What's next after Auburn coach Hugh Freeze's cancer diagnosis?

Hugh Freeze was diagnosed with cancer entering his third year as Auburn football coach.

What we know after Auburn football coach Hugh Freeze was diagnosed with a form of prostate cancer. | Will McLelland-Imagn Images

Auburn head football coach Hugh Freeze has been diagnosed with a form of prostate cancer, the school announced on Friday.

While any cancer diagnosis is always concerning, it is not believed the illness will be a threat to Freeze’s life, nor his duties with the football program.

Auburn said Freeze is expected to make a full recovery and will continue his normal coaching role while undergoing treatment for the disease.

“Thankfully, it was detected early and his doctors have advised that it is very treatable and curable,” the school said in a statement.

“Coach Freeze is incredibly appreciative of our medical professionals and has asked that we use his experience as a reminder of the importance of prioritizing and scheduling annual health screenings.”

This isn’t the first time that Freeze has endured a major health concern.

The coach was hospitalized in 2019 just before his first season at Liberty after undergoing emergency surgery to address a potentially life-threatening staph infection.

Freeze would notably coach Liberty’s season opener that year from a bed in an empty press box at the stadium that was converted into an impromptu hospital room as he recovered.

Auburn is preparing for its third season with Freeze as head football coach, and is scheduled to begin its spring practice for the 2025 season on March 25.

Freeze is 11-14 overall in his coaching tenure with a 5-11 record in SEC play, and while the Tigers appeared in the Music City Bowl to finish the 2023 season, they didn’t qualify for a bowl game after going 5-7 this past fall.

Read more from College Football HQ