Auburn Head Coach Alex Golesh Prepares For Familiar Opponent With New Staff

The Auburn Tigers takes on the Baylor Bears in Atlanta during Week 1 of the 2026 college football season for the second straight year, but the changes to the sideline for the Big 12 opponent make the preparation more difficult with the game taking place in less than two weeks.

Despite the Tigers going through a brand new regime change by bringing in head coach Alex Golesh to be the next leader of the program, Baylor’s changes to their staff creates more needed preparation even though the two schools faced off just a year ago.

“Week 1 is always unique, especially if there are coaching changes. Obviously, drastically unique for them. They played Auburn a year ago defensively so, there is some familiarity there. Unique offensively for us, simply because of a coordinator change on defense,” Golesh said.

“So, Week 1 is always an interesting chess match because you have got multiple things you are looking at and you are trying to guess a lot, so that is what makes it kind of unique.”

Golesh then explained doing the extra groundwork in this case can uncover special insight into the game or nothing at all.

“You take this extra week, which sometimes can be detrimental, because now you are just digging deeper and deeper,” he said. “Which could either mean you are going to be more detailed, or it can mean that you are just going down rabbit holes that do not exist.”

Baylor’s shift in coaching came predominantly on the defensive side of the ball. Head coach Dave Aranda has been with the program for six full seasons and entering his seventh season, has given up defensive play calling duties to focus on program oversight and head coaching. Newly hired defensive coordinator Joe Klanderman, who spent the last seven years at Kansas State, will be calling plays for the defense in 2026.

While Aranda is highly regarded to be on the hot seat after a 36-37 record in his time at Baylor, Golesh knows his time in the sport and a new man running the defense cannot be looked past.

“Defensively, a coaching change with the defensive coordinator coming in from Kansas State,” Golesh said. “Obviously. coach Aranda has made a name as a defensive guy for a really long time in this league and around the country. So, we are trying to work through what that is going to look like and that will present some challenges in itself.”

On top of the coaching changes defensively, the Tigers’ head coach also pointed to the offense, which, while still run by Jake Spavital, is different with former Florida Gators quarterback DJ Lagway at the helm.

“The challenges these guys present, a new quarterback, was in this league. At his best, he is as good of a quarterback as there is in the country,” Golesh added. “That is what we are preparing for defensively. An offense that a year ago, once they got going, could tempo you, which we are at least prepared in that regard, the explosive throughout the year.”

Auburn may have some insight into this offense with former Baylor running back Bryson Washington coming over from Waco, Texas, in the transfer portal. Golesh finished up his comments on this week’s preparation by saying they will use Washington’s knowledge of the offense to create possible advantages to stop the Bears.

“I have not picked his brain a whole lot, but we will sit down here as we go and see what he knows,” the Auburn head coach said. “He had a great game against Auburn a year ago and had two really, really good seasons there. So we will certainly pick his brain and see what he has got.”

Auburn takes on the Bears in the 2026 Aflac Kickoff Game on September 5 in Atlanta, with both staff renovations on full display.

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