Auburn head coach Hugh Freeze was forced to “put his foot down” head of the Tigers’ home game against Ole Miss on Oct. 21.

Up to that point, Auburn’s offense looked all but capable of hanging in the SEC.

In the Tigers’ SEC opener against Texas A&M, Auburn’s offense never found the endzone and tallied just 200 yards of total offense, of which a measly 56 came through the air.

As the season unfolded, things were left unchanged.

Auburn utilized a funky two-quarterback rotation with Payton Thorne and Robby Ashford and the passing game never improved. At the conclusion of the 2023 season, Auburn’s offense finished ranked 121st in passing offense — leaving just nine teams in the FBS with a worse showing.

“Any time you’re trying to mesh things together, you’re always going to come with some hurdles in there,” Montgomery said Dec. 29 when asked about merging his offense with Freeze, who hired an offensive coordinator largely in part to free himself up for recruiting efforts.

But for Freeze, who is oft regarded for his explosive offenses, taking the backseat just to watch Auburn’s offense sputter was tough. And as evident by Friday’s news of Montgomery’s firing, Freeze had seen enough.

“I informed Philip today he would not be retained as our offensive coordinator,” Freeze said in a statement released Friday. “Philip is a good coach and a good man. Decisions like this are never easy, however, I decided this is best for our program moving forward. I’m appreciative of his efforts this past year and wish him nothing but the best.”

The writing was on the wall, hence Freeze feeling the need to “put his foot down” back in October.

Now what?

How much does Auburn owe Montgomery?

Montgomery joined Freeze’s inaugural staff in December of 2022 after serving as Tulsa’s head coach for eight seasons.

When Montgomery arrived to The Plains, he inked a contract with terms that ran from Dec. 12, 2022 to Jan. 31, 2026 and would pay him $1 million annually. Stipulations of his contract state he is due 100% of the money remaining on his deal.

Montgomery was the only assistant on Freeze’s staff whose deal did not feature a mitigation clause to offset the buyout.

Will Montgomery’s firing have any effect on recruiting?

Fortunately for Auburn, which continues to assert itself as a threat on the recruiting trail, Montgomery’s departure shouldn’t have much of an effect — if any at all — on the Tigers’ recruiting efforts as the former offensive coordinator isn’t regarded as much of a recruiter.

During his brief stint on The Plains, the only recruit Montgomery is credited as being the primary recruiter for is 4-star quarterback signee Walker White. Montgomery, then the head coach at Tulsa, was one of the first to offer White.

However, having already signed his letter of intent on Dec. 20, White is locked in with the Tigers and is set to arrive to campus on Jan. 8.

Now at a fork in the road, what will Freeze do?

Way back in July, minutes before Freeze took the podium at SEC Media Days, he was asked by reporters if he planned to be Auburn’s primary play caller.

“Philip was called and hired to call the plays, and that’s what we’re gonna do,” Freeze said. “But there’s also gonna be suggestions from a lot of other people, including me. And he knows that. But he’s challenged with calling them.”

Later in the season, however, Freeze admitted struggling with giving up play-calling duties.

“Boy, this is something I’m struggling with. That’s all I probably need to say. This is new for me,” Freeze said of taking backseat to Montgomery after the abysmal showing at Texas A&M. “It’s a struggle for me. I’ve confessed that to everyone in the building.”

The good news is Freeze spent his time away from the offensive gameplan wisely as he and the Tigers secured a top-10 recruiting class.

But now, Freeze is left with a choice: Does he take the reins of Auburn’s offense in 2024? Or does he look to hire another offensive coordinator?

If the latter, here are a few names to know.