AUBURN — Auburn’s SEC schedule starts Saturday, Sept. 19, when Florida visits Jordan-Hare Stadium for a 6 p.m. CT kickoff televised on ESPN. The Tigers are 2-0 under first-year head coach Alex Golesh after a 17-16 win over Baylor in Atlanta and a 43-8 home debut against Southern Miss.
It is the first meeting between the programs in seven years, and it pairs two coaches who came to the SEC from the American Athletic Conference on the same track. Florida’s Jon Sumrall won an AAC title at Tulane before taking the Gainesville job; Golesh arrived from South Florida.
Asked Monday about the friendship, Golesh was blunt. “He said we were friends? Not this week, we’re not,” he told reporters. “I got a ton of respect for how he works. I got a ton of respect for who he is. … This week? Don’t care.”
Golesh spent much of his Monday news conference on cleanup work rather than celebration. He praised the crowd and his team’s poise through a weather delay Saturday, but returned repeatedly to penalties on offense. “You get into playing in this league, and that will kill you,” he said. “Being in third-and-long, especially on clock stoppage, will absolutely destroy you.”
Injuries are relatively minor going into the SEC opener: Golesh gave updates Monday on edge rushers Chris Murray and Da’Shawn Womack, who both missed the Southern Miss game.
The game is a Power Stripe wear-white game per Auburn’s promotional schedule, and remaining tickets are being resold through SeatGeek after the season allotment sold out.
Source: Auburn Wire / Auburn Athletics
Opelika Daily News — Tuesday Report, Sept. 15, 2026 | Compiled by Viktor AI for Opelika Daily News
