Auburn isn't exactly known for its receiver play.
In its 132 years of existence, Auburn has only seen two players - Terry Beasley and Ronney Daniels - ever reach the 1,000-yard mark, and both did that just once.
For reference, in his 11 seasons as an FBS head coach, Hugh Freeze has produced five receivers with a 1,000-yard season.
In the 2023 season, Auburn did not have a receiver reach the 400-yard mark, which just isn't going to work in modern football.
The receiver position was a glaring weakness, so Auburn's staff remedied that in a big way.
Auburn's two highest-rated recruits in its top-10 2024 class were Cam Coleman and Perry Thompson, both of which are receivers.
Coleman finished as the No. 7 player in the class of 2024 and showed why during spring camp which culminated in him winning A-Day MVP as a high school senior.
Thompson, the No. 38 player in the class of 2024, did not go through spring practice, but has shown promise in the Summer and has impressed his head coach along with Coleman.
"Cam and Perry have the physical stature of NFL guys right now," Freeze said. "It starts there, and they can run and they have great ball skills. How fast does it take them to transition to this league where you're playing against some of the best athletes in the country that are playing corner and nickel? I'm not quite sure yet, but I've been pleased with what I've seen."
Auburn also added 4-stars Bryce Cain and Malcolm Simmons to round out its receiving class, which was among the best in the nation, if not the best.
And while there's lots of justified hype around the "Freeze-4," Freeze isn't going to put too many expectations on the shoulders of his young receivers.
"I'm careful not to put too unrealistic expectations on freshmen," Freeze said. I think we had the No. 1 receiving class in the country in Cam, Perry, Bryce and Malcolm. I love all four of them."
In addition to its work on the recruiting trail, Auburn also did work in the portal grabbing KeAndre Lambert-Smith and Robert Lewis.
Smith, who played four years at Penn State, racked up 673 yards in 2023 which led the Nittany Lions.
With Smith being a late arrival, he's been trying to nail down his connection with Payton Thorne, and while it's not there yet, there's a clear trust level between the two vets according to Freeze.
"It would be hard to say that chemistry is where it needs to be right now," Freeze said. "But there's no doubt that he feels really good about Dre. The workouts I see, I can see why."
In his first two collegiate seasons, Lewis had only racked up 67 yards, but that number went up exponentially as he totaled 379 yards his junior season before breaking out in 2023 with 877 yards and seven touchdowns.
"I think Robert is kinda flying under the radar," Freeze said. "But I really like him a lot, too."
Overall, it's a completely revamped receiver room from a year prior, and it's one that looks like it can complement Auburn's dynamic rushing attack, which is exactly what Freeze was looking for.
"We've got to stay balanced," Freeze said. "You got to run the football in this league. You have to be able to have guys that give a quarterback confidence that they can win in a one-on-one situation. I think we're much closer to that with those guys coming to our roster."
