What a Successful Auburn Season Looks Like Under Alex Golesh

As Alex Golesh begins his tenure as the new head coach of the Auburn Tigers, no one seems to be sure what exactly to expect from this season. After all, Auburn fans are quite used to getting their hopes up, just to be disappointed down the road.

So, what does a successful season in Golesh’s first year look like? There are plenty of ideas and suggestions, but in my eyes, there are three key factors that build a ‘successful’ season under Golesh.

Win Total

The Tigers still have not had a winning season since Gus Malzahn was fired in 2020, despite working through two other coaches in Bryan Harsin and Hugh Freeze. For Golesh to consider this season a success, the Tigers obviously need to have a winning season, though a barely bowl-eligible season (6-6) with a bowl win would suffice if it really came down to it.

The problem with settling for a 6-6 regular season record, though, is that it would only be deemed ‘successful’ because the Tigers of late have just been that bad. Though many would view a bowl game as a big step up for the Tigers, I think Auburn needs to have a true winning season, with seven to eight wins, before a bowl game, at a minimum, to consider the first season under Golesh a success.

Competitiveness in Big Games

Just about every Auburn fan has two games circled on the calendar every year, regardless of how good the Tigers are: Georgia and Alabama. These two rivalry matchups are among the most famous in the south, and the Tigers have struggled to find their footing in these games across recent years.

Though it is definitely a reach, at this point in the season, to say that Golesh needs to win one of these high-ticket matchups for the season to be considered a success, a win against Alabama and/or Georgia would certainly put the Auburn faithful’s minds on the fast track to considering Golesh as a long-term option.

However, for this season to be deemed merely a success, I believe the Tigers simply need to be competitive in these games. After all, Georgia and Alabama, as usual, are projected to be two of the best teams in football next year, and the Tigers are working with an almost entirely unique offense, so keeping those games within a score would be a great look for the future of this Auburn team under Golesh.

Get blown out in one or both, though, and regardless of the rest of the season production, there will be quite a few eyebrows raised towards Golesh.

Offensive Identity

Golesh has put himself in an interesting position by bringing in Byrum Brown, who is the most highly anticipated quarterback the Tigers have had in some time. Of course, Brown could be one of the best quarterbacks in football this season, especially now that he is a part of an SEC program, but if he struggles, there will be many questions raised, even if the Tigers are still able to put together a decent win total.

Additionally, Golesh has been quite emphatic that he is going to emphasize the run in his offense, and he has built a backfield to match. Like Brown, then, expectations are high for Auburn’s rushing attack, which has been quite dormant over recent years.

I say all of this to say: Golesh will not be able to rely on DJ Durkin’s defense, which will likely once again end up as one of the best units in the SEC, to carry his offense through games if he wants his season to be deemed a success. Particularly in early-season matchups against teams like Baylor, Florida and Vanderbilt, the Tigers will need to put up some big offensive numbers if Golesh’s new offense is to be trusted.

Of course, any improvement over these points is obviously still a win, and these are simply the items I believe Golesh needs to achieve at a bare minimum for Auburn fans to consider his first year at Auburn a success.

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