Alex McPherson’s path back to Auburn’s kicking job has been anything but ordinary.
The 5-foot-9, 165-pound kicker from Fort Payne, Alabama, went through a brutal stretch over the last two years after having his large intestine surgically removed and recovering from both ulcerative colitis and Crohn’s Disease. He was limited to just one game in 2024, but he answered with a strong 2025 season once he got his body back in shape.
McPherson finished last season by making 20 of 23 field goal attempts. All three misses came in an overtime loss to Missouri, and his longest make was from 49 yards. That kind of range wasn’t there early in the year, when he was still fighting to regain weight and strength.
At the start of the 2025 campaign, Auburn had to manage him carefully. McPherson handled extra points and shorter kicks while Connor Gibbs or Towns McGough took over field goals longer than 40-45 yards.
As his strength returned, so did his full kicking load. The breakthrough came in a 6-for-6 day against Arkansas, a week after he had missed three field goals.
That kind of bounce-back fits the player Auburn knew before the health issues hit. McPherson didn’t miss a field goal in 2023 and is 40-for-45 for his career.
Heading into 2026, he is expected to stay in the starting role. Auburn’s kicking room looks similar to last season, with Gibbs back and McGough now transferred to Cal. Gibbs may still handle kickoffs, but there’s been nothing to indicate McPherson will lose his job.
When he’s healthy, he gives Auburn a real edge inside the 35-yard line. That matters for any offense, and it should matter even more now that the Tigers are expected to be better than they were last season.
Auburn’s offense didn’t give McPherson many chances to matter in 2025, but that could change this fall. And after everything he’s been through, McPherson is back in position to be a difference-maker.
“When you can hit the long field goals, it gives you the confidence on the shorter ones,” McPherson said during spring practice. “You don’t feel like you have to smoke the ball to get it there.
You’ve just got to hit it well and get it there. Just trust what you’re doing.”
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