Auburn Football: 2026 Schedule Predictions for the Tigers

Auburn has not had a winning record in five seasons, hence having their third head coach since 2020. The SEC schedule always provides a gauntlet, and this is the first year that the SEC is implementing a nine-game conference schedule. As usual, the schedule breaks down into guaranteed wins, toss-ups, and probable losses. Alex Golesh has to build a team and culture that gets this team to a winning record, and despite the tough SEC schedule, this is the year to start that. The 2026 football schedule for Auburn is the 12th-toughest in the SEC, but that is still a top-20 schedule in the country. So his work is cut out for him.

Let’s take a look.

Auburn Football: 2026 Schedule Predictions for the Tigers

September 5: vs. Baylor Bears (Atlanta Aflac Kickoff Game)

Auburn opens its season against the Baylor Bears in a neutral site game acting as a home game. Auburn AD John Cohen negotiated this opportunity to increase NIL opportunities for Auburn athletes, so hopefully it pays off.

Baylor is a toss-up simply because it is the first game of the Alex Golesh era. Golesh has to start off well, and he will because Auburn should be able to overpower Baylor. Auburn got better in the offseason at the very least from a coaching standpoint, and Baylor got worse after losing a lot of talent to the NFL and transfer portal. Some of those losses for Baylor include their starting quarterback who threw for nearly 4000 yards last season, their starting running back (who transferred to Auburn), their starting tight end who is on an NFL practice squad, and all four starting wide receivers. And that is just offensive skill positions. Baylor is also starting an almost completely new offensive line. Auburn, with a new defensive line and elite linebacker play, should be able to take advantage of these changes.

Offensively, Auburn is going to have to rely on fifth year senior Byrum Brown to lead the offense. He will be a threat on the ground and through the air, and will have to make Dave Aranda choose which one he wants to stop. However, Aranda and the Bears better not sit in two high safeties all night like they did last year; because along with Brown, Auburn has at least three running backs that will be ready to feast.

Prediction: Auburn Wins, 41-17, (1-0)

September 12: vs. Southern Miss Golden Eagles

Auburn’s second game is it’s first guaranteed win against the Southern Miss Golden Eagles. Auburn needs to score 40+ points and allow fewer than 10 in this game, and they should be able to do so.

Southern Miss went 7-6 last season and 5-3 in the Sun Belt Conference. The talent discrepancy in this game should be huge. Southern Miss also lost their head coach, who took the Memphis job, so it is a new coaching staff for the Golden Eagles. Auburn should be able to cruise to victory and get the second-string team in by halftime or shortly in the second half.

Prediction: Auburn Wins, 49-0, (2-0)

September 19: vs. Florida Gators

The most important game of September for Auburn is when the Florida Gators come to town in Week 3. The storylines in this game are great, because Jon Sumrall was predicted to be Auburn’s coach right up until the Iron Bowl when things got hairy. Then, Golesh was named Auburn’s head coach, and Sumrall went to Florida. The latter also holds the lone win over Golesh – and Golesh pays attention to those things.

Byrum Brown is the better quarterback than Aaron Philo at Florida, and that is the reason Auburn wins, because the overall talent gap is very close. These two teams are both looking to reclaim former glory, and both have good head coaches to help turn their teams around.

Prediction: Auburn Wins, 23-17, (3-0)

September 26: at Vanderbilt Commodores

The next guaranteed win for Auburn is in Week 4 when they go to Vanderbilt. Now, Vandy has beaten Auburn the last two times they have played, but there are two factors that changes that this year.

The first is that there’s no more Diego Pavia, and they are starting a freshman quarterback. The second is that Golesh knows the history of Auburn and Vanderbilt, and will not tolerate the disrespect that previous head coaches have taken.

Yet, the deciding factor in this contest is going to be quarterback play once again. Vanderbilt is expected to start a true freshman in Jared Curtis (now he is a five-star so respect must be given to his potential). Meanwhile, Auburn is starting Brown, who will be in his fourth year in the same system.

Auburn should have expanded the talent gap by simply improving their coaching, and now DJ Durkin gets a chance to redeem himself. Last time these two teams played was the first game of Durkin’s interim term with Auburn. It was also the first time his defense had allowed more than 24 points all season last year. Durkin will be looking for revenge.

Prediction: Auburn Wins, 38-10, (4-0)

October 3: at Tennessee Volunteers

The next game of the season is a toss-up against Tennessee, and it also has some very interesting ties to Golesh. Golesh coached at Tennessee under Josh Heupel as the offensive coordinator prior to taking the head coaching job at USF.

The scariest part of this game is that it is being played at Tennessee. However, similarly to the Florida game, Auburn holds the edge at quarterback because Tennessee will be starting a true freshman in Faizon Brandon. Because of this, Auburn will win at Tennessee in Week 5.

This could end up as a high-scoring game, and ultimately it is Durkin’s defense that helps seal the deal on the road. This game could be season-defining for Golesh and Auburn. If they can pull what will likely be a road upset, then their path to the College Football Playoff becomes more real.

Prediction: Auburn Wins, 34-31, (5-0)

October 17: at Georgia Bulldogs

Let’s just get this out of the way. Georgia is one of the best teams in the country and they will likely have a little bit of a chip on their shoulder with how last season ended. Auburn plays Georgia in Athens and the Tigers have not beat them in Athens in 20 years. The last time Auburn beat Georgia period, was in 2017 at Jordan-Hare. Until Auburn beats Georgia in Athens, this will be predicted as a loss, but Golesh could be the coach to turn this streak around.

Yet, other than history, Georgia has more talent, especially in the trenches, than Auburn does right now, so they should be able to overpower them. The quarterback battle should be similar in production if Byrum Brown successfully transitions to the SEC. However, Gunner Stockton might be one of the most underrated quarterbacks in the SEC. He’s not a sexy dual threat, but is extremely capable. Stockton also has the moxie to put his head down and carry his team to a win. Will that lead to him having CTE in the future? Probably. Will it lead Georgia to a deep playoff run this year? Also probably.

Prediction: Auburn Loses, 28-21, (5-1)

October 24: vs. LSU Tigers

The LSU game follows two road games and is in the middle of the toughest stretch of Auburn’s schedule this year. LSU is a band of mercenaries led by the king mercenary himself, Lane Kiffin.

Kiffin and the Tigers have sky high expectations that won’t be met this year because it is the first year of a new coach, system, and players coming in from all over the country being paid an exorbitant amount of money. Super teams rarely work, especially in the first year, and Kiffin does not lead teams to the promised land (if he does, he leaves them).

Auburn wins against LSU at Jordan-Hare because the team is looking to bounce back from a loss at Georgia. Byrum Brown is a key factor in this as well as Durkin’s defense. This game is going to have offensive geniuses facing off against defensive masterminds. Kiffin vs. Durkin and Golesh vs. Baker. Because Auburn has spent all offseason resetting the culture and building a team, the Tigers pull off the upset against LSU.

Prediction: Auburn Wins, 27-24, (6-1)

October 31: at Ole Miss Rebels

There are two teams that Auburn plays this season that they will probably lose to. Those two teams are the aforementioned Georgia – and Ole Miss.

The Auburn versus Ole Miss game is one of the hardest ones to pick because the teams are coming into this season with a lot of changes. Pete Golding is getting his first shot at head coach for a full season at Ole Miss and without the assistance of Lane Kiffin or Charlie Weiss Jr. Golesh is also getting his first chance in the SEC as a head coach, and is coming to Auburn after one of their darkest spells of football ever. Ole Miss lost players with Lane Kiffin leaving, and Auburn lost players with their own regime change.

For now, Ole Miss likely wins this game because Trinidad Chambliss has the potential to be the best quarterback in the country. If he can continue his stellar performances from last season without the offensive staff from last season, he can win the Heisman and lead Ole Miss to the playoffs (and a win over Auburn).

However, Auburn can win this game, especially if Trinidad is stifled without the offensive coaching he received last year. However, they will have to play a near-perfect defensive game. There is a lot of youth on Auburn’s defense mixed with some experienced players as well, but to beat Ole Miss they all have to step up to stop this offense.

Prediction: Auburn Loses, 31-24, (6-2)

November 7: vs. Arkansas Razorbacks

The third guaranteed win on the 2026 schedule does not come again until Week 10, when Auburn plays Arkansas at home.

Arkansas is led by new head coach Ryan Silverfield, who was previously the head coach at Memphis. Funny enough, prior to accepting the job at Auburn, Golesh was rumored to have accepted the Arkansas job.

Arkansas should be one of the worst teams in the SEC, even if Silverfield can make an impact in year one. They lost their starting quarterback to graduation and the NFL. And, in general, they will be less talented than Auburn this year. Silverfield is making waves on the recruiting trails, so Auburn and the rest of the SEC will need to keep their head on a swivel when Arkansas comes to town in the future. But for now, Auburn should win this game handedly and without kicking six field goals.

Prediction: Auburn Wins, 45-10, (7-2)

November 14: at Mississippi State Bulldogs

Mississippi State’s Kamario Taylor is a witch, and truly a dual threat going into his second year in Jeff Lebby’s system. He will be a problem for years to come. Lebby is potentially starting to coach for his job at this point in the season and will need to make a statement win. Auburn will need to be prepared to go on the road and snatch a victory in the process. This can be done by establishing the run with their 3-headed monster in the backfield of Jeremiah Cobb, Omar Mabson, and Bryson Washington. Not to mention, the threat Byrum Brown also provides.

Ultimately the secondary, with players like Eric Winters, Kaleb Harris, Sylvester Smith-Reed, Champ Anthony, Andre Jordan Jr, and Gavin Jenkins will cause a lot of problems for Taylor and create multiple turnovers in this game. This is helped by the fact that Jared Smith and Cody Sigler and company should create a lot of pressure without having to bring linebackers on blitzes. Taylor will not be able to handle it and Auburn will win.

Prediction: Auburn Wins, 38-17, (8-2)

November 21: vs. Samford Bulldogs

The final home game for Auburn this season is against in-state team Samford. The only reason this game has any fear is because of the in-state factor, but Auburn should handle business. The talent gap will be too far apart for Samford to keep up, and Auburn should win handedly. Plus, the Tigers have a head coach now that actually likes to coach instead of play golf, so the little details will be cleaned up for this game weeks in advance.

Prediction: Auburn Wins, 52-0, (9-2)

November 28: at Alabama Crimson Tide, The Iron Bowl

If you’re doing the math, Auburn has a lot of toss up games this year. Baylor, Florida, Tennessee, LSU, and Alabama are those toss ups. Honestly, Ole Miss and Alabama could switch places in this schedule depending on quarterback play.

The Iron Bowl is always going to be a toss-up. It does not matter if one or both teams are ranked or not. It also doesn’t matter if one team is 11-0 and one is 2-9 – these teams will always compete.

Golesh, despite being an outsider to the rivalry, understands its importance. He has incorporated an Iron Bowl period at practice to help emphasize the rivalry. Auburn has not won at Bryant-Denny stadium since the Camback in 2010. Due to this factor and the game being in Bryant-Denny again, Auburn will lose the final game of the season, but it will be close.

Prediction: Auburn Loses, 35-31, (9-3)

Final Thoughts

With the guaranteed wins, losses, and the toss-ups combined, Auburn will go 9-3 in 2026 with key wins against Florida and LSU at home. The Tigers will also have key wins on the road against Tennessee, Vanderbilt, and Mississippi State. The Tigers’ three losses will all come on the road against Georgia, Ole Miss, and Alabama.

This schedule has been touted as extremely tough, but every team on Auburn’s schedule has very important questions to answer – and fast, so some of these games could easily take an unexpected turn. At a minimum, Auburn has to win seven games this season. And even that could be considered a slight disappointment. However, Alex Golesh can get this team going in the right direction with the right record.