Takeaways From Auburn’s Hard-Fought Win Over Arkansas

The Auburn Tigers snapped a two-game losing streak on Saturday, beating the Arkansas Razorbacks 26-23 in Alex Golesh’s first career win over Arkansas head coach Ryan Silverfield. It was far from a pretty game for the Tigers, but Golesh’s squad came to life at just the right moment and held on to secure the Tigers’ fifth win of the season.

The matchup was more of a rock fight than the final score would tell you, and there is plenty we can learn from the Tigers’ rebound win. Let’s break it down.

All The Above

To put it bluntly, the Tigers looked nearly completely ineffective throughout the first half, scoring just three points on 109 total offensive yards. Fans and social media commentators were already drawing comparisons to the Tigers’ loss to Kentucky a year ago at the half, but in the third quarter, things began to trend in the right direction.

The Tigers entered the fourth quarter down 16-9, but during the break between quarters, something shifted, and we don’t know exactly why. Maybe it was something Golesh said; maybe it was T-Pain and Maino’s ‘All The Above’ ringing in the fourth quarter in the stadium, harkening back to the Tigers’ 2010 teams– whatever it was, it worked.

The Tigers came out in the fourth quarter with a new level of intensity, managing 165 yards of total offense, including 116 rushing yards and 17 total points, and even with a three-and-out mixed in, the Tigers refused to slow their momentum, controlled the clock, shut down Arkansas’ offense late and walked out with a win.

Auburn’s inability to finish games over the past few seasons has been a recurring issue, but the Tigers found a way on Saturday against Arkansas. Though it wasn’t the prettiest win, closing out a hard-fought game like the group did may be a sign that things are looking up on the Plains after all.

GET READY TO COMPETE

Pick your champion (you can change it later). We’ll email you when brackets open.

No purchase necessary. 50 U.S./D.C. 18+. Entry opens 3PM ET Dec 6, 2026 and closes 8PM ET Dec 18, 2026. Void where prohibited.See for complete details. The College Football Playoff (CFP) is not a sponsor or administrator of this contest.

Three-and-Outs

Despite how impressive the Tigers’ late-game heroics to seal the win were, they would not have been necessary had the team produced anything reminiscent of offensive efficiency in the first half. Yet again, the Tigers struggled to get going early on, going three-and-out a whopping four times in the first half alone.

The rushing attack, even against Arkansas’ weak rushing defense, was nearly nonexistent for three quarters, as the Tigers had just 67 total rushing yards through the end of the third quarter. Byrum Brown, nearly on his own, got the Tigers’ rushing attack back into the conversation in the fourth quarter, opening up the rest of the Tigers’ offensive attack.

There is still quite a lot of room for the Tigers’ offense to improve over the next few weeks, as teams like Mississippi State and Alabama will not be so kind to such a slow start.

Oh, Toodles!

The Tigers were already limping into this game, held back by the losses of Bryce Deas and Sylvester Smith-Reed, who did not participate in the matchup, but then both De’Marcus Riddick and Elijah Melendez also went down for some time, and the Tigers needed someone to step up.

Shadarius Toodle, a true freshman linebacker, answered the call. The former four-star recruit totaled 11 tackles, including 10 solo tackles, both of which led the team. He also managed three sacks and 4.5 tackles for loss for the Tigers, who may now have an up-and-coming star defensive player on their hands.

Melendez and Riddick were able to finish the game, but Toodle did not come off the field for any significant period of time after being inserted, meaning the Tigers already have enough faith in the freshman to utilize him in big-time moments. We still don’t know how long Deas will be out, meaning we’re likely to see quite a bit more of Toodle in the coming games.

Sign up for our free Auburn Tigers newsletter and follow us on Facebook and X for the latest news!

Add us as a preferred source on Google