Auburn and Baylor play for the second year in a row on Saturday, though the Tigers traded in the backend of a home-and-home series for the Aflac Kickoff Game in Atlanta. 24 Auburn players will be compensated $6 million for promotional efforts for the game.
I spoke with Peach Bowl Inc., CEO David Epps about the Mercedes-Benz Stadium-based Week 1 clash, and needless to say, he's excited about the Tigers and Bears' changes for the rematch.
Specifically, Epps likes the quarterback additions of Byrum Brown, complete with his former USF head coach, Alex Golesh, to Auburn, and DJ Lagway, plus defensive coordinator Joe Klanderman on the other side of the ball, to Baylor.
I asked about the updates to the matchup now that fall camp has come and gone for both programs.
"Yeah, I think that's probably a better question than most people realize because when you look at this game, a year ago, you didn't know DJ Lagway was coming. You didn't know Hugh Freeze was going to be fired. Now you actually start to see the meat on the bones," Epps said.
"You get to see Lagway, and you get to hear what Baylor's doing offensively, and also, having the defensive coordinator from K-State moving over there. I mean, they've retooled that thing. I think that their ceiling is higher than you would expect.
"And then I think it took the reality of getting Auburn's players into camp and people starting to see them and see what they're capable of, and having Byrum Brown coming with Coach Golesh from USF. Having a new quarterback out of the portal is one thing, but having one out of the portal who came with the offense already in his back pocket, and a kid who accounted for 4,000 yards of total offense last year, that's huge.
"To me, the matchup looks a lot more intriguing. Because both of those guys are capable of really lighting things up. You've got a new face and a new place with both of them. I'm really intrigued by it. I was really anxious to see where the line came out to, just to see what the experts think about the matchup, and I think it's been hovering around a touchdown. I'm really intrigued.
"And there seems to be a lot of enthusiasm, especially coming out of Auburn. I hear more about Auburn, obviously, just because of the geography of where we are, but without being too optimistic, Golesh sounds pretty high on what he's seeing from his guys."
Auburn and Baylor roll into Week 1 with the wind at their backs
Golesh and Dave Aranda have both been firing up their fan bases with their rhetoric heading into Week 1.
Aranda has lauded the defensive line for being the strongest position group on his roster. Those in Waco may finally see Aranda's coaching staff deliver on the promise of an improved, hard-nosed defensive culture.
Golesh, meanwhile, has galvanized the fanbase and united the Auburn family with a beautiful display at Victory Day this past Sunday. Everyone believes in the new coach's character and team culture. It's not hard to understand why.
While last year was rough for both teams, 2026 looks like it could be better for the Tigers and Bears.
We'll have a better idea if that's true this Saturday afternoon.
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