‘We’re Doing Things the Right Way’: Hugh Freeze, John Cohen Address Auburn Recruiting Concerns
LAKE MARTIN, Ala. — Auburn football recruiting is struggling at the moment. There’s no question about that.
In December of 2024, Auburn was Top 10 in the early 2026 team rankings. Fast forward to the start of June and the Tigers were still Top 15 nationally. But one month later as July begins, Auburn has fallen to No. 73 in the team rankings with only six commitments. It’s been a rough month to say the least, with de-commitments and priority targets going elsewhere.
On Wednesday, at a speaking engagement in Alexander City, Ala., head coach Hugh Freeze and Director of Athletics John Cohen met the media and addressed recruiting concerns. They offered some reasoning for the struggles, as well as optimism for what Auburn can still accomplish. Most of it centers around the new world of NIL, the new House settlement, and how Auburn is approaching discussing potential NIL offers with prospective student-athletes.
Hugh Freeze Addresses NIL, Compliance, and Recruiting Challenges
Coach Freeze outlined the complexities of navigating the current recruiting landscape, particularly concerning NIL.
Operating Within the New Settlement
“First of all, you want to make sure you are operating with what the settlement says. We think we are. You know, we’re going by what we believe to be the accurate interpretation of it. It’s not really to our advantage to what we’re doing right now, because others, I think, are operating in a different manner,” Freeze said.
“You have to operate within the manner of what the settlement really says and the interpretation that we’ve received, and that’s what we’re doing. We’re talking about a staff that’s put together two Top 10 classes, and here we are, you know, we’re really not in that realm right now.”
The Impact of the Revenue Sharing Cap
Freeze pointed towards the salary cap (revenue sharing cap), saying because of the new cap, the ability to simply stockpile high school talent is more difficult if most of a position group is returning the next season. With NIL guarantees in place, creating a log jam of talent won’t work because of the cap.
“You don’t have the means, so to speak, to go after the number of high school receivers that you would normally go after because you can’t really. On paper, we aren’t losing one, and I don’t want to lose one,” Freeze said.
Confidence in Auburn’s Approach
“I mean, it’s hard to feel great when you’re not one of the top ranked recruiting classes and I think Auburn should be. But I’m confident in our administration and the way that they lead and trust them immensely that we’re doing things the right way.”
Freeze continued, “And at the end of the day that’s really what we have to do, in my opinion, is we can’t put ourselves in jeopardy of. We’ve got great interpretations from our administration and our legal team on what the settlement really means and how we should operate, and that’s what we’re doing. And if others are operating in a manner not with that, I’m hopeful that they’ll be called out on that at some point.”
“It does seem kind of strange that we’re like some of the lowest range of numbers. I mean, we’re like, you know, really, really low compared to some. And I’m trying to figure that out, but I do think it will shake out in the long run, but it is complicated and hard to sit there and feel great about.”
Despite the perceived struggles, Freeze feels confident Auburn can still finish very strong when it’s all said and done. “But I feel great about our relationships and I feel great about Auburn, and I know the families know that. And I do think just after we win games this fall, which I’m confident we will, I think it’ll all kind of shake itself out.”
Retaining Current Roster is Key
“Do I think we will (have a Top 10 class) in in December? I do. I believe that wholeheartedly. We had over 50 visits in June, and I thought most families felt like, man, this is a great place to be, but we’ve got to figure all this other out,” Freeze said.
“And I know John’s going to talk more in depth about the parameters to which we’re operating, but it is more challenging, for sure. The main thing to me is retaining our current roster and then filling the gaps with obviously elite talent from whether it’s the portal or high school recruiting. But retaining that roster does affect the way you approach recruiting and that’s new. That used to not be the case. I mean, you were going to sign some kids and figure out the numbers on the back end, but you can’t do that when you have to be under the revenue sharing cap.”
John Cohen on Auburn’s Prudent Approach to NIL Offers
Following Freeze’s comments, John Cohen stepped in to answer some questions. The first question asked was how confident he felt in how Auburn was interpreting new rules around NIL. Smiling, Cohen delivered remarks that displayed confidence in how the administration was approaching everything.
The Significance of August 1st for NIL Offers
The main point: August 1 is the first day recruits can receive written NIL offers for what they can expect to earn at a specific college. Until then, it’s all verbal offers. Cohen and Auburn believe when some programs begin to have to put their money where their mouth is, the written offers might not match the verbal offers.
There are other complexities and nuances, but the gist is, Freeze, Cohen and Auburn firmly believe they are attacking recruiting with prudence, and do not view their plan as a gamble by any means.
“We feel like August 1st is a big day coming up. For those of you who aren’t aware, and I’m sure you are aware, August 1st is the first day that a prospective student-athlete can receive an offer on paper. Okay, that’s a big day. It’s not rumor, it’s not innuendo, it’s not this person says this. It’s offer on paper. We’re a good distance away from August 1st, and we’re a really good distance away from December,” Cohen said.
Navigating the New Landscape of Player Compensation
“And we’re also operating, as you guys have been discussing, in a brand new landscape, a landscape in which you bring in somebody at a certain offer and guess what? The person at that position and their agents are going to look at a coaching staff and a GM and say, well, ‘I’m the starter at that position and that’s not my number.’ There’s some real things that are about to take place.”
“There’s some really new things on the horizon that have never happened before. And I’m here to tell you we’re going to do this the right way. We’re going to do it just like Coach Freeze just mentioned. We’re going to be honest, we’re going to be forthright and we’re looking very much forward to August 1st and dates beyond.”
Auburn’s Unwavering Commitment to Doing Things “The Right Way”
The million-dollar question is, what happens if the way Auburn administration is approaching things is wrong? What if other schools’ approach is right? Cohen didn’t back down from their stance.
“We’re going to cross that mountain when we get there. But just to be clear now, if there’s an offer in place, that is a third party offer from NIL Go, it has to count against the cap,” Cohen said.
“Let me illustrate. You have an $800,000 offer and school says we’re going to give you $400,000 in revenue share and we’re going to give you $400,000 through a third party. I’m not 100% sure that everybody in this country is operating under that premise, which is reality. And if at any point in time they go over that rev share number, which can reflect both the third party offer and the rev share offer, we’ve been told there’s some pretty harsh penalties that come with that.”
“We at Auburn are going to take that very seriously, but we’re still going to win recruiting battles. We’re going to do it the right way. I can’t speak for the rest of the recruiting world, but I can tell you this. Auburn’s going to do it the right way.”
