CBS Sports Ranks Auburn QB Byrum Brown: ‘Big Reunion’

With a few months still to go before the Auburn Tigers open their season against Baylor, and with so many new and less-familiar faces, most Tiger fans still are not sure what to think of new quarterback Byrum Brown.

He joined the program to quite a bit of fanfare, but now expectations seem to be dulling for the veteran, especially after his less-than-perfect spring game.

CBS Sports, in an article ranking all college football quarterbacks, placed Brown in the ‘Big Reunion’ tier, a spot reserved for quarterbacks who made the trip to transfer to a new program with their head coach. In Brown’s case, he transferred to Auburn to follow his USF head coach, Alex Golesh.

“Watching Brown last year, it was hard to tell that he was coming off a broken leg suffered midway through the 2024 season,” CBS Sports’ David Cobb wrote. “He ran the football with vigor and physicality, tallying 1,008 yards and 14 scores on the ground to go with another 28 touchdowns and 3,158 yards passing. Auburn is getting a veteran star who knows coach Alex Golesh's system.”

System familiarity seems to be the No. 1 aspect of Brown’s game that has been talked about over the past few months, especially since Golesh also brought over several receivers, offensive line pieces and even a running back who played with Brown at USF last season.

In essence, the benefit of this familiarity is that, unlike many other new quarterbacks, not a lot is changing for Brown besides the name on the front of his jersey, as Golesh also brought over offensive coordinator Joel Gordon, with whom Brown has plenty of experience.

The Tigers’ offense will likely largely resemble that of the USF Bulls last year, and why would it not? After all, all of Auburn’s expected starters at receiver and tight end will have played with Brown for at least one season, with veteran players like Keshaun Singleton boasting multiple years of experience with Brown.

Brown’s veteran experience does not just mean he will quickly understand a familiar system, either; in fact, veteran players are logically better at adjusting on the fly, adapting to difficult situations and playing in hostile environments, as any of these are rarely something a veteran has never had to do before.

So, though Brown may be losing a little bit of hype in the preseason due to a less-than-ideal spring game and a few stray clips of his unique going viral, CBS Sports seems confident that Brown’s experience will make him a great piece for the Tigers in the fall.

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