3 reasons why Hugh Freeze's Auburn Tigers lost to California in Week 2

The Auburn Tigers, under coach Hugh Freeze, had one of the best recruiting classes of the year and were hyped up as a potential dark horse in the SEC (Southeastern Conference) during the preseason. They opened the season with a thrilling 73-3 win over the Alabama A&M Bulldogs.

During week two of college football action, the Tigers froze and lost 21-14 to the California Golden Bears at Jordan-Hare Stadium. They were held to 165 passing and 121 rushing yards. So, what are the three reasons for Auburn's unexpected home loss?

3 reasons why Hugh Freeze's Auburn Tigers lost to California in Week 2

#3. The Tigers' porous O-line

The Tigers' offensive line was porous, failing to protect quarterback Payton Thorne and allowing the Golden Bears three sacks and five tackles for loss.

During his postgame news conference, the outspoken Freeze highlighted the O-line's struggles during the game.

“We struggled to protect him (Thorne) tonight, a lot,” Hugh Freeze said. “We had guys running wide open and really struggled to protect. It hurt when ‘Too Tall’ (Izavion Miller) got banged up.”

#2. Costly Turnovers

The Tigers were sound defensively but their turnovers cost them the game, tallying five of them to the distress of Hugh Freeze. During his postgame news conference, he mentioned his concerns.

“I knew this would be a good test for us. They're a senior-laden football team, they play extremely hard and they're well-coached,” Hugh Freeze said. "You cannot turn the ball over five times and expect to beat anybody. We never got in any sync offensively and that’s very disappointing and frustrating to me. It rests with me and I’ve got to figure that out for us.”

#1. Misfiring Payton Thorne cost Hugh Freeze's team a win

Auburn quarterback Payton Thorne had a forgettable afternoon against the California Golden Bears. He went 14-of-27 for 165 yards, resulting in one touchdown and four interceptions.

During his postgame news conference, Thorne was apologetic about his role in the loss to the Golden Bears.

“Obviously, no matter how a turnover happens or occurs, you don’t want those, so we’ve got to do a better job of protecting the ball, and that starts with me,” Thorne said. “I touch the ball every play, so we’ve got to do that and like you said, head back to the drawing board a little bit. You know, we aren’t going to abandon our offense, but we just have to be sharper.”

Next week against the New Mexico Lobos, Freeze will know that he cannot afford anymore slip-ups if a promising season for the Auburn Tigers is to be salvaged.