers were odds on favorite to win at some point during the contests.

"Now you can say we did this, we did that, we almost did that, and if the turnovers stop then maybe the season can still have some momentum. And that's really what you're talking about," Finebaum concluded.

Fighting off Finebaum has become a weekly game of cat and mouse for Freeze, but it's been largely a one-sided lost cause for the embattled coach, especially during what's been a turbulent campaign thus far. Finebaum doesn't need a reason to be critical at Auburn, he's been doing it for over 30 years, but Freeze has made it easy at times this season.

Therefore, it's a welcome relief that Finebaum is prepared to cut Freeze some slack,in the short term at least. By drawing a line in the sand against Kentucky, Finebaum is of the opinion that the veteran head coach can mount a revival of sorts down on the Plains.

In truth, even the most fervent Tigers fans out there are going to need a lot more than a win over the distinctly average looking Wildcats outfit to get overly excited about what Freeze can ultimately achieve over the remainder of this season. Most are just hoping Freeze can close out an impressive group of new recruits in December and hold on to young stars like Keldric Faulk, Cam Coleman, and Malcolm Simmons among others.

Alabama and Texas A&M to close out November will present major obstacles to the Tigers stacking enough wins to help facilitate a conciliatory bowl appearance - that's just the brutal reality to digest.

But there's light at the end of the tunnel, and Freeze will be working diligently to make sure it doesn't turn into a freight train.