Alex Golesh’s first year at the helm of Auburn football comes with a mix of opportunity and uphill battles-but there’s a real path to a winning season in 2026. The Tigers' schedule features the program’s first-ever nine-game SEC slate, and while that adds a layer of difficulty, it also brings clarity: there are six games on the calendar that Auburn can realistically circle as winnable.
Let’s start with the non-conference lineup. Auburn will face Southern Miss, Samford, and Baylor.
Two of those matchups-against the Sun Belt’s Golden Eagles and FCS Samford-are the kind of games you expect to win if you’re a Power Five program with any pulse. Baylor, though, is a different kind of test.
That’s the one that could really set the tone. If Golesh can get the Tigers to 3-0 outside the SEC, it builds early momentum and buys him some breathing room as he enters the gauntlet of conference play.
Inside the SEC, the Tigers have four games that stand out as toss-ups or better: Arkansas, Mississippi State, Vanderbilt, and Florida. All four are programs in transition or treading water, and Auburn has the talent and coaching upside to come out on top in those matchups.
That’s six games right there-three non-conference, four conference-where Auburn should either be favored or at least have a legitimate shot. Get to six wins, and Golesh has a bowl appearance in year one.
That’s not just progress-it’s a statement.
But the mountain climbs are still very real. Auburn has to go on the road to face Georgia and Alabama.
That’s a brutal pair of trips for any team, let alone one trying to establish a new identity under a first-year head coach. Add LSU and Ole Miss to the mix-two teams that just landed the top two transfer portal classes during the January window-and the gap in talent becomes hard to ignore.
Those rosters are loaded, and they’re not just reloading-they’re upgrading.
Still, this is where Golesh has a chance to make his mark. Steal just one of those games-Georgia, LSU, Ole Miss, or Alabama-and the narrative shifts. That kind of upset instantly gives him more credibility than either of his immediate predecessors, Bryan Harsin or Hugh Freeze, managed to earn in their respective debuts.
The good news for Auburn fans? Golesh isn’t walking into this blind.
He’s coming off a strong season with USF, where he proved he can build and win quickly. That experience, paired with a more favorable bottom half of the schedule, gives this Auburn team a real shot to turn the corner.
No one’s expecting miracles in Year 1, especially with road trips to Athens and Tuscaloosa on the docket. But if Golesh can get this team to a bowl-and maybe pull off a signature win along the way-he won’t just clear the bar left by his predecessors. He’ll raise it.