Auburn reportedly names interim head coach after Hugh Freeze firing
By Sydney Hunte
Published:
Auburn has reportedly fired Hugh Freeze, a day after a 10-3 loss to Kentucky dropped the Tigers to 4-5 on the season.
With 3 games remaining in the regular season, the program will apparently turn to defensive coordinator DJ Durkin to lead the team on an interim basis, according to On3’s Pete Nakos. Durkin has been with the program since 2024.
Durkin, of course, has head coaching experience, spending 2 seasons on the Maryland sideline and going 10-15. In August 2018, he was placed on administrative leave as the university investigated allegations of a toxic culture inside the program, stemming from the death of a player after being hospitalized with signs of heat stroke during a team workout. Durkin returned but was eventually fired.
After a brief stint with the NFL’s Atlanta Falcons as a guest consultant, Durkin returned to coaching full-time in 2020 as he was named co-defensive coordinator at Ole Miss. He spent 2 seasons in Oxford before heading to Texas A&M as the Aggies’ sole DC.
Ahead of the 2024 season, Durkin made another move within the SEC, landing on Freeze’s staff as DC.
Prior to his time at Maryland, Durkin was DC at Michigan for 1 season. He also spent 5 seasons at Florida, serving as interim head coach in 2014 after the firing of Will Muschamp.
Sydney is an Atlanta-based journalist who has covered everything from SEC and ACC football to MLS, the U.S. men's national soccer team and professional tennis. His work has appeared on such platforms as SB Nation, Cox Media Group and FanSided.
