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Hugh Freeze Blamed His QB For Going Rogue On Crucial 4th Down In Loss To Georgia

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Auburn head football coach Hugh Freeze on the field before a game.

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Hugh Freeze has been criticized this football season for placing blame on his Auburn players when breaking down crucial losses. He did so again after falling to Georgia on Saturday.

The head coach detailed a fourth-and-one call that came in the fourth quarter of action as the Tigers looked to close an 11-point gap.

Sitting near midfield, Auburn lined up in a shotgun formation before snapping the ball and watching QB Payton Thorne take off running. He’d be stopped well short of the line to gain, handing the ball back over to the Bulldogs with a turnover on downs.

Georgia would later score to put the game out of reach, making that fourth-down decision a talking point.

After the game, Hugh Freeze broke down what happened. He laid the blame on Thorne, saying that his signal caller went rogue with the play call.

“He absolutely didn’t go with what we had called. Payton’s a thinker… he decided to try and run some type of zone read. I think everybody was a little confused.”

It’s a trend that continues to rear its head this season on the Plains.

Time and time again, Freeze has singled out players for their miscues rather than taking responsibility. He says he’s just telling the listeners what actually happened. Others believe he’s throwing his team under the bus.

After a loss to Cal, he insinuated that his staff called a near-perfect game that went unexecuted. After losing to Arkansas, it was more of the same.

Auburn has struggled on the offensive side of the ball this season. The Tigers lead the SEC in giveaways and are averaging just 15.5 points per game against Power 5 foes.

Hugh Freeze seemingly refuses to accept blame for his part in the poor production. He’ll look to right the ship with the Tigers headed towards a bye week.