Auburn Hosting Important 2026 Recruit Against Missouri

Hugh Freeze has been an exceptional recruiter at Auburn, but the Tigers' on-field performances may begin to seriously hurt him.

Wide receiver recruit Tyren Wortham will be on campus for Auburn's game against Missouri. | Dan Wagner/Herald-Tribune / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

While he may not admit it publicly, Auburn Tigers head coach Hugh Freeze probably hears the chatter and rumors about his job security. He's earned them with years of subpar playcalling and throwing players under the bus.

Yet, Freeze can hang his visor on one aspect of coaching: the ability to recruit.

To his credit, Freeze finds a way to bring elite athletes to the Plains. Whether he can coach them remains to be seen. A night game against a ranked conference team is a backdrop for another defining moment. More importantly, recruits with Auburn on their collective radar will tune in. Deeper than that, one will be in attendance.

As a result, Freeze needs to win this game.

Unsigned Gems

With National Signing Day in the not-too-distant future, Auburn can pick up a few more recruits still looking for their 2026 home. Grace Raynor of The Athletic discussed the uncommitted athletes, including four-star wide receiver Tyren Wortham (Sarasota, Fla).

According to Raynor, the wideout decommitted from Michigan State and received an offer just before Penn State fired James Franklin. Wortham, a six-foot, 170-pound wideout, brings a speed aspect to the field, with the ability to leave defenders in a heartbeat. Freeze will have an interesting observer watching his offense.

"He reported a Penn State offer last week (two days before Franklin was ousted), and before that, had most recently picked up an offer from Auburn in July," Raynor wrote. "He’s reportedly heading to Auburn this weekend to see Hugh Freeze and the Tigers host No. 16 Missouri. This would be quite the week for Freeze and his team to pick up a statement win."

It's not that Freeze needed more pressure to perform, but even his 2026 class is looking to see how the Tigers fare against Missouri. While one week doesn't make a decommit occur, or at least it shouldn't, players wanted to go where the NIL dollar, in concert with winning, looks like their immediate future. Securing the bag comes first, but hoisting trophies comes after.

Negative Recruiting

We all know that opposing coaches will use the failures of other coaches against them in recruiting. Instead of discussing their own positive traits, piling on opponents works. Imagine if Auburn loses; the pitches to recruits write themselves.

Freeze's failures are doing the heavy lifting for opponents.

Overview

Worthen and the majority of recruits in the crowd want to see how Freeze coaches in big games. They do not want to hear excuses or blame officials, and winning still matters, even in the NIL era. Freeze must find a way to will his team to victory or face the possible consequences of another primetime loss.