Hugh Freeze has long been known as an offensive coach, but in his two years at Auburn, that reputation has slipped a little bit.

Auburn’s offense was one of the worst in the SEC in 2023, highlighted by poor quarterback play and a lack of wide receiver talent. In 2024, the talent at receiver improved, but shaky quarterback play and turnovers defined another disappointing season.

Going into the 2025 season, Auburn has on paper, its most talented roster of Freeze’s tenure. Whether or not the offense increases its production to match that talent remains to be seen.

In an episode of David Pollack’s “See Ball Get Ball” podcast, Freeze talked about how he likes to run offense, referencing examples from earlier in his career to point out when it’s at its best.

“I’m not a big concept guy. I know it’s good, but that ball needs to come out pretty fast in this league,” Freeze said. “The D-line is just better athletes than most O-lines…

“I’ve been fortunate to win 10 football games at four different universities and those years that we did that, we were RPO, quick game, seven-man protection shots and run the football.”

One example Freeze referenced was when he was the head coach at Ole Miss and led the Rebels to back-to-back wins against Alabama in 2014 and 2015.

“That second year we beat Alabama in their stadium, I called five drop back passes that game,” Freeze said. “I think we still threw for like 368, but that’s when I think we’re our best when we can operate in that manner and I think [Jackson Arnold] has that capacity for us.”

Peter Rauterkus covers Auburn sports for AL.com. You can follow him on X at @peter_rauterkus or email him at [email protected]m