The ink has finally dried on Hugh Freeze’s contract with Auburn.
Freeze, who was named Auburn’s new head coach on Nov. 28, officially signed his six-year deal with the program earlier this month, according to a copy of the contract obtained by AL.com through a public records request. The document was signed April 5, just a few days before Auburn put the finishing touches on its first spring of the Freeze era.
That it took more than four months for the contract to be finalized isn’t out of the ordinary; programs often work off agreed upon memorandums of understanding that sketch out the basic structure of such deals until the full contract can be hashed out. For Freeze, an Auburn official confirmed the general details of the contract shortly after he was introduced as head coach Nov. 29: An average salary of $6.5 million over the course of the six-year deal, with incentives that could max his salary out at $10 million in the final year of the contract. It also includes an annual retention bonus, as well as a 75 percent buyout figure, should he be terminated without cause prior to the end of the contract.
The full contract obtained by AL.com on Friday further details those incentive-based bonuses for on- and off-field benchmarks.
For each conference win, beginning with Auburn’s fifth SEC victory each season, Freeze will earn an additional $150,000. He will also earn $200,000 if Auburn wins the SEC West and makes the SEC Championship Game, with an additional $200,000 baked in if he wins the SEC title.
In terms of the postseason, Freeze is eligible for a noncumulative bonus should Auburn make a bowl game. If the Tigers make a non-SEC Group of 6 bowl appearance, he’ll earn $50,000. It’s a $150,000 bonus if Auburn makes the Citrus Bowl or another SEC Group of 6 bowl game. If the Tigers make a New Year’s Six game, he’ll earn $200,000, with an additional $50,000 if Auburn wins that game. Should Freeze guide Auburn to the College Football Playoff, he’ll earn $750,000, with that figure bumped to $1 million if the Tigers win the semifinal and make the national championship game. Freeze will earn a $2 million bonus if he guides Auburn to a national title.
Freeze is also eligible for a $75,000 bonus if he’s named the SEC Coach of the Year and can earn another $75,000 if he wins the Bryant, Camp, AP, AFCA, ESPN, Eddie Robinson, Bobby Dodd, Sporting News or Maxwell Coach of the Year award.
For off-the-field performance, Freeze can earn another bonus for Auburn’s annual academic progress rate (APR). That bonus ranges from $25,000 to $150,000, with the latter awarded for a perfect one-year APR score.
Along with the performance-based bonuses, Freeze will receive an annual retention bonus of $225,000 on Feb. 1 each year, beginning in 2024.
While Freeze’s contract contains a 75 percent buyout clause in the event he’s fired without cause, there’s also the standard buyout on his end, should he terminate the contract before its completion. Freeze would owe the university $5 million if he terminates the deal any time before Jan. 31, 2026. That figure drops to $4 million if it’s between Feb. 1, 2026, and Jan. 31, 2027. It drops another $1 million the following year, to $3 million total, all the way down to $2 million if he terminates the contract between Feb. 1, 2028, and Jan. 31, 2029.
Tom Green is an Auburn beat reporter for Alabama Media Group. Follow him on Twitter @Tomas_Verde.
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