Tommy Tuberville wants to be the next governor of Alabama. He’s already thrown his MAGA hat into the ring, which means he will be the next governor of Alabama. That’s the way politics is played around here.

The Democratic candidate to be named later for the state’s highest office in 2026 will be the equivalent of a non-conference cupcake in the same field as the current U.S. senator. Mike Shula had a better chance to beat Tuberville in an Iron Bowl.

Shula and Alabama went 0-4 against Tuberville and Auburn from 2003-06, but the Tigers didn’t win a single one of those games by more than 10 points. It’ll be an upset if next year’s gubernatorial vote is that close.

That said, our next governor already is failing one of his most well-known constituents on a statewide issue of supreme importance that Tuberville fully understands. Where is the former Auburn football coach when the current Auburn coach needs him most?

This has been the summer of Hugh Freeze’s discontent. In the eyes of his critics, he’s playing too much golf and landing too few commitments after losing too many games during his first two seasons. The latest shot across his bow came from, of all places, Golf Digest.

The magazine that good-naturedly declared the undefeated 2004 Auburn football team national champions — at coach Tuberville’s humorous request — posted a story on its website Saturday under this headline: “Auburn football coach Hugh Freeze plays a lot of golf, leading to speculation that it is hurting recruiting efforts.”

The article, barely longer than the headline, cites the enterprising June 24 piece by al.com‘s Matt Stahl, which documented that Freeze does indeed play a lot of golf. That was true at Freeze’s previous job at Liberty, as Auburn knew, and it has remained true since he unpacked his clubs in the Loveliest Village.

If there is anyone on God’s well-manicured green earth who has walked in Freeze’s shoes 18 holes at a time, it’s Tuberville. Never known as a grinder as a football coach, he enjoyed his down time and spent much of it working on his golf swing.

Of all the concerns about Tuberville during his solid decade as the Auburn head coach, I don’t recall the number of rounds he played or the relatively high quality of his game being prominent among them. It helped that he led the Tigers to two SEC West titles, one SEC championship in that undefeated 2004 season and six straight wins over Alabama.

All of which makes Tuberville the perfect person to stand up and speak up for Freeze while so many others are questioning him. The senator could go on Fox News, the favorite TV channel of current and former Auburn coaches in multiple sports, and make a case for the importance of recharging your batteries and renewing your spirit with a 9-iron in your hands.

Tuberville could cite his favorite president, Donald Trump, and his old coaching and golfing rival, Steve Spurrier, as examples of people in high places that took every opportunity to hit the links.

Freeze certainly could use the encouragement if not a full-on endorsement.

As of Sunday afternoon, 247Sports ranked Auburn’s 2026 recruiting class – with seven commitments, none of them in the top 100 – at No. 86 in the nation. The raw number is surprising enough, especially since Freeze’s first two full-year Auburn classes finished No. 10 in 2024 and No. 8 in 2025. The comparisons are downright shocking.

Start with the in-state rivalry. Alabama’s class at No. 5 is ranked 81 spots higher than Auburn’s. Don’t recall recruiting misfit Bryan Harsin ever falling that far behind recruiting master Nick Saban, at least by the numbers. Kalen DeBoer has nuked the “Husky Harsin” narrative, landing pledges from almost as many five-star prospects as Freeze has total commitments.

There are 16 SEC teams. Auburn’s current class is ranked 16th among them. There are 68 power conference teams, 67 in the SEC (16), Big Ten (18), ACC (17) and Big 12 (16) plus Notre Dame. Auburn’s current class is ranked 67th among those 68 teams. Colorado is the only power conference team ranked behind Auburn at No. 101. Makes you wonder about the loud voices that wanted Deion Sanders to take over on the Plains because he allegedly would have cleaned up in recruiting there.

Freeze and Auburn AD John Cohen tried to explain the current recruiting situation at an event last week in Alexander City. They said, in moving forward in this uncertain revenue-sharing era, they’re doing things “the right way” with their pragmatic approach, mindful that written offers to high school seniors can’t be extended until Aug. 1 nor inked until the December signing period.

That explanation implies that other schools are doing things the wrong way, that Auburn’s 2026 class will make a different statement by December and that recruiting rankings are as fleeting as golf handicaps.

No one knows this territory better than Tuberville. If he wants to be a champion for the people of Alabama on a micro level, there’s no better place to start than with a public defense of one of the state’s most prominent citizens. Today’s a great day to fire off a few words in support of Hugh Freeze.