Discrediting Two Overreactions from Auburn’s A-Day Game

It would not be a college football preseason if there were not a few overreactions to a spring game, and the Auburn Tigers have certainly given their fans some things to hyperfocus on. On Saturday, the team stepped out into Jordan-Hare Stadium in front of fans for the first time under new head coach Alex Golesh, and to say the results were unexpected would be an understatement.

So, which concerns are legitimate and which are overreactions? This article will examine two major threads of discourse across the Auburn community and explain exactly why the Tigers’ offense may not be quite as bad as some may think.

Overreaction: Tristan Ti’a Will Start Over Byrum Brown

This overreaction may be a result of a bit of post-traumatic stress for Auburn fans, who watched Jackson Arnold struggle immensely last year before being benched for Ashton Daniels late in the season. In this year’s spring game, expected starter Byrum Brown completed just half of his 14 passes for 85 yards, while throwing two interceptions and rushing for just six yards.

Tristan Ti’a, conversely, had quite the game in front of the Auburn faithful, passing for 179 yards on 15-20 completions, including both a passing and rushing touchdown. On paper, it certainly seems like Ti’a is the better option, but there are a few factors that many fans forget when discussing the two.

First, there is past production. Brown was the only quarterback in football last year to throw for 3,000 yards and rush for an additional 1,000, including a near-300-yard passing game against then-25th-ranked North Texas. Ti’a, on the other hand, played just three games in his first year with Oregon State, passing for under 400 yards, including a bit of a shaky 3/2 touchdown-to-interception ratio.

Then, there is experience. Brown is a senior headed into the 2026 season and was USF’s full-time, highly-productive starter in both 2023 and 2025, as his 2024 season was cut short by a leg injury. Additionally, Brown has experience in both Golesh and Joel Gordon (the offensive coordinator)-led teams, unlike Ti’a.

So, though Ti’a will likely prove to be a great quarterback option for the Tigers down the road, it remains immensely likely that this year will belong to Brown.

Overreaction: Auburn’s Run Game Is Weak

This could simply not be further from the case, even if no Auburn back rushed for over 60 yards in the spring game. Golesh has emphasized that Auburn’s offense will live and die by the run, yet did not lean on it particularly heavily during A-Day.

In fact, Auburn was nearly split 50/50 between rushing and passing plays on the day, illustrating a more balanced offense that works well for practices and scrimmages, but likely will not be used throughout the 2026 season.

Plus, it does not hurt that Auburn’s rush defense has been consistently one of the best in the SEC, which would explain why there was only one breakaway rush, which was Jeremiah Cobb’s 33-yarder in the first quarter.

So, though Auburn’s rushing attack was quite muted in the Tigers’ spring game, it holds that the Tigers are almost certainly expecting to use an entirely different kind of offense altogether when it comes time for the regular season.

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