Alex Golesh, before ever playing a game, seems to have the coveted alignment every Auburn Tigers head coach has to fight to maintain. Jimmy Rane, the Founder and Chairman of Great Southern Wood Preserving, the "YellaFella," if you will, blessed Golesh's tenure with the most important gift possible: financial backing to win football games.
Per Rane on Thursday, “I’ve met him. He seems like a really nice fellow, and he’s very passionate, very committed. And I certainly wish him nothing but the best. I think he’s really going to do a good job, I hope, but I guess we’ll have to wait and see how the product looks on the field ... I really like Coach Alex, and I believe our leaders did a good job in trying to find the right coach. I’m going to give him every opportunity to be successful.”
Rane is the only billionaire in the state, as Paul Finebaum has pointed out. His presence alone will always have Auburn ahead of the Alabama Crimson Tide in the raw resources department. That hasn't been the case every offseason, but proof-of-concept could change that immediately.
Jimmy Rane didn't spare expenses with Hugh Freeze, but did with Bryan Harsin
It's notable what Rane thinks of Golesh. Rane's negative view of Bryan Harsin had soured the relationship by year two, and the smear campaign against him had a bit of brutal, exposed truth mixed with sensationalism to torment him off the Plains. It's hard to imagine a coaching hire losing faith quicker. Harsin didn't do the bare minimum of phoning up local high school coaches. The Auburn machine is powerful, but not that powerful. When competing with Nick Saban's long-established connections, it's hard to imagine what Harsin was thinking with that. Probably about returning to Boise as soon as possible, a rich man. He certainly got that.
As for Hugh Freeze's tenure, though? Rane spared no expenses. He went out and got Payton Thorne after inflating his value with strong records with the Michigan State Spartans, especially the 2021 season, when MSU was on the doorstep of the CFP. Then, after Thorne didn't work out, he spent even more money on Oklahoma Sooners QB Jackson Arnold at Freeze's behest. In between the two QB misses, Rane dropped a bag on the "Freeze Four" in-state receiver quartet of Cam Coleman, Perry Thompson, Malcolm Simmons, and Bryce Cain, not to mention running backs, Jarquez Hunter and Jeremiah Cobb. Could more money have gone into the offensive trenches? Sure, but elite offensive line talent doesn't come cheap, and has rarely flocked to East Central Alabama, with the Georgia Bulldogs and Alabama Crimson Tide nabbing them nearby.
Freeze couldn't get the job done with the massive NIL/rev-share investment. Harsin wasn't likable enough to get funds spent on his roster. Golesh could be the guy who is both likable and talented enough to put AU's resources to work.
Nothing is known right now about how that will go. What we do know is that there is alignment with Auburn football from the top down, and that is not something that can ever be taken for granted.
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