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The Auburn Tigers fired Hugh Freeze after Saturday’s loss to Kentucky. Freeze was the team's head coach for over two seasons but was let go after a 4-5 start in the 2025 season. Speculation is ongoing as regards who'll replace Freeze as the Tigers' new head coach.According to Sports Illustrated, College football analyst Josh Pate has warned Auburn against hiring former Texas A&M Aggies head coach Jimbo Fisher. Pate said on his show's Sunday edition,"So, Pete Nakos released the hot board today. And Pete has Jon Sumrall on there. (You) see that second name? Got Jimbo Fisher on there. And as you laugh about Jimbo Fisher being listed, I am going to tell you, don’t laugh. I will come back to that in a second.”Pate continued,"The first thing I hope Auburn does not do is go down the Jimbo Fisher road. Got nothing against Jimbo Fisher. I know some of you look at that name and you kind of laugh. What is Nakos doing? He is putting Jimbo Fisher’s name on that list because there is a pretty big push behind certain scenes to get Jimbo Fisher back into the coaching world."Pate concluded by saying,"Before you just laugh that off, you need to make sure all your big money donors think it is also a laughable notion. Because if they don’t think it’s a laughable notion, then it has some legitimacy,"The Auburn Tigers have fired three head coaches since 2020. The program's next coaching hire would either put a stop to the chaotic coaching cycle or it could set them up for long-term stability.Josh Pate doesn't see Jimbo Fisher as the person for such a high-profile and potentially volatile job. The veteran analyst believes that the Tigers are better served by employing a different candidate.Hugh Freeze is the latest high-profile CFB head coach to get firedHugh Freeze is merely the latest big-name coach to be shown the door in the ongoing college football season. Freeze is now negotiating a reported $15.8 million buyout with that program.According to The Sporting News, Hugh Freeze is the 11th FBS coach to be fired this season. It's an in-season record, and potentially, more job turnovers are set to occur.Other notable firings this season include, but aren't limited to, Penn State's James Franklin, LSU's Brian Kelly, Florida's Billy Napier, Oklahoma State's Mike Gundy, and Arkansas' Sam Pittman. These head coaches are set to receive major buyouts as they enter the job market ahead of the business end of the campaign.Hugh Freeze has coached at some notable schools in his college football coaching career. These schools include, but aren't limited to Arkansas State, Ole Miss, and Auburn. He'll likely embark on a rest before throwing his hat back in the ring for subsequent appointments.
