Auburn football is currently at one of its lowest points in program history, following five straight losing seasons that saw two head coaches fired, a few heartbreaking losses to rivals, and some bad, bad football.
Alex Golesh is now in charge of turning that around after a successful run at USF, coming to the Plains in December 2025 in hopes of restoring some pride in the Tigers. With rebuilding a program not taking long, thanks to the transfer portal, Golesh and his staff have brought in some critical pieces to help Auburn reach its first winning season since Gus Malzahn was in charge. And while a Curt Cignetti-type turnaround at Indiana might be out of the realm of possibility, the notion that the Tigers could be a threat in the SEC this upcoming season is not.
CBS Sports doesn't see a huge turnaround season for Auburn
Still, CBS Sports’ Brandon Marcello doesn’t see Auburn being a factor in the conference race this season, ranking them 12th in an early SEC power ranking for the 2026 season.
“Auburn will look more like USF North than the Auburn of old under Alex Golesh, and that's not a bad thing. Quarterback transfer Byrum Brown will partner with returning RB Jeremiah Cobb to mold one of the more underrated backfields in the SEC, but can the Tigers get the production they need to replace the upside of a Cam Coleman with a trio of WR transfers from USF? Auburn must also replace its entire offensive line.”
After years of offensive futility, Brown might be the answer after a season in which he put up 3,158 yards and 28 passing touchdowns while also rushing for 1,008 yards and 14 scores. He will rely on familiar targets in Keshaun Singleton, Jermiah Koger and Christian Neptune, who all followed Brown and Golesh from USF after last season.