CBS Sports Believes This Is the Biggest Question Surrounding the Auburn Tigers Ahead of SEC Media Days

Heading into one of the biggest events in the SEC before the season, what do we need to know the most about Alex Golesh's group?

Auburn head coach Alex Golesh and the Tigers will speak on Tuesday in Tampa, Fla., for SEC Media Days. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

After a long offseason of recruiting, spring practice and a host of other tasks for new Auburn Tigers head coach Alex Golesh, the time has finally come for him and the Tigers to make the trip to Tampa for SEC Media Days. Of course, with so many changes occurring on the Plains over the past few months, there will be a host of questions for the Tigers’ new skipper, but one question may stand above them all, according to CBS Sports.

The question itself is simple: ‘Are the dark days over?’ However, as is the nature of the sport, Tiger fans will, unfortunately, not have an answer to that question until the season kicks off and they see their team in action. 

After all, the Tigers have not turned in a winning season since 2020, the year Gus Malzahn was fired, and have not beaten Alabama, their bitterest rival, in the same time. The program is now on its third head coach since then, as neither Bryan Harsin nor Hugh Freeze worked out, and Tiger fans are growing weary of watching their team consistently disappoint.

There is a host of evidence that the program is trending in the right direction, though. Byrum Brown, a Golesh piece from USF, is the first starting quarterback with no major issues that the Tigers have had in some time, as Payton Thorne struggled with interceptions while Jackson Arnold was sacked more than any quarterback in the SEC while he was active. 

In fact, he is expected to be a massive difference-maker on the Plains this year, something Tiger fans have not been able to anticipate for quite a few years now. Additionally, the Tigers’ rushing core seems stronger than ever with the additions of Bryson Washington, Nykahi Davenport and others, and Golesh has been clear that he is looking to utilize each to the best of their abilities.

The passing game is still largely a question mark at this point in the season, especially since most of the Tigers’ receivers are transplants from USF, which may prove to be a double-edged sword for Golesh. Sure, the familiarity with Brown should make offensive installation much easier and more consistent, but the question still remains as to whether or not they will be able to compete against SEC defenses.

Defensively, the Tigers are poised for another dominant season, despite the losses of Keldric Faulk and Keyron Crawford to the NFL Draft, as well as a few other notable losses to the transfer portal. Golesh and returning defensive coordinator DJ Durkin have worked tirelessly to get the Tigers’ defense back where it needs to be, and it will certainly be interesting to see how they perform when SEC play kicks off in mid-September.

So, though Tiger fans may not have an answer to their most burning question in the near future, the evidence shows that, at the very least, the program is trending in the right direction. All Golesh has to do now is keep them on that path.

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