Auburn’s Hugh Freeze visits Brian Battie, reports the running back has a ‘great spirit’
Auburn head football coach Hugh Freeze was late for his time on the SEC Coaches Teleconference on Wednesday afternoon.
Scheduled to speak at 12:10 p.m., Freeze didn’t start taking questions until closer to 1 p.m. — but for good reason.
“As you see me being late for the call today, I was actually on plane back from Florida visiting Brian Battie and his family,” Freeze said.
Battie, a running back on Auburn’s roster, was recently released from a three-month stay at Sarasota Memorial Hospital after suffering a gunshot to the head during a May 18th shooting in his hometown of Sarasota, Florida.
And while Freeze said he would FaceTime either Battie or his mother on a weekly basis, his recent trip down to Florida was the first time Freeze had seen Battie since the shooting.
“We had two others scheduled and both times the weather wouldn’t let us fly,” Freeze explained. “Today was our first time and I got to spend the entire morning with him, up until his therapy began.”
Battie was released from the hospital on Saturday, according to a social media post from Battie’s mother, Adriene Battie.
In photos attached to the post, Battie was seen walking out of the hospital with the assistance of a cane and wearing an orange Auburn shirt.
“He’s in a battle,” Freeze said on Wednesday. “But obviously the battle now is just the recovery part and the rehab part and his brain starting to work back properly. Walking is still now a challenge for him, but he has a great spirit about him, wants to get up to Auburn to a game and it was really good to spend some time with him.”