SUMITON—Coming off a loss to the Georgia Bulldogs last Saturday, and falling to 2-4 on the season, Hugh Freeze and his Auburn squad get a much-needed bye week to regroup before starting the second half of the season.
There’s been a plethora of things the Tigers have struggled with this season from turnovers, to third down execution and even special teams play. But ultimately it comes down to one thing for Freeze, and that’s consistency in the execution from both players and coaches. Too many times has there been miscommunication from sideline to the huddle, and too many times has there been explosive plays to be made that haven’t been.
“Consistency in our execution. I mean, I know that's easier - that's a lot to that,” Freeze said. “But whether it's, you are the edge of the defense in this call, then it is paramount that you play the edge, or this is the exact thing we expect to happen on a certain down and distance from a coach to a player. And when I say consistency, I mean it runs both ways from coaches and players."
“You know, we can talk about how young we are and all of that, where we're six games in, but it's our job to make sure our kids are consistent in whatever the execution of the calls are, and it just shows up over and over again on tape," he added.
There’s been a lot of talk surrounding Freeze and quarterback Payton Thorne after last week’s fourth-and-one attempt to start off the fourth quarter. Freeze noted after the game that it was a “dive left” call to Jarquez Hunter, however Thorne kept it around end and was swarmed up in the backfield, resulting in a turnover on downs. Whether Thorne changed the call on the field or not, it ultimately comes down to being inconsistent in the execution, from both players and coaches.
“That's a whole long story, for sure, but the execution of it wasn't proper,” Freeze said. “And you know, Payton thought he needed to handle an edge guy, and he kept the same run on. So, he's correct. He did not change the play, but that play is not designed to hit from the backside at all, and so he was thinking through things, and I understand his thinking. But we can't do that in that situation.”
Optimism is high surrounding the Tigers’ program despite the shaky start to the season. Coaches and players alike believe they can rebound and finish the season on a high note.
“This fanbase deserves a winner. I see the support and the resources we have here. And we're going to do it. We're going to get it done," offensive coordinator Derrick Nix said on "Tiger Talk" this week.
But they’ll have to begin to execute and close out games they should down the stretch. And it comes down to the coaches to make sure players are well-prepared for what’s to come.
“We’ve got to be harder on ourselves as coaches and expect more of our kids,” Freeze said. “And we can keep talking about how young we are and all of that, but at some point, we’ve got to look at ourselves and make sure we're getting taught the exact way that it's going to get executed, and you can show it on film that we've done it properly.”
To connect with the author of this story or to comment, email logan.fowler@1819News.com.
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