Auburn football spring practice: 'Encouraged and optimistic'

AUBURN, Ala. – Before Hugh Freeze talked about Auburn football, he discussed three other Tiger programs Tuesday in his spring practice press conference.

He congratulated baseball coach Butch Thompson for win No. 300 at Auburn, he welcomed new women’s basketball coach Larry Vickers, and he congratulated Bruce Pearl and the men’s basketball program for advancing to the NCAA Tournament Sweet 16.

“I look forward to being there Friday night,” Freeze said of No. 1 overall seed Auburn’s 8:39 p.m. CT tipoff against Michigan in the South Regional semifinals in Atlanta’s State Farm Arena. “I wish they would have asked me about that tip time, that would have been a little easier on my Saturday morning practice. We’ll be there, cheering them on and excited for them. Proud for them and can’t wait to see them compete this weekend.”

Speaking of competing, Auburn participated in its first full-pads practice Tuesday morning, its fourth spring workout, with new quarterbacks Jackson Arnold, a junior, and freshman Deuce Knight receiving most of the photographer and videographer attention during the viewing period.

“He has a calm demeanor and confidence,” Freeze said of Arnold, a transfer from Oklahoma. “He understands ball and has a high football IQ. Arm strength is good. There's a reason he was Gatorade Player of the Year coming out of high school. I think he needed to start to regain some confidence, and I think he's doing that in a fast, fast pace. His decision making has been on point.

“I think he is throwing a very accurate ball. I'm really impressed by his pocket presence when the traffic is around him, his eyes stay downfield and he uses his legs when he needs to.

“I'm really excited and impressed by both him and Deuce. Deuce's maturity is way farther along than what I even knew, and he is hungry to learn and is always asking questions, always wanting to talk about how I improve this and that. He is an extremely hard worker that you have to run off the field from trying to throw too much. I'm really pleased by those guys right now."

A quarterback is only as effective as his receivers, a position Freeze compares favorably even to the future NFL standouts he coached at Ole Miss.

"They better make plays,” Freeze said. “If that room doesn't have success, we won't have success, but it is one of the more talented rooms I've ever been associated with. We are very much dependent on that room having success." 

Eric Singleton Jr. joins the receiving corps after consecutive 700-yard seasons at Georgia Tech and nine touchdown catches in his first two college football seasons.

“He makes defensive backs very uncomfortable,” Freeze said. “He’s got some straight-line speed along with some lateral quickness that’s unique and pretty elite. We can use him in a lot of different ways and think he’s added another dimension to our offense and is going to have a special year.”

With defensive coordinator DJ Durkin and offensive coordinator Derrick Nix both returning for their second seasons on the Plains, Auburn will benefit from that stability, Freeze says.

“The verbiage is all the same and the kids are more confident,” he said. “You can see it and feel it. Now it is a matter of us executing it at a high level. It’s not about doing more. We are talented enough that in certain spots I think less is more. Let’s execute those things very well and that is what the plan is for spring. Hopefully our execution and effort will stay at a high level.”

If it does, Freeze expects Auburn to take a step forward in his third season leading the program.

“I love our kids right now. I love our approach. I love our staff,” he said. “I think there is confidence in the building and it’s growing. Here’s the opportunities we have and let’s prepare for them and be confident because we have a talented squad in there. Do we need a little more help at a few positions? Yes. We will see if we can address that in the coming months. I’m really encouraged and optimistic by the confidence I see growing and obviously the deeper depth chart that we have.

“I think the cohesiveness of our staff, the culture that’s in the building and the depth chart has changed over two recruiting cycles. I wish there was some secret thing I could just flip and tell you that, but I really think the culture is just growing each year to being better.

“Everybody has pitched in to make a commitment to making sure that we continue to recruit at a level that matches rosters of the teams that are elite. I said it would take three recruiting classes. We've had two and I feel much better about what you see on the field.”

Jeff Shearer is a Senior Writer at AuburnTigers.com. Follow him on X: @jeff_shearer