Auburn’s 2026 season is built around a major reset, and the biggest change starts with the man in charge. Coach Alex Golesh arrives after going 23-15 in three seasons at USF, taking over a roster that has been gutted and rebuilt almost from scratch.
The Tigers finished 2025 at 5-7, 1-7 in SEC play, tied for 13th in the conference and out of a bowl. They were 3-0 and ranked No. 22 before the slide hit, but the season unraveled quickly after the loss at Oklahoma.
Auburn then dropped three straight at Texas A&M, against Georgia and at Missouri before beating Arkansas in Fayetteville. A home loss to Kentucky followed, then an overtime defeat to Vanderbilt pushed the Tigers to 4-6.
They beat Mercer, but Alabama shut the door on any bowl hopes.
The turnover on this roster is massive. Auburn returns just one starter on offense and two on defense, along with the punter and placekicker.
Thirty scholarship players left the program, including key pieces on both lines, across the secondary and in the quarterback room. Among the departures: DE Keldric Faulk, DE Keyron Crawford, C Connor Lew, G Jeremiah Wright, DT Bobby Jamison-Travis, top receivers Cam Coleman, Malcolm Simmons and Eric Singleton, all quarterbacks Ashton Daniels, Deuce Knight and Jackson Arnold, starting linebacker Robert Woodyard, starting corner Kayin Lee, EDGE Amaris Williams, starting DL Malik Blocton, WR Perry Thompson, starting left tackle Xavier Chaplin and starting corner Jay Crawford.
There is some continuity on the defensive side, at least. Defensive coordinator D.
J. Durkin was kept on, along with the defensive line coach.
Everything else on the staff is new. The returning names that matter most are running back Jeremiah Cobb, who ran for 969 yards and five touchdowns; linebacker Xavier Atkins, who led the team in tackles and also had nine sacks; safety Kaleb Harris, the third-leading tackler; safety Sylvester Smith-Reed; kicker Alex McPherson, who went 20-for-23 on field goals; and punter Hudson Kaak, who averaged 42.0 yards per punt.
Golesh also brought a wave of newcomers, and plenty of them followed him from USF. Thirteen former Bulls are in the mix, including quarterbacks Byrum Brown and Locklan Hewlett, running back Nykahi Davenport, receivers Keshaun Singleton, Jeremiah Koger and Chas Nimrod, center Cole Best and tight end Jonathan Echols.
Auburn also added EDGE Da’Shawn Womack from Ole Miss, corner Andre Jordan from UCLA, defensive lineman Cody Sigler from Arkansas State, and running back Bryson Washington from Baylor. Coleman Hutzler, who coached Alabama’s special teams and outside linebackers from 2022-2023, will now coach Auburn’s OLBs.
The attraction is easy to see. Golesh is trying to transplant the USF offense into the SEC, and the numbers from last season explain why Auburn was interested.
USF ranked third nationally in total offense at 488.7 yards per game and fifth in scoring at 40.5. But the Bulls also showed their limits against Power opponents Florida and Miami-FL.
They beat Florida and scored only 18 points in the process, then got hammered by Miami-FL, 49-12. The year before, the same core managed just 16 points against Alabama and 15 against Miami-FL.
That makes Auburn’s 2026 leap a real question. Byrum Brown will have familiarity with his receivers, since they played together at South Florida, and Jeremiah Cobb gives the Tigers a solid feature back.
Xavier Atkins is a quality piece on defense, and the line has enough talent to be decent even if it lacks a true game-wrecker. The schedule also gives Auburn a soft opening: Baylor in Atlanta, then three home games, and only one November road trip outside Alabama, to Starkville.
But the problems are obvious. Cobb is the top returning receiver, and he caught only 11 passes for 83 yards last season.
Outside of him, the entire starting offense came from somewhere else a year ago. Auburn’s new receiving corps, offensive line and tight ends all arrive without SEC experience.
Golesh wants tempo, rhythm and fast execution, but that kind of offense depends on players who already know the timing. The secondary, especially at corner, is another concern.
And the stretch from Tennessee to Georgia to LSU to Ole Miss is brutal.
The schedule reflects all of that. Auburn is projected to open with wins over Baylor, Southern Miss, Florida and Vanderbilt before losses at Tennessee, at Georgia, against LSU and at Ole Miss.
Arkansas is marked down as a win, Mississippi State as a loss with a note that it could be a toss-up, Samford as a win, and Alabama as a loss in the finale on Nov. 28.
The bigger question is whether Auburn’s plan can work in a conference that punishes every weak spot. The Tigers have tried to chase Alabama with coaching hires before, and now they are trying again with a staff built around a former USF offense. Whether that translates in the SEC is the whole story.
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