Auburn head coach Hugh Freeze sat down with the media following their tough loss to Oklahoma.
Opening statement…
“It’s just like I told the team in there, ‘I couldn’t be prouder of their effort, their preparation, the way they worked and the way they played harder.’ They deserved to win the game. I have to find a way to help them win these games. It is not on them and their effort today. Our defense played a heck of a game. They gave them (Oklahoma) two explosive plays, but other than that, I thought they were remarkable. Offensively, we had a really good plan. The coaches did a good job. They held onto the ball effectively and threw some good passes. Unfortunately, it did not execute well enough, and obviously, they gave them points on the turnover. I shouldn’t have put him (Payton Thorne) in that position and let them have that option. It’s one of the stings for sure. I have to help our team get over the edge when you have a chance to win a game like that. I am proud of those young kids. I thought they played really well and they are starting to mature some. But gosh, this one stings for sure.”
Malcolm Simmons, WR
On the feeling about the offense after this game…
“From an offensive standpoint, I believe we can put our points on any defense. Just us coming together and being a bond and being a brotherhood. Just us going out there and making plays whenever our name is called. Somebody is going to make a play. Just us being the offense we are, just going out there executing and being able to score points and scoring on big drives. We just didn’t do that coming in the second half. But for now, we’ll be able to come together on those last plays and be able to score and get points.”
On the locker room post game…
“It’s tough, a tough loss. Like I said, in the first half, we did a phenomenal job going out. We didn’t score the first two drives, but we came up and scored the last drives of the half. Then just coming out the second half, just not playing to a level of offense we’re capable of. We’ve got to pick that up, and once we pick it up, we can beat any team in the country.”
Jalen McLeod, Buck
On what the preparation will be like for the three-game road stretch…
“We just have to stay keyed into the details, and we just have to find a way to win. We just have to find a way to win. That’s really it.”
On how tough it was in the locker room post-game…
“It was tough because we played our hearts out. But that’s not enough. We have to win. We have to win. We know it as a team. We have to win now.”
Payton Thorne, QB
On his message to the team in the locker room after they got off the field today…
“I don’t really have a message right now, to be honest. There’s a process of letting it sink in. It’s on to the next game. However, with the emotions of this game, there is a grace period, I guess you could call it, where everyone just needs to calm down a little bit and soak in what just happened, including me. So, my message will be, this one’s over tonight, just like if we would’ve won the game and it’s on to Georgia next week.”
On how tough it is to see this ending after how well the team played for the first three-and-a-half quarters…
“It’s extremely tough. I thought we played well enough to win today for the most part. Obviously, it did not end the way we wanted it to. Unfortunate way to end. Credit to them. They fought the whole game. They are a really good defense and a good team, and it just didn’t fall our way in the end.”
Jarquez Hunter, RB
On his game today…
“The game plan had always been to run the ball, and we had some chances. We knew they would have a lot of twists and leave open gaps. Our plan was to just run the ball this week. I would say it worked well for us today.”
On Payton Thorne…
“Mistakes happen and you have to let it go and move forward. We have another big game next week. He’s got to go out there and prepare for them (Georgia). You’ve got to let this game go. It is already behind us. We lost and you can’t let that beat you for next week.
On the loss…
“It is hard, and you can’t let it beat you up for the next week. If you let it bother you, it will just carry over into the next week and keep carrying on. You can’t let that linger. You’ve got to let it go and leave it in the past. We are going to move forward and think about the next week.”
On the positives…
“I feel like we were beating them the whole game on offense. We were running the ball well. We were executing throws. It was just little mistakes we made that we have to clean up. I feel as though we were beating them the whole time up until the end.”
Eugene Asante, LB
On his emotions throughout the fourth quarter…
“I believe going into the fourth quarter we might have been up by two possessions. Just trying to finish the football game in any way we can and ultimately come out with a victory. Oklahoma did some good things and played a really good game. We talk about executing and big moments. It’s my job as a leader on the team to try to get our guys to do that and I’m not doing a good enough job. I have to try to inspire our guys in big moments and get us to play better on Saturday (against Georgia).”
On how tough it was in the locker room…
“It’s tough because you have guys that really care about football and the biggest thing to them is not turning on each other. Allowing guys to understand that we need to execute. I know it’s frustrating. It’s a frustrating thing, but ultimately in the moment, execute and make those plays. Like I said, it falls on me. I’m not doing a good enough job with trying to lead our team. I have to be more vocal and lead by example, so I’m going be doing that from here on out.”
Luke Deal, TE
On his first touchdown since 2021…
“First touchdown in a long time. We ran it all week in practice. Obviously, you never know what look they’re going to give you, but I’m glad Payton (Thorne) still has the guts to throw it. It was a cool play, cool moment. I’m happy for my teammates around me, just being able to do that and see the crowd. That was really cool. But like you said, obviously the outcome wasn’t what we expected and what we could have hoped for, especially after the pretty dominant performance that we put together. I trust in the process, not being results oriented, and the process looks like it’s working for the most part.
In the locker room, it’s hard and we talk about it all the time because it’s not easy. It’s one of those things that you’re naturally going to be up when you’re winning and down when you’re losing. That’s kind of what you have to fight whenever you are driving a culture. But like you said, obviously the process is working. We were pretty good. We were top something in yards per carry before the game. I’m sure it went up after today, because we ran the football very well and explosive plays are there. We have the pieces. That’s what’s so frustrating about it. That’s what makes you think about the results more, even though we’re told we need to trust the process and that’s what the great ones do. It’s going to be a challenge this week (at Georgia). It’s something that us as leaders have to make sure everybody is up to it, because we have a pretty good football team coming up and we’re ready to go.”
On seeing KeAndre Lambert-Smith adopt the culture he speaks of…
“We were talking about explosive plays. He’s an explosive guy, so on the field he’s obviously great for our offense. He gives us another dimension to go downfield and do some things in the air, but off the field, he’s always smiling and happy. He’s a really good glue guy for that receiver room and that’s what you need, especially nowadays in the transfer portal. You don’t know exactly what you’re going to get, but I know he’s probably torn up about this loss. The rest of the receivers, the rest of the offense and the whole team. But I think he’s one of those guys and we’re going to need our playmakers to get us rolling for next week.”
Keldric Faulk, DE
On how he thought the defense played…
“We played exceptionally well. Like I said, we had a couple of busts here and there, but unfortunately, we gave them (Oklahoma) points. We stopped them from scoring. They didn’t beat us up front. They didn’t outwork us in the back end. We just gave them points. We need to eliminate that. But, we played really well. I heard we were 2-for-10 on third downs. That was a big improvement from last week, so I think we played really, really well.”
On picking himself and his teammates up after such a loss going into the UGA game…
“It hurts. It hurts because you’re out there fighting with your brothers. Just to have that game flip on you that fast, it just takes a toll on you, on the team really. How we pick up the momentum is they (Georgia) put us as their homecoming (game), so that’s enough motivation as is. We’re going to pick up. We’re going to create our own momentum throughout the week, and come Saturday, they’re going to get everything we have.”
Transcript via Auburn Athletics.
