Hugh Freeze sounds really, really upset about negative recruiting.
Negative recruiting is part of the game, but Hugh Freeze is not happy about it in wake of the current NCAA investigation of Ole Miss.
From 2013-16, Ole Miss had four top-20 classes, including two in the top 8. But in 2017, the Rebels’ class is ranked No. 33. They only got two of the top 10 players in the state of Mississippi. On Wednesday, Freeze spoke out about how the NCAA investigation into violations and the potential penalties impacted this year.
“It was ugly,” Freeze said at a press conference. “I didn’t enjoy it. You take great pride in who you are and how you do things. Again, that’s not to say that we’ve been perfect, but I know the value that I place on this job and my name and our coaches’ name and our administration’s name. I’m the leader of the program so everything is directed pretty much at you.
“Some of it was personal with some people probably. I don’t talk about other schools in recruiting and I won’t do that, and our staff is in charge to do the same. Unfortunately, there were several others that they thought it was a prime opportunity to use that in recruiting, and that’s the route they go. I won’t forget who they are.”
Ooh, straight out of the Urban Meyer school of relations.
The best part is his praise of Alabama because “they do it the right way”. Dude, that’s because Nick Saban doesn’t have to worry about you on the recruiting trail. Especially since he knows there are plenty of others out there willing to do the dirty work.