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Auburn AD takes jab at Bryan Harsin era: ‘We did not have Auburn-type talent here’
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Auburn athletic director John Cohen made some interesting comments about the Tigers’ football program under Bryan Harsin this week.
In an ESPN story published this week, Cohen took a not-so-subtle jab at Harsin when discussing the program he and coach Hugh Freeze inherited when they arrived on the Plains in late 2022. Cohen defended the lack of on-field progress Auburn has made in the last couple of seasons by pointing out the talent deficit Auburn faced when Freeze took over as head coach.
“I do think we started from behind the eight ball,” Cohen told ESPN’s Chris Low. “I’m not being critical of the kids who were here and stuck it out. I’m really proud of that. But we did not have Auburn-type talent here, and it was obvious that something was happening where kids were running in and out of this program. Our elite kids here at Auburn are not leaving the program anymore.”
So far, Auburn’s wins in the Freeze era have come on the recruiting trail. Auburn’s 2024 and 2025 recruiting cycles both ranked in the top-10 nationally, per 247Sports Composite rankings.
Cohen is hoping the progress Auburn has made in recruiting will translate to a higher level of performance in 2025. The Tigers were more competitive a year ago, but still finished 5-7 overall and suffered a third consecutive losing season.
Freeze also spoke with Low for this ESPN story and took accountability for losing some close games last season.
“I feel a lot better than I have about our talent, our size, athleticism and depth,” Freeze told ESPN. “But look, we still had chances to win some big games against some really good teams the past two years and didn’t get it done. That’s the truth of it, and we can’t run from that as coaches. I own it regardless of what the talent was or wasn’t.”
Auburn will open the 2025 season against Baylor on Aug. 29.
Spenser is a news editor for Saturday Down South and covers college football across all Saturday Football brands.
