Auburn’s 3-1 start has put the Tigers in a spot where bowl chatter is already starting, and CBS Sports is buying in. Even with a schedule that only gets nastier from here, Brad Crawford’s latest bowl projection has Auburn headed to the Texas Bowl to face West Virginia.
That forecast comes with a pretty clear warning label: the path to six wins looks steep. Auburn’s only remaining games that CBS would consider early favorites are against Arkansas and Samford, and neither of those matchups arrives before November. With bowl eligibility usually sitting at six victories, the Tigers may need to steal one more game from the SEC gauntlet if they want to get there.
The next stretch starts this weekend in Knoxville against Tennessee, where Alex Golesh coached as an offensive coordinator back in 2023. The Volunteers are ranked No. 17 after a 20-17 loss to Texas.
A bye week follows, and then Auburn heads to Athens for a meeting with Georgia. The Bulldogs are No. 2 in the country after a 41-13 rout of Oklahoma, and while they still have Florida coming up this Saturday, they look every bit like a heavyweight right now.
After that, Auburn finally returns home for a matchup with LSU, which is ranked No. 11 and now led by Lane Kiffin after a loss to Ole Miss last week. The Tigers then get another huge test on Halloween against No. 9 Ole Miss, a team that beat LSU in Week 3 before falling badly to Florida this past weekend.
From there, Auburn gets Arkansas at home, then goes to Starkville to face Mississippi State, which is ranked No. 16 and described as red-hot. The regular season then closes with Samford at home before the Iron Bowl in Tuscaloosa against Alabama, which is No. 7 in the country.
If Auburn can grab one of those marquee SEC games, bowl eligibility should be within reach because of the 3-1 start. But there’s nothing easy about what comes next, and the Tigers are going to have to keep getting better if they want to keep this projection alive.
In Other News...
Former Auburn Captain Rips Shane Beamer Over SEC Discipline Drama
South Carolinas handling of Dylan Stewarts outburst against Alabama has become a bigger talking point than the game itself, and former Auburn captain Chandler Wooten has jumped right into the middle of it. After the EDGE was suspended indefinitely by Shane Beamer, Wooten publicly said the punishment did not go far enough, adding another layer to a situation that already put the Gamecocks under an uncomfortable spotlight.
It was the kind of incident that can linger long after the final whistle, especially when it involves on-field punches, an argument with coaches and a head coach trying to manage the fallout in public. For Auburn fans, Wootens criticism also lands with some weight because he knows the SEC landscape well, and his comments only deepen the sense that South Carolina is dealing with more than a simple discipline issue. [Read more 🡒]
Bo Nix Delivered In Prime Time When Denver Needed Him Most
Bo Nix has already given Denver a signature moment this season, and he did it under the lights when the Broncos needed it most. In Sunday nights 30-26 win over the Rams, the former Auburn quarterback threw two touchdown passes and then finished the job himself with a game-winning sneak in the closing seconds, capping a comeback that had the stadium leaning on every snap.
Nix talked afterward about the comeback and the final drive, the kind of postgame reflection that usually follows a young quarterbacks first true late-game test. Denver gets a short turn of the page now, with the 49ers up next, but this was the sort of prime-time finish that can change how a team and a quarterback carry themselves the rest of the way. [Read more 🡒]
Auburns First Road Test Comes With Real SEC Pressure
Auburns first true road test of the season comes with plenty of familiar SEC weight, and it lands in a place that holds some added meaning for head coach Alex Golesh. The Tigers are set to visit No. 17 Tennessee, a team that is trying to steady itself after a recent loss to Texas, and the trip sends Golesh back to Knoxville, where he previously worked as the Volunteers offensive coordinator.
The matchup also puts Auburn in front of another true freshman quarterback, Tennessees Faizon Brandon, which gives the Tigers a new version of a challenge they have already seen recently. For Auburn, it is the kind of early conference road game that can shape the mood around a season, especially with the noise, speed and pressure that come with playing in the SEC away from home. [Read more 🡒]