O'Gara: It's now fair to ask — what if Auburn had hired Cadillac Williams instead of Hugh Freeze?
Go back to November 2022. It wasn’t a crazy thought.
Cadillac Williams had Auburn fans believing in something. The Tigers legend was serving as the interim coach on the heels of the disastrous conclusion of the Bryan Harsin era, which ended a month earlier.
Williams nearly ended Auburn’s 4-game losing streak by leading the program into Starkville and losing in overtime to a Mississippi State team that won 9 games. In his home debut at Jordan-Hare Stadium, Williams led one of the more memorable games you’ll ever see for a pair of teams that would eventually miss out on bowl berths. A sell-out crowd witnessed Williams’ first victory and created an unforgettable scene, even by the insanely high Jordan-Hare standard.
.@CoachCaddy24‘s first win as the head coach of @AuburnFootball
This is the AUBURN FAMILY pic.twitter.com/UbAHWkliiS
— SEC Network (@SECNetwork) November 13, 2022
Three weeks later, Auburn announced the hire of Hugh Freeze. To his credit, Freeze ensured that Williams was taken care of and given the title of “associate head coach” … while also fulfilling the running backs coach duties he held for the previous 2 Auburn coaches.
Nearly 2 nears later, Auburn is reeling after losing its third home game before October for the first time in program history. The Tigers are staring at an 0-3 start to SEC play unless they can beat Georgia in Athens for the first time since 2005. Freeze is recruiting his tail off, but his offense and quarterback room is a turnover waiting to happen. Auburn still owed Harsin and Gus Malzahn $37 million before Freeze ever coached a game, and if the Tigers wanted to part ways with a head coach for the third time in the 2020s, Freeze would be owed $22.1 million (it’s 75% of his remaining contract).
It begs the question — what if Auburn had just promoted Williams in 2022?
Hindsight is 20-20, but that was a real debate at the time. Auburn opted for someone who had already won as a head coach at 3 FBS programs. Williams was 4 years removed from being a high school running backs coach. That logic ultimately won out.
Still, though. It’s hard not to wonder where a Williams-led Auburn would be right now.
For starters, there’s no way any worst-case scenario with Williams would’ve involved a potential $22.1 million buyout after Year 2 like Freeze has. That would’ve been the upside of hiring someone without head coaching experience.
Freeze already fired his top 2 assistants after Year 1 and he incorrectly put his faith in Payton Thorne instead of turning to the transfer portal. Those are 3 significant whiffs. He also watched Williams leave his position after 1 year and ultimately opt for a running backs coach job with the Las Vegas Raiders.
What has Freeze done that we can say with certainty Williams would’ve struggled with? Recruiting? Sure, Freeze deserves credit for signing multiple 5-stars in a No. 8 class for 2024, and a No. 4 class for 2025 could be the basis of any sort of optimism he has the rest of fall.
Let’s not forget that Williams came to Auburn from IMG Academy, which is the best recruiting ground in America. Let’s also remember that he’s a household name in the sport. In an NIL era at a big-time program like Auburn, that would’ve played.
It also would’ve played to have Williams as the only Black head coach in the SEC. He was the first Black coach to win a game at Auburn, and we saw how celebrated that was by the Auburn community. In a 16-team conference wherein everyone is trying to find that unique edge, Auburn would’ve had a definitive one with a Black leader like Williams.
It was only a month, but does anyone doubt that Williams would’ve been able to lead that locker room? So what if he couldn’t call plays or if he didn’t have some illustrious background as a head coach? Ideally, you hire someone to run an offense. Williams would’ve delegated that. He could’ve gone out and hired veteran coaches who could’ve helped him navigate some of the ins and outs of being a first-time head coach, just as Sam Pittman did when he hired Barry Odom.
Williams would’ve checked his ego at the door and given Auburn a legitimate identity. We can’t say that Freeze has done that.
That doesn’t mean we know with certainty that Williams would’ve worked out. Let’s be honest. He wasn’t hired because that’s the type of move that follows an administration if it goes south. Auburn didn’t want to become a laughing stock by hiring someone who was “underqualified” and watching it go poorly.
I’ve got news for ya. Auburn hired Harsin and became a laughing stock, then it hired Freeze and became a laughing stock again. Their previous head coaching experience didn’t prevent that.
It’s possible that Williams could’ve ended up being a laughing stock because, hey, that’s college football. Scott Frost was considered a slam dunk hire and he sunk his alma mater to historic lows. There’s no crystal ball, even when there’s familiarity within a program. Nobody would’ve predicted that if we had a crystal ball to look into back in 2008, we would’ve seen an interim coach without any head coaching experience named “Dabo Swinney” become one of the sport’s best of the 21st century.
It would’ve been perceived as a bold move to hire Williams in November 2022, especially for a new athletic director. That context is worth remembering, but one can’t help but wonder.
Shortly after John Cohen was hired as Auburn’s athletic director, he stood a few feet behind Williams while he celebrated that momentous first win. Williams was drenched after a Gatorade bath by Auburn players. Combined with an Army green long-sleeve Auburn shirt, Williams looked like he had just been through a battle as he spoke with SEC Network analyst and fellow former Auburn player Cole Cubelic.
“I’m so appreciative for this institution. I’m forever indebted to it,” Williams said in 2022. “I love serving these young men, man. This coaching staff, it’s bigger than me. It’s just not my show, man. We are together. We family.”
Where would Auburn have been if it had kept it in the family? Sadly, we’ll never know.