Hugh Freeze says Arkansas defeat ‘tough to swallow’ for Auburn

Auburn coach Hugh Freeze said the Tigers lost to an inferior team when they fell 24-14 to Arkansas on Saturday at Jordan-Hare Stadium.

Speaking Monday night on Auburn Sports Network’s Tiger Talk, Frese said Auburn’s recent home loss, like its Sept. 7 loss to Cal, was particularly frustrating because of the quality of the opposition.

“No offense to Arkansas,” Freeze said Monday. “I love (coach) Sam Pittman, and I hope he wins the rest of his games, but I’ll tell you the hard truth is if we play them nine more times, we’re going to beat them nine times.” “That’s a tough thing to swallow, and it’s a tough thing for our fans, and I’m sure it’s a tough thing for us, for sure.”

Freeze cited five Auburn fouls in the loss, which limited the team to 61 passes. Auburn outrebounded Arkansas 431-334, but the Razorbacks made 22 more passes and scored 10 points on fouls.

The second-year Auburn coach had delivered a similar message earlier Monday during his press conference, saying: “Certainly not to disrespect Arkansas, congratulations to Coach Pittman … but certainly it was a game we felt was winnable. And when you can’t do that, it sucks.”

Auburn also committed five errors in its home loss to California. Frese said Auburn’s offensive identity doesn’t need to change, and said it’s “disgusting” that the team averages 8 yards per play but “isn’t scoring the points that should come with what those stats say.”

Frese said Auburn will evaluate quarterbacks Payton Thorne and Hank Brown throughout the week before deciding who will start against Oklahoma. Thorne, who replaced Brown in the second half against Arkansas, “looked really good,” Frese said.