Auburn’s offense took a promising leap on Tuesday during a scrimmage at Jordan-Hare Stadium, showing signs it could eventually mirror the explosiveness of Alex Golesh’s high-powered system at University of South Florida last season.
The momentum began with quarterback Byrum Brown, who followed Golesh from Tampa to lead the Tigers after posting 3,158 passing yards, 28 touchdowns, plus 1,008 rushing yards and 14 scores in 2025. According to the first-year head coach, the rest of Auburn’s offense is quickly rising to his level.
Golesh said he was pleased with what he saw: “This is my fourth time doing this in this system, and there’s always that moment when you’re moving the chains consistently and the tempo starts wearing down the defense. You can feel it—when a defender’s tired, you can either run through him or outrun him depending on the call. I thought our offensive line and skill players hit that point today.”
Golesh was brought in to replace Hugh Freeze largely for his offensive expertise, which powered USF to 488.7 yards per game in 2025 third in the nation and 40.5 points per game, fifth overall. Auburn, meanwhile, struggled in Freeze’s third year, averaging just 26.8 points (74th) and 373.9 yards (79th).
Despite the offensive surge, Auburn’s defense also showed flashes, especially late in the scrimmage. “We were efficient on early downs and kept ourselves out of third-and-long, which gave us a shot early on,” Golesh said. “Then the defense responded. We hit a second-and-long stretch, and they got four straight stops.”
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