Auburn football can upset Tennessee at Neyland Stadium if four things go right. Alex Golesh's Tigers must start faster, unleash Byrum Brown's legs, improve tackling and finally get off the field on fourth down in their toughest road test of the 2026 season.
The Auburn Tigers don't need to play perfect football to beat Tennessee.
But there are four things I think absolutely have to go right.
As the team prepares for its first true hostile road environment under the Alex Golesh era, an upset isn't impossible.
1. Auburn can't spend the first quarter trying to find its offense
This has been a problem all season.
Alex Golesh knows it.
“We've obviously got to start better,” Golesh said. “This has been a thing since we started the season.”
Auburn survived another slow start against Vanderbilt.
Doing that in Knoxville is completely different.
The Tigers need to find that first first down, get Byrum Brown comfortable, and allow the offense to actually operate before Tennessee can force Auburn into obvious passing situations. The first few plays of the first offensive drive for Auburn will be very critical.
2. Byrum Brown's legs have to matter
I'm not saying Auburn needs to run Brown 20 times.
Golesh isn't either.
“Could you run him every snap? You probably could,” Golesh said. “But we've also got really good backs, and we've also got to keep him healthy.”
But Auburn's offense looked different against Vanderbilt once Brown became involved in the running game.
And in Auburn's first hostile road environment, Brown might have to create something when the play breaks down.
When Byrum Brown runs the football, not only does he find success, but usually the running backs around him find it later on in the game as well. It changes the entire way the defense has to see Auburn's offense.
3. Auburn has to tackle
This one is pretty simple.
Auburn missed 24 tackles against Florida.
That number dropped to 16 against Vanderbilt.
But they're still not where they need to be, and Tennessee is arguably the toughest team they faced all season.
“They will force you to tackle in space,” Golesh said. “They will force you to tackle on the perimeter.”
Auburn's young defensive linemen are emerging, and the defense has shown it can create negative plays.
But one missed tackle can erase all of that.
The number of missed tackles doesn't really matter in terms of whether they're improving or not this week against Tennessee. It's just ensuring that they don't miss the important ones and allow the Volunteers to break any explosive plays.
4. Get off the field
“Third and Durkin” actually improved against Vanderbilt.
Now Auburn has to finish the job.
Vanderbilt converted all four of its traditional fourth-down opportunities.
Golesh called those situations “turnovers that need to go our way.”
That's exactly what they are.
Auburn can't force Tennessee into third and fourth down and then allow the drive to continue anyway.
Eventually, you have to finish.
