Auburn's Vanderbilt Spot Just Got More Interesting After The Florida Setup

Auburn fans eagerly anticipate an afternoon showdown as the Tigers aim to break their losing streak against a revamped Vanderbilt squad under the SEC spotlight.

Auburn’s Week 4 meeting with Vanderbilt now has a kickoff time and a TV home.

The Tigers and Commodores will square off Sept. 26 at 4:15 p.m. CDT on SEC Network, the league announced Monday afternoon. It will be Auburn’s first afternoon game at Jordan-Hare Stadium, with both the Southern Miss and Florida games either played or scheduled to be played under the lights.

The matchup had been slotted for an afternoon window over the summer, which left open the possibility of a 2:30 p.m. CDT kickoff on ESPN or ABC. Instead, Ole Miss-Florida and Oklahoma-Georgia landed those spots.

Auburn is trying to stop a two-game skid against Vanderbilt. The Commodores beat the Tigers in 2024 under Hugh Freeze and again in 2025 with then-interim head coach DJ Durkin.

Diego Pavia, who spent the past few years giving Auburn fits, is no longer in the picture. The former Vanderbilt quarterback and Heisman Trophy finalist first helped New Mexico State to a blowout win over Auburn in 2023 before transferring to Vanderbilt and beating the Tigers twice more.

This year, Vanderbilt is breaking in a different look at quarterback. Blaze Berlowitz has started the first two games, but true freshman and former five-star Jared Curtis saw significant action this past weekend against Delaware.

No matter who gets the nod, the trip to Auburn will be Vanderbilt’s first road game of the season.

Auburn, meanwhile, is set to come off what could be its biggest game of the year against Florida. That makes the mood inside the locker room hard to pin down heading into the Vanderbilt matchup.

If Auburn beats the Gators on Saturday, the energy around the program could spike in a way the fanbase hasn’t felt in years. But if Jon Sumrall’s team comes away with the win, it could knock Auburn’s confidence and turn the Vanderbilt game into a trap.

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Chad Baker-Mazaras abrupt exit from USC has taken on a far more serious edge, turning what looked like a routine roster separation into a legal fight with real reputational stakes. The former Auburn standout filed a lawsuit against Trojans coach Eric Musselman, alleging a racially charged rant after a game and wrongful dismissal from the basketball program, while also claiming USC skipped an NIL payment as the school moved to end the agreement under a morals clause.

The suit adds a new layer to a situation Auburn fans know well from Baker-Mazaras earlier career arc, because it centers not just on how his USC stint ended, but on what the fallout may have cost him. He is suing for breach of contract and other claims, and says the dismissal damaged his NBA Draft stock, leaving the case about far more than one lost roster spot. [Read more 🡒]

Alex Golesh Sees One Early Sign Auburn Fans Will Love

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Golesh also made clear the job is far from finished, with plenty of challenges still ahead in a league that does not give many easy answers. Even so, his confidence in the direction of the program seemed rooted in something Auburn fans tend to notice early: whether the team looks connected when things get hard. By that measure, he believes the Tigers are starting to show the kind of buy-in that can matter long after one game week ends. [Read more 🡒]

Auburn Commit Just Gave Fans Another Reason To Believe In Golesh

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Halls path to Auburn also gives the commitment a little extra weight. He had once been viewed as a likely Penn State lean before choosing the Tigers, and his continued confidence in the program has only grown since Alex Golesh took over. With Hall now talking up Auburns direction after another standout performance, he looks like more than just a name in the class. [Read more 🡒]