Auburn gets a different kind of test in Week 2, and Southern Miss arrives in Auburn carrying some early momentum of its own.
The Tigers are 1-0 after hanging on against Baylor, 17-16, in last Saturday’s Aflac Kickoff game. Now the focus shifts to the home opener, a 6:45 p.m. CT start on the SEC Network against a Southern Miss team that just opened its own season with a 49-3 rout of Alcorn.
Southern Miss has a new voice running the program. Blake Anderson became the 24th head coach in school history last December after Charles Huff was hired at Memphis.
Anderson came to the job after previous head-coaching stops at Utah State and Arkansas State, and he also spent the 2025 season at Southern Miss as offensive coordinator. His passing offense finished first in the Sun Belt.
Anderson’s resume is a long one. In 10 seasons as a Division I head coach, he is 75-54 with nine bowl games and three conference titles. He started this season with a blowout win, then made clear afterward that he still wants more from his team.
“The things I challenged them with was just effort,” Anderson said following Saturday’s win. “I thought we played hard.
I’m not going to crown them yet. I’m sure we can do better, but we played hard.
They’ve adopted and adapted to the culture, and how hard we’re being on them, and they’re starting to finish their sentences and do it.”
A big reason Southern Miss looked so sharp in Week 1 was the defense. The Golden Eagles held Alcorn to 223 total yards while forcing five turnovers. Kolbi Albert did the damage in the secondary, picking off three passes by himself.
Up front, Southern Miss limited the run game to 104 rushing yards and finished with one sack. That unit will get a chance to measure itself against an Auburn offense that had its own issues in the opener, when Byrum Brown was sacked five times and threw three interceptions against Baylor.
Albert summed up his night this way: “Just surreal,” Kolbi Albert said postgame. “Just the work that I put in this offseason is just starting to pay off.
And really, just the work that I put in the past couple years is starting to pay off. Been a couple places, haven’t really been able to get the opportunity to be on the field.
Now that I’m actually being able to be on the field, I’m actually able to show people what I can do.”
This will be the first meeting between Auburn and Southern Miss since the Tigers’ 24-13 win in 2018. The programs first played in 1992, and Auburn leads the all-time series 18-5.
Southern Miss did beat Auburn twice in a row in Jordan-Hare Stadium from 1990-1991, but Auburn has won the last four meetings dating back to 1992.
In Other News...
Bryce Cain Is Forcing His Way Into Auburns Plans
Bryce Cain has gone from a name on the depth chart to someone Auburns staff is actively trying to get on the field more often. Head coach Alex Golesh said the Tigers plan to keep folding Cain into the game plan after a recent explosive play, and he pointed to the way Cain has handled special teams as part of the reason the coaches are taking a harder look at his role.
For a team still sorting out where its best pieces fit, that kind of production tends to travel. Cain has clearly done enough to earn more opportunities, and Auburn is now working through how to create them in the offense without losing what he already brings on special teams. The next step is less about whether he belongs in the mix and more about how quickly the Tigers can turn that into a bigger role. [Read more 🡒]
Auburns Injury Picture Up Front Just Got A Lot More Interesting
Auburns front was a major concern coming out of the season opener against Baylor, when four trench players went down and left the Tigers waiting on clarity during the early part of the week. Alex Golesh has now provided a much better read on the group, and it points to a healthier rotation heading into the matchup with Southern Mississippi, with the staff getting encouraging signs on both sides of the line.
Cole Skinner and Jacob Strand are expected to be available, and edge rusher Chris Murray is already confirmed healthy, which gives Auburn a stronger baseline up front than it had a few days ago. DaShawn Womack is still working through a lower-body injury and remains day-to-day, though there is at least a chance he could return to practice later in the week, leaving one final question for a unit that suddenly looks far less depleted. [Read more 🡒]
Alex Golesh Sent Auburn Fans An Early Message After Ugly Win
Alex Golesh spent the day after Auburns 17-16 win over Baylor putting the focus on the problems behind it, not the relief of escaping with a victory. The Auburn coach took responsibility for the offensive mistakes, including three interceptions from quarterback Byrum Brown, and said the standard has to be the same for him and the players. In a game that still counted as a win, Golesh made it clear the performance on that side of the ball was not close to where it needs to be.
Golesh pointed to the offenses lack of rhythm as a major issue and stressed that Auburn has to do a better job protecting the quarterback and running the football. It was an early message, but an important one, because ugly wins can hide problems only so long in a season. For Auburn, the concern is not just cleaning up turnovers, but making sure the offense finds something steadier before the next tight game forces the same questions again. [Read more 🡒]