AUBURN—With Auburn heading into its rivalry matchup with the Georgia Bulldogs in the Deep South’s Oldest Rivalry, Hugh Freeze knows going into it just what it means to the fanbases of the respective squads.
During his time at Ole Miss, and in his inaugural season at Auburn, Freeze coached in some of the SEC’s biggest rivalries with the Egg Bowl and the Iron Bowl. He finished his time out at Ole Miss going 3-2 against in-state rival Mississippi State.
“There’s so much history in between whatever teams you’re referring to, like those three games in the Egg Bowl or the Iron Bowl,” Freeze said on the rivalries. “You know, both are in-state. So, there’s the year-round banner that goes on between those fan bases and friends, and you see each other all the time in every town. So, it just has such a rich history.”
Freeze got a taste of just how big the Iron Bowl is a year ago, in a thriller until the end. He was a muffed punt and a 4th-and-31 stop away from securing his first win over Alabama as head coach at Auburn, his third all-time victory over Nick Saban.
Now in year two at Auburn, Freeze is sandwiched in between his two biggest rivals in Alabama and Georgia, and both just so happen to be ranked in the top five - combining to win eight of the last 15 national titles.
The 129th meeting between Auburn and Georgia will take place in Athens on Saturday. The Bulldogs lead the series 64-56-8 and Auburn hasn’t seen a win in Sanford Stadium since 2005.
“Obviously, we’re not in the same state, but it’s the oldest South’s rivalry and I think it’s made up of the same thing,” Freeze said. “There’s so much pride in both schools, by the fanbases, supporters, administrators, of students and alumni, and I'm quite certain they’re around each other - similar to the in-state - because we’re so close that passion bleeds into this game, for sure.”
After a rough start to the season and a daunting task ahead of him on Saturday, Freeze will look for his team to rebound against the No. 5 team in the country in search of his first conference win this season.
“We’ve had some very physical games. Last week was extremely physical. So, we’ve got some sore guys, but we’ve got to get ready for one of the most physical games on our schedule,” he added.
Kickoff for Saturday is set for 2:30 CT on ABC.
To connect with the author of this story or to comment, email logan.fowler@1819News.com.
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