Saturday, 2026-09-12 | 6:45 PM CT | Jordan-Hare Stadium, Auburn, AL | SEC Network
DraftKings snapshot: not yet posted in the ESPN/DraftKings feed | Over/under: not yet posted [S1]
What’s at stake
Auburn survived three interceptions and stopped Baylor inches short on a two-point try to win Alex Golesh’s debut 17-16. Now Golesh coaches his first game at Jordan-Hare Stadium against a Southern Miss team that opened with a 49-3 win over Alcorn State. [S2/S3/S4/S5]
Auburn leads the series 18-5, but these teams have not met since a 24-13 Tigers win in 2018. Southern Miss’ opener showed a powerful run game and an opportunistic secondary; Auburn’s opener showed a defense capable of surviving an uneven offensive day. [S2/S3/S4/S7]
Three things to know
- Southern Miss’ run game gets a real test: The Golden Eagles rushed for 317 yards at 5.6 per carry against Alcorn State. Auburn held Baylor to 103 rushing yards at 2.3 per carry, so the line of scrimmage will tell us quickly how much of Southern Miss’ opener carries over against an SEC front. [S2/S3]
- Byrum Brown cannot repeat the turnover problem: Brown threw three interceptions and no touchdown passes against Baylor. Southern Miss intercepted Alcorn State four times, including three by Kobi Albert. The level of competition changes, but the Golden Eagles just showed they can punish careless throws. [S2/S3]
- Auburn’s defense was better than the yardage total: Baylor gained 436 yards and threw for 333, yet scored only 16 points. Auburn forced two turnovers, made a fourth-down stop in the red zone and ended the game with Eric Winters’ tackle inches short of the goal line. Southern Miss cannot count on long drives automatically becoming points. [S3/S5]
Stat comparison
| Metric | Southern Miss 2026 | Auburn 2026 | Southern Miss 2025 rank | Auburn 2025 rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Points per game | 49.0 (No. 30*) | 17.0 (No. 97*) | No. 48 | No. 85 |
| Points allowed per game | 3.0 (No. 10*) | 16.0 (No. 67*) | No. 128 | No. 47 |
| Yards per game | 543.0 (No. 24*) | 389.0 (No. 78*) | No. 53 | No. 79 |
| Yards allowed per game | 223.0 (No. 38*) | 436.0 (No. 110*) | No. 101 | No. 29 |
| Passing yards per game | 226.0 (No. 70*) | 259.0 (No. 55*) | No. 25 | No. 99 |
| Passing yards allowed per game | 119.0 (No. 31*) | 333.0 (No. 117*) | No. 86 | No. 90 |
| Turnover margin | +4 (No. 2*) | -1 (No. 86*) | No. 6 | No. 16 |
*The 2026 ranking is based on the 131 teams who had played by Saturday night. We did not wait on the Sunday and Monday college football games to publish the majority of our previews. [S10]
Players to watch
- Southern Miss — Steven Robinson: He rushed 23 times for 123 yards and three touchdowns against Alcorn State. Together with Jamarice Wilder, he gave Southern Miss two backs who combined for 213 yards and five scores. [S2/S8]
- Auburn — Eric Winters: He made 11 tackles, forced a fumble and stopped Baylor’s potential game-winning two-point try inches from the goal line. [S5/S9]
Looking for a prediction?
I make final predictions on my TikTok/YouTube/Instagram/Facebook pages @uthinkuknowsports.
Sources
- S1: ESPN Southern Miss–Auburn game page
- S2: ESPN Alcorn State–Southern Miss final box score
- S3: ESPN Baylor–Auburn final box score
- S4: Auburn official Week 2 kickoff announcement and series history
- S5: Auburn official 17-16 Baylor recap
- S6: Southern Miss official Alcorn State box score
- S7: Southern Miss official football history vs. Auburn
- S8: Southern Miss official 2026 football roster
- S9: Auburn official 2026 football roster
- S10: SportsDataverse/ESPN 2025 team-summary source
Full disclosure: I use AI tools to format my research into an article encompassing all of the information.
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