Happy Thursday, everyone. AJ McCarron decided to weigh in on the Auburn claims that everyone is cheating except them, and his comments are predictable.
“Hugh Freeze is full of shit,” McCarron said on The Dynasty podcast. “I think Hugh Freeze is trying to do whatever he can to save face. He’s starting to feel pressure at Auburn – going into his third year, not having the success that the alumni, the boosters, everybody donating a lot of money thought he would have by this point. I think he’s trying to figure out and scramble on why they are not successful.”
With the $20.5 million cap in place under the House v. NCAA settlement, Freeze said Auburn had to worry about retaining players on the roster rather than signing a larger high school class. He added the Tigers are following their interpretation of the settlement as they focus on retention, particularly at positions such as wide receiver.
Hugh is living his best life, winning be damned.
Nick Kelly debunked the claim that Nick Saban is doing Kalen’s bidding for him on the recruiting trail.
In total, Alabama has secured 19 commitments so far in the 2026 class. Saban only met with two of those 19 commits. Jones, the third recruit with whom Saban met, has yet to commit anywhere.
Saban’s involvement in recruiting hasn’t been zero, but there’s a chasm between meeting with three recruits during a weekend in June and getting back into the recruiting game full bore.
Saban didn’t retire to still take part in the day-to-day grind of recruiting.
No matter how the 2026 recruiting class for Alabama plays out, for better or for worse, it will be the handywork of DeBoer, general manager Courtney Morgan, director of player personnel Bob Welton, assistant coaches and staff. Not Saban.
Colin Gay wrote about the state of the offensive line.
Alabama has the majority of its starting spots secured. Proctor, Brailsford, Roberts and Formby are all expected to man starting spots on the front five.
Alabama has a position battle brewing at left guard, one that Geno VanDeMark, who worked as a utility piece on the line last season, and Texas A&M transfer Kam Dewberry seem to be favorites at.
Along with Dewberry and Ball State transfer Arkel Anugwom, Alabama also brought in a high-profile freshman class on the offensive line including five-star guard Michael Carroll, who worked out at tackle as Proctor missed the majority of spring rehabbing an injury.
Ross Dellenger has learned that Congress is going to give codifying the House settlement the old college try.
The Act, an amended version obtained by @YahooSports, codifies the settlement, grants liability protection, preempts state NIL laws & includes anti-employment clause.
It brings regulation to agents & requires schools provide athlete degree completion, post-grad healthcare, etc.
— Ross Dellenger (@RossDellenger) July 10, 2025
There is a long way between here and passage by both Houses, but if signed into law it would give the clearinghouse a puncher’s chance at surviving.
Last, Alabama only spent 20 percent of its athletic budget on women’s sports last year because the transition from Saban to DeBoer was expensive. But they were middle of the pack in dollars spent there.
In terms of real dollars, Alabama looked much better when it came to women’s sports. The Crimson Tide spent $29.7 million on women’s programs in 2024, eighth among the SEC’s public universities.
UA sat one spot behind South Carolina, which spent $31.3 million on its women’s programs. Texas A&M led the way overall, with $54.2 million in women’s program spending.
The Aggies beat out second-place Tennessee by a significant margin. The Volunteers put $40.1 million into women’s sports, just ahead of third-place Texas, which spent $37.4 million.
Auburn ranked sixth for FY 2024, at $34.6 million. LSU ($35 million) and Oklahoma ($34.6 million) each ranked ahead of AU.
Only three public SEC schools spent less than $25 million on women’s sports in 2024. Ole Miss came in at $24.3 million, and Missouri spent $24 million.
Mississippi State was the lone school spending less than $20 million, bringing up the rear at $19.6 million on women’s sports.
Not sure they got their money’s worth on the softball field.
That’s about it for now. Have a great day.
Roll Tide.
