After the dust settled from Auburn’s 17-7 loss to the Vanderbilt Commodores, the situation might have appeared even bleaker than it initially seemed.
Vanderbilt managed to keep Auburn scoreless in three out of four quarters on Saturday night, leading to the Tigers’ sixth loss of the season, a result that almost felt inevitable.
Auburn’s momentum from the previous week’s win at Kentucky quickly vanished, as poor clock management and aimless play-calling left the team back in turmoil. What seemed promising turned chaotic, especially when running back Jarquez Hunter—who ran for 278 yards the previous week—had only two carries in the entire second half. Hunter’s total of 12 carries highlights a team that clearly lacks a clear offensive identity.
Predictably, Vanderbilt focused heavily on stopping Auburn’s ground game. “I thought Vandy did a good job,” head coach Hugh Freeze acknowledged after the 17-7 loss. “They played a lot of bear front and used different strategies to limit our run game.”
This disappointing loss only increases the pressure on Freeze, who continues to make questionable decisions, like calling a timeout with one second left before the two-minute warning—an error he admitted was “just a bad decision.”
Adding to the frustration, Auburn’s strong defensive performance was once again wasted. The defense has reason to feel frustrated with the lack of offensive support. “The defense played outstanding and gave us a chance to win,” Freeze said post-game, but lamented that “offensively and special teams-wise, we’re not playing at a high enough level to win these games. We’ve got to finish drives and get points. We didn’t convert enough third downs to stay on the field.”
Remarkably, Vanderbilt quarterback Diego Pavia didn’t complete a pass in the second or third quarters, but he was motivated to make Auburn regret passing on him in recruitment. “A lot of people didn’t take a chance on me,” Pavia said. “[Auburn’s] just another team that didn’t, and I wanted to make them pay.”
Auburn’s troubles this season seem rooted in poor execution and coaching. While Freeze clings to control, he hasn’t yet considered sharing more responsibility, saying only, “I don’t think we’re at that point, just maybe limiting the scope of what we’re trying to do.”
In the end, the issues are simple but persistent. The Tigers’ struggles remain baffling, especially considering Hunter’s dedication to the team—making it even harder to understand why his potential to lead the offense was so underutilized in this latest setback.
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