With Lane Kiffin choosing to remain as the Ole Miss coach, Auburn has shifted the focus of its coaching search to Liberty's Hugh Freeze, sources close to the situation tell CBS Sports' Dennis Dodd.

The attraction to Freeze stems from his success with the Rebels from 2012-16.

Freeze led the Rebels to a 10-win season, a berth in the Sugar Bowl and a No.

Coupled with an NCAA investigation that uncovered a lack of institutional control, his success with the Rebels became stained

Ole Miss was penalized with a two-year bowl ban and a two-game conference suspension if he was hired by an SEC school prior to Nov

With the window for that suspension closed and numerous changes coming to the college football landscape that will likely benefit Freeze in recruiting at the Power Five level (NIL rights, transfer portal), his return to a major program became only matter of time

He has never finished with fewer than eight wins while leading the Flames, who made the jump from FCS to an independent school in the FBS prior to the 2018 season

He has led Liberty to three straight bowl games, including a 10-1 record and a No