Auburn will be playing its first ever game with Alex Golesh as head coach in front of the home fans at Jordan-Hare Stadium, and it’ll be a primetime affair against Southern Miss.
The Tigers will kick off with the Golden Eagles at about 7:45 p.m. ET on SEC Network, and at that moment it’ll be Golesh’s first stage on the Plains. Last week, Golesh got his first victory as Auburn head coach when the Tigers outlasted Baylor in Atlanta, and that was special, but this will be special, too.
It’s the 2026 home opener and it’s Golesh’s first chance to impress Auburn fans from up close. On Friday afternoon, a little over 24 hours before kickoff, Auburn announced the team captains who will be leading the Tigers into battle on Saturday night.
The list of 5 captains is headlined by starting quarterback Byrum Brown, who won his first game at Auburn but was anything but stellar. He tossed 3 interceptions against that Baylor defense with 0 touchdown passes, although he did go 26 of 35 for 259 yards passing.
Brown will try to be much better in Week 2 in his own home debut at Auburn, and Golesh has entrusted him to do that while being a team captain for the occasion.
While Brown is the captain headliner, there are 4 other players who received the honor for the Week 2 matchup. They are sophomore wide receiver Bryce Cain, senior running back Jeremiah Cobb, sophomore linebacker Elijah Melendez and senior safety Sylvester Smith-Reed.
Auburn will be trying to stack another win on top of that season-opening triumph, and here is what the Kalshi market is currently saying about the Tigers’ potential win total for the 2026 season:
Cory Nightingale, a former sportswriter and sports editor at the Miami Herald and Palm Beach Post, is a South Florida-based freelance writer who covers Alabama for SaturdayDownSouth.com.
