Auburn’s trip to Ole Miss turned into a familiar kind of frustration, and Alex Golesh didn’t hide it afterward. After the Tigers fell 45-15 on Saturday, the head coach zeroed in on one issue above all the rest: Auburn simply didn’t finish.
The Tigers were still in the game into the third quarter, but the wheels came off fast from there. Ole Miss ripped off 28 unanswered points and outscored Auburn 31-6 in the second half, leaving Golesh to sort through a performance that he clearly felt slipped away in too many places.
“That’s the part that's making me sick is the lack of finish,” Golesh said.
He added that it was the first time he’d seen that kind of fade from his team this season.
Auburn’s offense never found a real rhythm on the ground, and that was a problem from the start. The Tigers went into the game hoping to attack an Ole Miss rushing defense that had been struggling, but they never consistently got the run game going. Golesh said Auburn mixed in outside zone, gap schemes and quarterback runs while trying to keep things moving.
“We kind of tried a little bit of everything to try to stay in rhythm,” Golesh said.
Even with those adjustments, Auburn averaged about three yards on first down, which kept the offense stuck in tough third-down spots. By the end of the day, the Tigers had just 63 rushing yards against an Ole Miss defense that had been allowing 161 yards per game, the worst mark in the SEC.
Golesh also walked through the changes Auburn made up front. Wilson Zierer moved to right tackle, Stanton Ramil played left tackle, Jacobe Ward got an opportunity, and Kenneth McManus shifted to the left side.
“We felt like that was the group that gave us the best chance,” Golesh said.
He said the pass protection was solid for the most part, but the run game remained a major issue.
The head coach also took responsibility for one of the game’s most damaging mistakes. A kick return left Auburn backed up at its own 1-yard line after Jeremiah Cobb started to run the ball when the other returner signaled for the play to be called dead.
“Like I own it, that's on us,” Golesh said.
That sequence helped push the game out of reach in the second half, and Golesh pointed to other avoidable errors as well. Auburn finished with eight penalties for 67 yards, including pre-snap mistakes that only made a bad afternoon worse.
Golesh’s message afterward wasn’t just about the loss. It was about what comes next. He challenged his players to raise their standard and made it clear the work has to change.
“If you think you've worked hard, you got to work harder,” Golesh said.
He also put the spotlight on his coaching staff, urging them to make sure the right players are on the field.
“Play the dudes that you feel like are going to go finish,” Golesh said.
Auburn has now dropped back-to-back games after upsetting Georgia, and Golesh’s postgame comments made it clear he sees a team that has slipped since that trip to Athens. With four games left, the Tigers need a response, and they need it quickly.
In Other News...
Auburns Biggest Problem Looks Worse Than A Talent Issue
Auburns 45-15 loss to Ole Miss did more than add another mark in the wrong column. It exposed a team still searching for basic stability, with penalties, special teams mistakes, offensive line inconsistency and a general lack of clean execution all piling up in a game that never felt close. Alex Golesh has already started making changes up front, a sign that the staff is trying to find answers quickly rather than wait for the problems to sort themselves out.
The bigger concern is that this does not look like a simple talent gap that can be fixed by one or two breakout performances. Auburns issue has become one of finishing and functioning, and the next stretch against Arkansas, Mississippi State and Samford will say a lot about whether the Tigers can turn that frustration into progress. Those games should offer a clearer read on how much of this is fixable and how much deeper the trouble really goes. [Read more 🡒]
Auburn Delivered The Kind Of SEC Road Finish Fans Love
Auburns trip to Fayetteville on Oct. 25 had the feel of a classic SEC road test, the kind that asks plenty of questions before it gives any answers. At Donald W. Reynolds Razorback Stadium, the Tigers handled Arkansas 33-24 behind a mix of contributions from Cam Coleman, Jackson Arnold, Ashton Daniels and Jeremiah Cobb, a balanced showing that gave Auburn enough offense to keep control through the finish.
For Hugh Freeze, it was the sort of result that can travel well in conference play, especially with Auburn getting production from multiple spots instead of leaning on one player alone. Arkansas interim coach Bobby Petrino was on the other sideline as the Tigers closed out a win that should resonate with fans who value a tough road finish, even if the bigger picture in the SEC still has plenty of work ahead. [Read more 🡒]
Auburn Faces A Dangerous Arkansas Team With Everything To Prove
Auburns next opponent is arriving with a point to make after a rough night in Columbia, where Arkansas coach Ryan Silverfield made it clear he was not pleased with the way his team prepared for a 34-10 loss to Missouri. The Razorbacks were pushed around on both sides of the ball, giving up major ground on the ground while also struggling to generate much of a rushing attack of their own.
Silverfields frustration adds a little extra edge to what is already a tricky matchup for Auburn, because teams coming off a performance like that tend to treat the next week like an opportunity to reset. The question now is whether Arkansas can turn that dissatisfaction into a sharper showing, or whether Auburn catches a team still trying to find its footing after a game that exposed plenty of issues. [Read more 🡒]