Hugh Freeze’s second year at the helm for the Auburn Tigers was underwhelming, to say the least.

The Tigers finished the 2024 season with a meager 5-7 record, including a brutal 2-6 mark in SEC play.

Expectations certainly seemed curbed, considering the Tigers were projected to finish tenth in the SEC preseason media, yet they still underperformed, finishing the conference season in 14th place.

Can Freeze right the ship in “year three” and lead Auburn back to a bowl game?

Find all of the Auburn football futures odds listed below with an analysis of each line to see our thoughts along with oddsmakers’ expectations.

Auburn football futures odds

*Odds courtesy of FanDuel as of 4/8

• Over/Under 7.5 wins: Over -148/Under +120
• To win the SEC: +3000
• To win national title: +6000

Over/Under 7.5 wins

Oddsmakers have Freeze and the Tigers taking a significant leap forward this season, projecting them to finish with eight wins in one of the best conferences in college football.

However, if you look at Auburn’s returning talent (65%), which ranks 22nd via ESPN, it makes sense why Auburn is expected to improve.

In addition to the Tigers’ impressive returning class, they also have an eye-popping 16 incoming transfers from the portal, six of whom are ranked as 4-star players.

Then, there’s the matter of Auburn’s recruiting class, which also sits at eighth nationally, according to 247sports. The Tigers snatched one 5-star player and 17 4-star recruits, rounding out a near-top-five class in the country.

So, let’s take a quick look at Auburn’s schedule and see whether eight wins is realistic, or if it will fall short.

• August 29: @ Baylor
• September 6: vs. Ball State
• September 13: vs. South Alabama
• September 20: @ Oklahoma
• September 27: @ Texas A&M
• October 11: vs. Georgia
• October 18: vs. Missouri
• October 25: @ Arkansas
• November 1: vs. Kentucky
• November 8: @ Vanderbilt
• November 22: vs. Mercer
• November 29: vs. Alabama

Games against Ball State (home), South Alabama (home), and Mercer (home) should be straightforward.

Home matchups versus Kentucky and Missouri, as well as road bouts against Vanderbilt and Arkansas should not be too terribly challenging, either, as those four SEC teams are all projected to be bottom of the barrel in the conference.

Two key swing games for Auburn’s win total will be road games Baylor and Oklahoma.

If the Tigers can snag one of those two games, then eight wins could certainly be within reach.

Auburn odds to win the SEC

Winning the SEC is a stretch for the Auburn Tigers.

Still, I think the Tigers could have one of those surprising seasons, given their overall returning talent level and how hard they hit the transfer portal and recruiting trail.

Auburn’s upside will largely be determined by what kind of play it can get at the quarterback position.

For example, last season, former Oklahoma quarterback Jackson Arnold had the third-lowest pass grade (PFF) in the country (50% minimum dropbacks of max), so many are skeptical of his potential impact for Auburn.

However, context is important in this case, as Oklahoma was 108th in pass block grade (PFF), and the Sooners receivers had the second-worst receiving grade nationally.

Arnold will immediately step into one of the more optimal situations for a quarterback, as the Tigers added Horatio Fields and Eric Singleton Jr, the top-rated wide receiver transfer, in the portal.

Add in uber-talented returners, Cam Coleman, one of the nation’s most elite receiving threats, and Malcolm Simmons, and Auburn has a case for having one of the best wide receiver rooms nationally.

Then, the Tigers also took care of another major need on their O-line by snagging LT Xavier Chaplin, one of the best linemen in the portal.

Still, it would be an exceptional feat and one of the more surprising happenings in recent college football history for the Tigers to win the SEC.

Auburn’s odds to win National Championship

• DraftKings Sportsbook: +8000
• Caesars Sportsbook: +7000
• BetMGM Sportsbook: +6600
• Bet365 Sportsbook: +6500
• Fanatics Sportsbook: +6500
• FanDuel Sportsbook: +6000

There is a reason that bettors can lock in 80-1 odds on the Auburn Tigers to win the national championship: it is a highly improbable outcome.

For Auburn to make a run at a national championship, it has to get into the College Football Playoffs. In order to do that, it would have to rattle off a 10-2 record or, at worst, a 9-3 record with a few close losses to the likes of Georgia, Alabama, and Texas A&M on the road.

The recent CFP expansion helps Auburn slightly; however, I’m far from convinced that Arnold’s change of scenery and situation can propel this offense to championship-level heights.

Additionally, the Tigers’ defense has to take a massive leap forward if this team wants to be on the level of a Georgia or Alabama.

And that is exceptionally difficult to see happening.

If a bettor feels confident enough in Auburn to do the seemingly impossible, though, they could bet $10 on the Tigers at +8000 on DraftKings and win $800 if the Tigers pull it off.