Auburn Offense Set to Return Shockingly Low Number of Starters in 2026

With new head coaches come new rosters, but the Auburn Tigers have been hit historically hard by the roster turnover in the wake of Hugh Freeze’s firing. Alex Golesh has reloaded his roster impressively, but that does not change the fact that the Tigers are set to return just a single offensive starter in 2026: running back Jeremiah Cobb.

In fact, the Tigers rank dead last in the SEC for roster retention in 2026, returning just three total starters across offense and defense. They are the only program in the SEC to return fewer than two offensive starters.

Of course, Cobb will be a crucial piece for Auburn’s offense in 2026, so he is a great piece to keep, but this stat truly reflects the mass exodus that hit the Plains when Alex Golesh was hired.

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Returning Starters for each SEC team in 2026

Figures compiled by @AthlonSteven pic.twitter.com/0QR9gKbJAn
— SEC Mike (@MichaelWBratton) February 17, 2026

In this offseason, the Tigers lost nearly all of their receiving room, including three of the “Freeze Four,” leaving Bryce Cain, who has just 58 career receiving yards, as the sole survivor. The Tigers also lost their entire offensive line, including center Connor Lew, who declared for the NFL Draft, and Xavier Chaplin, who transferred to Florida State.

Alex Golesh has put together some quality pieces for his receiver room in 2026, including many of his former USF receivers like Keshaun Singleton, Jeremiah Koger, Christian Neptune, Kory Pettigrew and Chas Nimrod, while also adding key pieces like former Notre Dame two-way cornerback/wide receiver Scrap Richardson.

The Tigers boasted a talented quarterback room of Jackson Arnold, Ashton Daniels and Deuce Knight in 2025, but none of the three will return in 2026. Arnold transferred to UNLV, Daniels joined Chaplin at Florida State and Knight has found himself in a bit of a sticky situation with the Ole Miss Rebels.

Though the Tigers misplaced some top talent in their quarterback room, Golesh’s acquisition at quarterback has been the story of the offseason for the Tigers, as USF quarterback Byrum Brown decided to forgo the NFL Draft after a stellar season and follow his coach to the Plains.

Where the Tigers look to be the strongest on offense, though, is the rushing attack. Golesh already had a top-tier running back in Jeremiah Cobb, but he was not satisfied with just one rushing threat. Byrum Brown rushed for over 1,000 yards in 2025, and the Tigers also inked former Baylor standout running back Bryson Washington and former USF running back Nykahi Davenport to create a true rushing four-headed monster.

So, though the Tigers are set to look absolutely nothing like they did in 2025, perhaps the changing of the guard will benefit Golesh’s squad, who were quite disappointing under Hugh Freeze last season.

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