When Kenyatta Watson mentioned goodbye to Georgia Tech to affix Hugh Freeze and Co. in February earlier this yr, he knew precisely what he was signing up for! Within the months that adopted, the methods of Auburn not solely taught Watson what it was wish to be part of the Tigers’ squad but in addition made an enormous room for respect in his coronary heart for Coach Freeze, primarily due to the transparency he adopted together with his gamers. Now all that was left was for Freeze’s methods to yield some large outcomes this season, shattering their streak of common information from the earlier years.
All Watson wanted to reference to translate the emotion via was one sentence from Deion Sanders. “We coming,” he proudly mentioned, setting off the tone straight for Auburn this season. The phrase from Deion Sanders is slowly gaining the status as the final word comeback mantra within the CFB world with an increasing number of individuals utilizing it. Initially designed for CU, now Auburn has additionally joined in Sanders‘ “We coming,” revolution to mark the start of renewed hopes for the season.
“I’mma steal Deion Sanders’ quote: “We coming.”..You may really feel it…And from watching how Coach [Hugh] Freeze has kinda flipped the tradition…Everyone is rolling in the identical route, man. It’s like scary.” – @therealkwat
Auburn’s Kenyatta Watson on how shut the Tigers are to… pic.twitter.com/rCEerwUMol
— Carl Reed Jr. (@CoachReedLive) Might 25, 2024
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After Gus Malzahn left Auburn in 2020, this system has been struggling to maintain up with its successful status. A number of coaches got here and tried their hand, all they have been in a position to yield was a median rating with about 5-6 wins and about 7 losses. When Bryan Harsin dealt with the top teaching reins for 2021-2022, the Tigers had a 6-7 report. Later, when Cadillac Williams grew to become the top coach for simply the 2022 yr, their wins dropped right down to 5-7.
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It was in 2023 that Coach Freeze joined Auburn, whereas he might restore their common of 6-7 the earlier yr. It was simply his first yr. The yr he took to assemble his methods at Auburn, construct a employees per him, and mould the student-athletes per his coaching model. Now that he has every little thing in place, his new recruiting director believes they too are “coming” for the scoreboard, together with Deion Sanders’ CU, this season.
“Coach [Hugh] Freeze has kinda flipped the tradition simply from being within the employees conferences with the unbelievable those that I’ve labored with in Auburn,” Auburn’s director of recruiting analysis and technique confessed concerning the methods coach Freeze has developed throughout his interview with 247 Sports activities Unfiltered. “Everyone is like entering into the identical route man, it’s scary,” Kenyatta Watson added since he knew that Freeze wasn’t revolutionizing Auburn by simply altering the on-field methods.
Auburn and Coach Freeze’s NIL methods
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The Tiger group is nicely conscious that they gained’t be capable of revolutionize Auburn by making modifications in simply the best way they prepare their athletes. With the quickly altering NCAA landscapes, Freeze knew he would want to amend how he offers with NIL as nicely to cut back the probabilities of tussles with gamers afterward. The prospect of constructing an NIL centered-program did sound titillating to Freeze however he knew higher than to present in to the temptation. He fairly adopted his core values in Auburn that Watson set straight in his interview.
“The largest factor that I respect essentially the most about Coach Freeze is he at all times talks to us about talking the reality. Not lie to those children and never promoting them false hope and dream even when you could have the NIL tops arising,” Kenyatta Watson confessed, expressing the immense respect he holds for the Auburn HC for staying true to his values. Freeze’s promoting realism would possibly grow to be his largest energy this season. The gamers that might be part of Auburn wouldn’t solely be bonding over the transparency there but in addition over the potential for Auburn rising within the league for its gamers to generate extra scope for larger desires, which is best NIL cash.