AUBURN, AL - SEPTEMBER 16 - during the game between the Auburn Tigers and the Samford Bulldogs at Jordan-Hare Stadium in Auburn, AL on Saturday, Sept. 16, 2023. Photo by 3002802/Auburn Tigers
The 2024 season marks Hugh Freeze’s second year as Auburn football’s head coach. In 2023, the Tigers ended with a 6-7 record, falling short in the Music City Bowl and finishing unranked for the fourth consecutive year. Freeze aims to improve the team’s performance, possibly with the assistance of their transfer portal recruits.
However, Freeze’s efforts to rebuild Auburn’s football program through the transfer portal seem limited. Auburn’s 2024 transfer portal winter cycle ranks 39th nationally, with nine incoming commits and 14 outgoing transfers, predominantly three-star recruits and only one four-star.
This transfer class pales in comparison to Auburn’s 2023 cohort, acquired during Freeze’s inaugural year. Despite facing challenges like a coaching change, Freeze secured 20 incoming transfers, including a substantial number of four-star players, the most among the top 50.
Typically, coaches engage less with the transfer portal as their tenure progresses. Yet, in Freeze’s second year, crucial rebuilding phases may still necessitate portal players. However, with fewer incoming transfers this season, Freeze seems to prioritize addressing immediate team needs rather than extensively utilizing the portal.
Among the nine transfers, four bolster the offense (two wide receivers, one tight end, one offensive tackle), while five strengthen the defense (one linebacker, one defensive lineman, one safety, one cornerback). Despite the modest numbers, Auburn earns recognition on The Athletic’s Manny Navarro’s SEC transfer portal “winners list,” largely due to players like Robert Lewis from Georgia State.
