Auburn HC Alex Golesh Narrowing Down 2026 Receiver Rotation

With the Auburn Tigers taking on Baylor in just under two weeks, head coach Alex Golesh spoke to the media about what people can expect the full wide receiver rotation to look like for quarterback Byrum Brown this season.

The receiver room is completely revamped for the Tigers heading into 2026. After a disappointing end to 2025 and the hiring of Golesh, the top seven leading pass catches from a year ago departed via the transfer portal. This led the former University of South Florida (USF) head coach to bring along a lot of talent he was familiar with.

Former Bulls Keshaun Singleton, Chas Nimrod, Jeremiah Koger, and Christian Neptune are expected to sit at the top of the receiver depth chart. All four spent their last season in Tampa catching passes from Brown. Golesh spoke to the media Monday and explained how they viewed the room as “close.”

“I think we’re close. You get really young really quick there, but really talented,” Golesh said in the press conference. “Numbers-wise, there are six that we feel good about, with a potential seventh.”

The former USF wide receivers seem to be four of the six or seven that Golesh mentioned. However, who has stood out enough to round out the group that will see the field the most? The Tigers’ head coach pointed to two true freshmen that could make an impact almost instantly despite their age.

“When I talked about figuring out what does your process look like, I'm pointing a lot to Brian Williams and DeShawn Spencer and these guys that have never played a down in college football,” Golesh stated. “It's those guys that they're pointing to and saying, this is what it actually takes to prepare for a game. You have to think a year ago, they were going out and playing on Friday night and they were the best players on the field and it was easy.”

Coming out of high school, Spencer and Williams were both three stars in the Class of 2026. Spencer was a former running back who made the switch to slot receiver, while Williams has the prototypical receiver frame at 6 ’4. Williams flipped from the Alabama Crimson Tide on signing day.

Another name that Golesh mentioned hinting at the potential seventh guy in the room is returning Tiger Sam Turner. Turner was nearly a four star when he committed to Auburn in the 2025 class. While he did not see a lot of playing time in his first year on the Plains, Golesh has enjoyed what he has seen out of him.

“As camp went, I think gives us a lot of flexibility there. He’s healthy, he’s just learning and gaining confidence,” Golesh added. “He’s kind of that wild card in the sense of he missed spring, missed a large chunk of summer, is just learning and figuring out what it is to play snap to snap. But he’s smart, he’s mature, he’s got really good hands.”

Golesh is leaning on associate head coach, co-offensive coordinator, wide receiver coach, and former Tiger himself, Kodi Burns, to help make the decision and analyze the room.

“As KB (Kodi Burns) works through that and we work through, truly, series to series, what that looks like. I’ll feel a lot better as we get a couple of games under our belt to say, they are learning and figuring it out,” Golesh said.

“It’s just like that learning curve and the growth that’s got to happen congruently.”

While the Tigers made a late acquisition in the transfer portal by adding the 5-foot-6 receiver Tray Taylor to the roster, Golesh expressed in the same press conference that his role on this year’s team will likely be in the return game.

The full receiver rotation will be revealed when the Tigers drop their Week One depth chart. It will be interesting to see what is listed and how the playing time works out in the first couple of games for Auburn.

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