There is plenty of excitement surrounding Auburn football as the Tigers prepare for head coach Alex Golesh’s first season on the Plains.
Golesh has quickly won over the Auburn fan base by embracing the program’s traditions and becoming part of its culture. He has also made an early impact in recruiting while working to bring together a roster filled with new faces.
One of the biggest reasons for optimism is the arrival of quarterback Byrum Brown. Golesh brought Brown with him from South Florida along with several other former USF players, providing Auburn with much-needed continuity at quarterback and across the offense. Combined with a talented defensive unit, that familiarity has many believing the Tigers could finally begin turning things around.
However, The Athletic’s Seth Emerson believes Auburn’s schedule could prevent that turnaround from happening immediately. Emerson projects the Tigers to finish 7-5 in 2026, with losses coming on the road against Tennessee, Georgia, Ole Miss and Alabama, along with a home defeat against LSU.
“I’m bullish on Alex Golesh in his first year because he’s bringing his quarterback and much of the offense with him from South Florida and adding it to a ready-made SEC defense,” Emerson wrote. “The problem is that road schedule.”
The challenge is obvious. Auburn will have to travel to both Georgia and Alabama, two of the most difficult environments in college football. Georgia enters the season ranked No. 3 in the AP Preseason Top 25, while Alabama sits at No. 13. Ole Miss is ranked No. 9 and Tennessee No. 20.
That means each of Emerson’s projected road losses would come against a preseason-ranked opponent.
For Auburn, the 2026 season could ultimately come down to how well Golesh’s team handles that difficult stretch. The Tigers should have a more defined offensive identity and could look significantly better than they did a year ago, but expectations may need to remain realistic in Golesh’s first season.
If the Tigers can navigate the challenging schedule better than expected, however, Auburn could quickly prove that the optimism surrounding the program is justified.
Auburn officially opens the 2026 season on September 5 against Baylor in the Aflac Kickoff Game at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta. Kickoff is scheduled for 2:30 p.m. Central Time.
