New Auburn head coach Hugh Freeze's contract details released

Auburn is getting Freeze at a decent price.

Lance Dawe | Nov 28, 2022

New Auburn head coach Hugh Freeze's contract details released /

In this story:

Auburn Tigers

Details surrounding new Auburn head coach Hugh Freeze's contract have officially been released.

According to ESPN's Pete Thamel, Hugh Freeze's deal with Auburn is six years, at an average of $6.5 million per year. Auburn was paying former head coach Bryan Harsin $5.25 million per year.

Multiple reports have mentioned that Auburn will be paying Liberty's buyout of $3 million dollars.

Freeze, 53, has spent the last four seasons as head coach at Liberty, compiling a 34-14 record, including three bowl appearances and a 10-1 season in 2020. From 2012-2016, he was head coach at Ole Miss but was forced to resign after recruiting and academic violations levied against both him and former Rebels coach Houston Nutt. Prior to having 27 wins vacated, Freeze's on-field record at Ole Miss was 39-25.

Auburn has now hired three straight coaches who have one year of experience at Arkansas State (Gus Malzahn, Bryan Harsin being the other two). In fact, the collective of Freeze, Malzahn and Harsin coached in back-to-back-to-back seasons with the Red Wolves from 2011-2013.

Freeze helped Liberty smoothly transition from the FCS level, taking over the job for Turner Gill following the Flames' inaugural season as an FBS program in 2018. Under Freeze, Liberty posted a 10-1 record in 2020, arguably their best season in program history and tying the most wins in a single season (2008).

Liberty started the 2022 season off 8-1 - including a win over Arkansas - but closed the regular season on a three-game losing streak to UConn (one of the worst programs in FBS), Virginia Tech (who is in the midst of their worst season since 1988), and New Mexico State.

Related stories