Auburn’s path to bowl eligibility finally looks manageable again after that upset of Georgia, but there’s still plenty of work left before the Tigers can punch their ticket.
The Tigers are 4-2 now, which means they need two more wins to get to the six-win mark and secure bowl eligibility for the first time since 2023. That felt like a long shot after losses to Tennessee and Florida, especially with the rest of the schedule stacked against them. But the Georgia win changed the math, and now Auburn’s season is alive in a very real way.
The toughest stretch is still ahead, starting with LSU coming to Jordan-Hare Stadium. Lane Kiffin and company are rolling in after a 31-0 win over Mississippi State this past Saturday, but Auburn at home has a shot.
The Tigers are still underdogs, with a 28.7% chance to win, though the home crowd could matter plenty. That game is set for 11:00 a.m.
CT this upcoming Saturday.
After that comes another major hurdle: a Halloween night trip to Oxford to face Ole Miss. The Rebels have been up and down this season, but Auburn’s odds are still slim there, sitting at 28.2% to beat the Rebs.
Then comes the stretch that could really define the month. Arkansas visits Jordan-Hare on Nov. 7, and this is the first game on the slate where Auburn is expected to win. The Tigers have an 84.4% chance to beat KJ Jackson and company, though it still carries the kind of trap-game warning that can sneak up on a team if it’s not sharp.
Auburn also enters a favorable spot in Starkville against Mississippi State. For the first time since SEC play began, the Tigers are the favorite, even on the road. Mississippi State comes in after that 31-0 loss to LSU, and Auburn’s chances stand at 57.2% to win.
The Bulldogs don’t stop there, either. Samford follows, and that matchup gives Auburn its third straight favored game. The Tigers have a 99% chance to take care of business in Jordan-Hare Stadium.
And then, as always, comes the Iron Bowl. Auburn closes the regular season against Alabama on Nov. 28 in Bryant-Denny Stadium, where the Tigers have just a 17.2% chance to win. The Crimson Tide have been strong this year aside from losses to Georgia and Tennessee, and they’ll have the edge at home in Tuscaloosa.
If Auburn can grab two wins from that group, bowl eligibility is theirs. If the Tigers get three, they’d finish with their best record since 2019, when they went 9-4. Either way, Alex Golesh has already given the Plains something to build on.
In Other News...
Kirby Smart Had To Admit What Auburn Did To Georgia
Auburn did more than just survive Saturday's matchup with Georgia, it controlled enough of the game to walk out with a win after taking a halftime lead and protecting it the rest of the way. Kirby Smart had to give Auburn its due afterward, pointing to the Tigers' cleaner execution while Georgia spent too much of the afternoon dealing with uncharacteristic mistakes and penalties.
For Auburn, the result was a timely statement against one of the SEC's standard-bearers. For Georgia, it was a reminder that even a team still sitting atop the conference standings can look vulnerable on the wrong day, though the Bulldogs remain positioned to make the College Football Playoff. [Read more 🡒]
Auburn Is Treating The Georgia Win Like A Message To Everyone
Alex Golesh wasted little time turning Auburns upset of No. 1 Georgia into a standard he wants his program to chase, not celebrate as an outlier. The Tigers erased a 14-0 hole and walked away with a 27-24 win, giving Golesh his first victory over a top-ranked team and Auburn its biggest comeback since 2019. In the moment, it was a signature win. In Goleshs telling, it was also proof that the Tigers can do more than just hang around with elite opponents.
The challenge now is making sure the result changes the way Auburn is viewed every week, not just for a night. Golesh has kept the message centered on one play at a time and on taking advantage when chances come, which matters with LSU and Ole Miss both still ahead on the schedule. For Auburn, the Georgia game offered a burst of belief. The next test is whether that belief can travel with the Tigers into another stretch against ranked competition. [Read more 🡒]
Auburn's Georgia Stunner Meant Even More For Alex Golesh And Byrum Brown
The win over No. 1 Georgia was already the kind of result that can change a seasons mood in an instant, but it carried an extra layer for Alex Golesh and Byrum Brown. Golesh came away impressed not just by the final outcome, but by the way Brown handled the moment, with the quarterback doing plenty of the heavy lifting in Auburns biggest victory of the year. Brown finished with 115 rushing yards, 150 passing yards and two touchdowns, a performance that fit the poise Golesh said he values most.
What stood out afterward was the mutual respect between the coach and quarterback, a reminder that this one was about more than a signature upset. Golesh pointed to Browns preparation and toughness, using the night as another example of why trust in the process and a collective approach still matter when the opponent is ranked No. 1. For Auburn, the victory will live on for what it meant in the standings, but for Golesh and Brown, it also served as a validation of the work that had been building behind the scenes. [Read more 🡒]