Auburn’s path to a bowl game is getting clearer, and the next step comes Saturday in Jordan-Hare Stadium against Arkansas.
The Tigers are 4-4 entering Week 10 and need to win two of their final four regular-season games to secure their first bowl appearance since 2023. A win over the Razorbacks would give Auburn a much better shot at getting there, and it would also keep the Tigers in the mix for a more attractive postseason landing spot.
That’s why the latest bowl projections are starting to feel more optimistic around Auburn. After going 1-3 in October against four ranked teams - with the only win coming against then-No. 1 Georgia on the road in Week 7 - several national outlets now expect the Tigers to finish strong enough to qualify.
USA TODAY Sports has not moved off its Birmingham Bowl prediction. Erick Smith is sticking with Auburn against Memphis for the fourth straight week.
Memphis is coming off a 49-22 win over Army and heads into its Week 10 bye at 7-2. First-year head coach Charles Huff’s team closes the regular season with games at USF, at Navy and at home against Temple.
ESPN’s projections split in two different directions for Auburn. Kyle Bonagura keeps the Tigers in the Gasparilla Bowl, where he has Auburn facing USF for the third week in a row. That would bring plenty of familiar faces back into the picture, including Alex Golesh, Byrum Brown and Chas Nimrod, among others, against the program they left a year ago to join Auburn.
Mark Schlabach, meanwhile, moved Auburn to the Liberty Bowl after projecting the Tigers for the Birmingham Bowl last week. In his version, Auburn would play Oklahoma State.
The matchup would pair two first-year head coaches who came from AAC jobs and brought their starting quarterbacks with them. Alex Golesh and Byrum Brown went to Auburn after time at USF, while Eric Morris and Drew Mestemaker are now at Oklahoma State after a strong run at North Texas.
CBS Sports is also keeping Auburn in Birmingham, but with a different opponent. Brad Crawford now has the Tigers facing Syracuse in the JLabs Birmingham Bowl on Dec. 29 at Protective Stadium after previously picking Boston College.
Auburn and Syracuse have met twice before, and both games came with plenty of drama. Their first meeting ended in a 16-16 Sugar Bowl tie, while the most recent matchup went three overtimes before Damon Duvall’s kick gave Auburn a 37-34 win in Jordan-Hare Stadium in 2002.
Athlon Sports has Auburn headed somewhere else entirely. Steven Lassan now projects the Tigers in the Gasparilla Bowl against Virginia on Dec. 18 at Raymond James Stadium in Tampa, Florida.
Virginia is 4-5 after missing a College Football Playoff bid in 2025 and needs two wins in its final three regular-season games to become bowl eligible.
On3’s Brett McMurphy still has Auburn facing a Big 12 team in the Liberty Bowl, though his opponent has changed. After projecting Houston last week, McMurphy now has the Tigers playing Cincinnati in Memphis on Jan. 2.
Auburn last beat Cincinnati in 1987, a 52-7 result, and the Tigers are 2-0 all-time against the Bearcats.
In Other News...
Auburn Fans Face A New Jordan-Hare Gameday Routine This Weekend
Auburn fans heading to Jordan-Hare Stadium this weekend will find a noticeably different gameday routine as construction tied to the Jordan-Hare North Project continues to reshape the area around the stadium. Auburn Athletics has already put several operational changes in place to keep people moving more smoothly, including added metal detectors, reconfigured concession stands, relocated medical cart areas, more personnel on hand and extra signage aimed at easing congestion.
The project, which began in 2026 and is slated to wrap up in spring 2029, is set to transform the north end of Jordan-Hare while preserving the stadiums seating capacity. For now, the focus is on making sure the game-day experience stays manageable as the work continues around one of the most familiar entrances in Auburn football. [Read more 🡒]
Auburn Faces One Last SEC Test As Defense Starts Slipping
Auburn gets one last SEC test at Jordan-Hare Stadium this week, with Arkansas coming to town in the Tigers final conference game of the season. For Alex Golesh, it is also a first-time matchup with Razorbacks coach Ryan Silverfield, and the backdrop is simple enough: Auburn wants to finish strong and show it can still play its best football when the schedule tightens.
The timing matters because Auburns defense has been slipping in recent losses, leaving the Tigers with some correcting to do before the season closes. Arkansas arrives with the leagues lowest scoring average in the conference, which gives Auburn a chance to steady itself, but also a reminder that nothing comes easy in November SEC play. [Read more 🡒]
Auburns Offense Faces One Familiar Problem Against Arkansas
Alex Golesh made it clear this week that Auburns offense cannot afford another uneven afternoon when Arkansas comes to town. The Tigers are trying to get more out of the run game, stay on schedule and give quarterback Byrum Brown a cleaner pocket, with the offensive line expected to face a pass rush that will test how far this unit has come.
For Auburn, the formula is familiar but still unfinished: run the ball better, control the clock and turn more drives into something that actually tilts the game. Those are the kinds of details Golesh has stressed all week, and they will go a long way toward determining whether the Tigers can finally look efficient instead of merely functional against an Arkansas defense built to make life difficult. [Read more 🡒]