Charles Barkley backs Auburn's Hugh Freeze, encourages fan base to do same

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Auburn hired Hugh Freeze in November to put the Tigers back into the football national championship conversation. 

Following a year in which Auburn went 5-7, Freeze arrived on The Plains after four years leading Liberty University. 

Football head coach Hugh Freeze of the Auburn Tigers during their game against the Georgia Bulldogs at Neville Arena on February 1, 2023, in Auburn, Alabama. (Michael Chang/Getty Images)

And while his hiring was met with some backlash due to his time as head coach at Ole Miss, he has the support of one of Auburn’s most well-known alumni. 

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Charles Barkley said he’s excited for Freeze’s first season at Auburn while hoping the fan base embraces him. 

"Well, I was very disappointed the way the Auburn faithful treated coach [Bryan] Harsin," Barkley said at the Regions Tradition pro-am golf tournament in Birmingham on Wednesday, according to the Montgomery Advertiser. "Very disappointed [in] the way we treated coach Harsin. But now we got coach Freeze. They've got to get behind him 100%.

"I talked to him a couple times. He knows I’m always on his speed dial if he ever needs anything, and I’m excited. I think under the circumstances, he did good recruiting-wise. I thought he did good in the transfer portal. Now, hey, the season’s going to start, and I’m excited."

Former basketball player Charles Barkley for the Auburn Tigers after their game against the Tennessee Volunteers at Neville Arena on March 4, 2023, in Auburn, Alabama. (Michael Chang/Getty Images)

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