Alabama Football is not finished with its 2026 class. Commits have to become signees in December. But Alabama has so few remaining needs that the Tide's 21 commits are unlike to increase beyond 25. Some Alabama football fans are still smarting from losing out on 5-star Tank Jones. It is important to remember that Alabama's recruiting strategy sometimes accepts getting outbid. The Alabama football staff believes paying a high school player more than current Alabama players is a serious threat to player cohesion. Alabama sells long-term value as more important than fast cash.
Auburn's recruiting has been on an upswing under Hugh Freeze. Recent results are quite different. The Tigers appear stuck at the No. 70, 2026 class of commits, per the 247Sports Composite. Teams ranked above Auburn include Colorado State, San Diego State, App State, UNLV, USF, and Sacramento State.
For Auburn fans, the hopes of August flips have quickly faded. So far, Auburn's August success is only a projected flip of a UNLV commit, a 3-star, defensive lineman. Isaiah Broughton is rated at No. 162 in the state of Texas and the No. 125 defensive lineman in the 2026 class. If Auburn can land him, the Tigers might actually drop from No. 70 overall.
Auburn's Athletic Director, John Cohen, says he is not worried about Hugh Freeze's recruiting efforts and progress. Cohen insists that Freeze is in contact with many players, " ... many of the recruiting calls were kids calling him. One of the things I really admire about our football coach is there are many coaches out there, many who hand off recruiting to other people on their staff. Hugh Freeze is not one of them. And it doesn’t matter if he’s in a car, it doesn’t matter if he’s in a restaurant, it doesn’t matter if he’s with his family. When a recruit calls, he answers it. We’ve had two top 10 classes in a row ..."
Alabama Football, Hugh Freeze, and almost everybody connects ...
Maybe Hugh is great at connecting with prospects, but so are many coaches. What should trouble Auburn fans the most is Cohen touting two cycles on top 10 signing classes. In the SEC, top 10 classes are failures for championship contenders. Such recruiting success is little more than treading water.
Auburn still has time to bolster its 2026 class, but it looks like success in the December Transfer Portal is the Tigers' best hope to improve the 2026 roster. And Hugh may not even be coaching by then.