Arkansas and Auburn have both blown up their coaching staffs since these two last shook hands, and now the rebuilds collide at Jordan-Hare.
Bush’s Picks
ARKAUB
ARKAUB
OverUnder
Best BetAuburn
Auburn gets the nod here mostly because of what it doesn't have to sort out: Byrum Brown was installed as QB1 the moment Golesh took over, giving the Tigers a full offseason of reps that Arkansas's still-undecided quarterback room can't match. Home field at Jordan-Hare and a head coach who's already proven he can win with a Group of 5-caliber roster tip this toward Auburn on the moneyline.
Arkansas
+Two 4-star QBs completing 70%-plus in spring reps
+New OC Cramsey installing modern scheme
+Series has produced late Arkansas comebacks before
−No named starting QB months before kickoff
−Offensive line being rebuilt under first-year staff
−Committed four turnovers in last meeting with Auburn
Auburn
+Golesh brought proven starter Byrum Brown with him
+Home field at Jordan-Hare
+Won last meeting 33-24 off Arkansas mistakes
−Lost more than 35 players to the transfer portal
−First-year staff still building continuity everywhere but QB
−Program instability that got Freeze fired hasn't fully been erased
This isn't the same Arkansas-Auburn game from a year ago. Both programs fired their head coaches in the last calendar year, and both are rolling into November with brand-new voices calling the shots and lineups that barely resemble what either fanbase watched in 2025.
Auburn moved fast after dumping Hugh Freeze, hiring Alex Golesh off his USF success, and Golesh wasted no time settling the quarterback room by bringing his USF starter Byrum Brown with him. Arkansas has no such clarity. First-year coach Ryan Silverfield and new offensive coordinator Tim Cramsey were still running a two-man quarterback competition between Jackson and Hill deep into fall camp, with a decision not expected until around August 20-21.
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ARK Arkansas
AUB Auburn
That gap in certainty matters. Brown has had a full offseason to build chemistry with Golesh's staff and learn the weapons around him, while whichever Arkansas quarterback wins the job will have had a matter of weeks with a rebuilt offensive line before the games start counting. By the time these two get to Jordan-Hare in November, that head start could still be showing.
Arkansas Razorbacks
Oct 30?vs Missouri—
Oct 16?@ Vanderbilt—
Oct 9?vs Tennessee—
Oct 2?@ Texas A&M—
Sep 26?vs Tulsa—
Sep 19?vs Georgia—
Sep 12?@ Utah—
Sep 5?vs North Alabama—
Auburn Tigers
Oct 30?@ Ole Miss—
Oct 16?@ Georgia—
Oct 2?@ Tennessee—
Sep 25?vs Vanderbilt—
Sep 19?vs Florida—
Sep 12?vs Southern Miss—
Sep 5?vs Baylor—
Recent form.
Auburn's issue isn't uncertainty at quarterback, it's continuity everywhere else. Golesh inherited a roster that lost more than 35 players to the transfer portal, meaning this Auburn team is functionally as new as Arkansas's, just with one fewer unresolved position. The last time these two met, Arkansas gift-wrapped the game with four fourth-quarter turnovers in a 33-24 Auburn win at Fayetteville, and turnover margin figures to swing a rematch between two teams still learning each other in-season.
Arkansas Razorbacks
(0)
Fully healthy — no injuries on ESPN's report
Auburn Tigers
(0)
Fully healthy — no injuries on ESPN's report
Injury report — info via ESPN.
Auburn owns this series long-term at 20-12-1 and has had Arkansas's number in recent trips, but neither of these rosters looks much like the ones that produced that history. Whoever wins the Arkansas quarterback battle and whoever Golesh has protecting Brown by then will decide this one more than any name on the marquee.
