Auburn Football's Matchup With Mississippi State Means More Than Bowl Eligibility

The Auburn Tigers still have plenty of problems to address in Alex Golesh's first season, but they have an opportunity to accomplish something important when they travel to Mississippi State on Saturday.

And it's something that could mean quite a bit for the direction of the program.

Auburn enters Saturday's matchup with a 5–4 record, meaning a victory over the Bulldogs would make the Tigers bowl eligible before they even face Samford next weekend.

And considering where Auburn has been over the last several years, that would be a significant accomplishment for Golesh in his first season.

The Tigers finished last season with a 5–7 record, including a 0–6 mark in one-possession games.

But Auburn has already shown improvement in those situations under Golesh.

The Tigers are 4–1 in one-possession games this season, including last weekend's 26–23 victory over Arkansas.

And while Auburn hasn't always made things easy on itself, finding ways to win those close games is something that simply wasn't happening a season ago.

That's an encouraging development for a program that has struggled to establish much consistency.

But Saturday offers another chance to take a step forward.

A victory over Mississippi State would eliminate the pressure of needing to beat Samford just to reach bowl eligibility. Although that win next week is likely, getting it done against a conference opponent and without the need of an FCS team means more than you think.

Instead, Auburn would enter that matchup with an opportunity to earn its seventh victory of the season before traveling to Tuscaloosa for the Iron Bowl.

And that would put the Tigers in position to finish Golesh's first regular season with a winning record, regardless of what happens against Alabama.

But perhaps the most interesting part of Auburn's remaining schedule is the momentum the Tigers could build heading into that rivalry.

A victory over Mississippi State would extend that winning streak to two games, and beating Samford the following weekend would make it three straight victories entering the Iron Bowl.

And while winning in Tuscaloosa would certainly present a difficult challenge like it always does, Auburn has already shown it's capable of pulling off a major upset on the road.

The Tigers defeated No. 1 Georgia 27–24 in Athens earlier this season, one of the biggest victories the program has experienced in recent years.

That doesn't mean Auburn would necessarily have the same success against Alabama.

But entering the Iron Bowl with four consecutive victories and the confidence of having already beaten the nation's top-ranked team would certainly make things interesting.

Of course, Auburn still has several issues that need to be addressed.

The offensive line has struggled throughout the season, the Tigers haven't consistently started games well offensively, and Golesh still has plenty of work to do with the roster moving forward.

Those problems aren't going to disappear with a victory over Mississippi State. But these are the games you must win. In order for this new coaching staff to return this program to the prestige level it belongs at, you must win the games you are supposed to.

Auburn has an opportunity to finish this season with something meaningful to build on. They could become bowl-eligible against an SEC opponent, reaching seven regular-season victories, and potentially entering the Iron Bowl with momentum would all represent important steps forward.

And for a program that has experienced so much frustration over the last several years, that's exactly the kind of progress Golesh needs to establish in Year 1.