Auburn left Week 4 with its first SEC win under Alex Golesh, but the bigger story across the league was everything that happened around the Tigers.
The 3-1 start matters, of course. So does the win over Vanderbilt. But this weekend also sharpened the picture in the SEC, and it did not exactly make Auburn’s road any simpler from here.
Florida, for one, looks like a different team.
The Gators have already beaten Auburn and Ole Miss, and they now sit inside the AP Top 25 top 10. Under new head coach Jon Sumrall, they’ve come out of the gate fast, and their offense has the kind of juice that turns a Saturday into a problem for anybody on the schedule. Running back Jadan Bough is the engine, and Florida is starting to look like a real College Football Playoff contender.
At the other end of the SEC, South Carolina’s situation looks uglier by the week.
After a blowout loss to Alabama, the article’s verdict was blunt: it is time to move on from Shane Beamer. Beamer opened his run in Columbia with two winning seasons, but he is 35-32 over six years at the school. Since the beginning of 2025, that slide has gotten much steeper, with South Carolina going 6-10 and 1-9 in SEC play.
Mississippi State has also introduced one of those quarterbacks the league seems to get every year.
Last season, it was Ole Miss’ Trinidad Chambliss. This year, the name is Kamario Taylor.
Mississippi State’s top-25 win over Missouri turned even more attention his way, and the Bulldogs now look like a team that could hang around near the top of the conference. Auburn will see them later this season in Starkville.
Then there’s Tennessee, which gave Texas a fight but still left a lot of questions behind.
The Longhorns, ranked No. 1, beat Tennessee 20-17 at Neyland Stadium in a game that drew a huge College GameDay crowd to Knoxville. The Volunteers kept it close, but much of that came from the defense, which made Arch Manning and the Texas offense work for everything.
The offense, though, was a different story. Tennessee managed only 221 total yards and allowed 10 sacks. That’s not the kind of number that makes you feel great heading into Auburn’s trip to Knoxville this weekend, especially with a matchup against Alex Golesh’s former team carrying plenty of emotion.
And then there’s the last question hanging over the weekend: what happened to John Mateer?
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 🡒]