Hugh Freeze isn’t a fan of lists, particularly the ones that come across his desk at Auburn’s new football complex.

Auburn’s first-year coach hasn’t been in his office much since taking over the program at the end of November — the last two months have been consumed by a flurry of recruiting, traveling and staff assembly — but this week he finally got a chance to settle into his new digs as the Tigers turn their attention to preparation for spring practices, which begin Feb. 27. With plenty still to do between now and then, the last thing Freeze wants is a distraction. And to him, that’s what the lists that come his way are representative of.

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“If you’re showing up on a lot of lists, it’s not a good sign,” Freeze said Thursday. “That distracts me, and I don’t care for it very much at all.”

The lists—which Freeze refers to as his “distraction lists” — are ultimately about accountability within the program. Players’ names will appear on a list, prepared by other staffers within the building, for various reasons — parking tickets, academic issues and any other infraction or slip-up that can cause disruption or concern.

It’s why Freeze hates to see them come across his desk at any point; it just creates one more thing to worry about, and as it stands, the Tigers’ new coach doesn’t have time to spare with a seemingly endless list of things to accomplish this offseason. Freeze made clear that there haven’t been an abundance of names appear on those lists to this point, and he hopes to keep it that way as attention is turned to winter workouts and the lead-up to spring practice.

“I don’t understand, man,” Freeze said. “I don’t understand how hard it is to park in the right spot, or to be on time. And I’m not saying that ours are dealing with that a lot right now, but I’d rather it be zero, truthfully.”

Especially when Freeze has yet to have an opportunity to sit down with every player for individual meetings and get to know them. His last two months have been a nonstop marathon of recruiting—the early signing period, the first transfer portal window, making inroads with high school programs throughout the state and region, hosting junior day on campus last weekend—and putting together his first staff. Wednesday was his first full day in his office since taking the job, and he hopes to meet one-on-one with players next week as he better familiarizes himself with the roster he inherited as spring practice rapidly approaches.

“I’m just listening and watching but looking forward to getting to know our team, truthfully,” Freeze said. “It’s one of the most uncomfortable things about transition right now, and the way you have to recruit is you don’t get to know your guys, so I’m excited to get to know them. Next week will be a big week for that.”

As Freeze gets to know his players better, though, they’ll likewise get to know the first-year coach — and certainly his disdain for “distraction lists” — as he tries to rebuild a program that went 11-14 the last two years and implement his vision and the way to go about instilling it.

“I just think they’ve got to understand the whole makeup of what it is,” Freeze said. “You’re going to get coached hard, but that doesn’t mean we don’t believe in you. And you can’t blink when something negative happens. We’ve got to play the next play. So again, all of this talk that I’m doing — is it total reality? I don’t know, because I haven’t coached them a single rep yet. But I think what I’m saying to them is truth.

“And they’ve been they’ve been incredible to visit with. And I’m being very honest with them, and they’re being honest with me, and I’m excited about spring ball with them.”

Tom Green is an Auburn beat reporter for Alabama Media Group. Follow him on Twitter @Tomas_Verde.