The Auburn Tigers are set to kick off their season in a matter of days with hopes of turning around their fortune after three consecutive losing seasons up to this point.
The talent that the Tigers are bringing in is giving fans optimism about what is to come and head coach [autotag]Hugh Freeze[/autotag] is continuing his plan to get the team back to being a powerhouse.
This process has caught the attention of many, including that of analyst Greg McElroy, who is a firm believer that Auburn is headed in the right direction. While unranked in the preseason polls, he believes it will be ranked come the end of the year.
McElroy has taken notice of the increasing young talent that the Tigers have pulled in and thinks that quarterback [autotag]Payton Thorne[/autotag] will benefit from it greatly.
“One team that currently is unranked but will finish the season ranked, I’m going with the Auburn Tigers,” McElroy said. “I have them in my Top 25 coming into the season, and the negative on Auburn is, well, they didn’t go out and get a game changer at quarterback. Well, Payton Thorne — Payton Thorne, yes, that quarterback, he’s won a NY6 bowl game in the past. He’s been on really good football teams. One was at Michigan State, when he was surrounded by a ridiculously talented supporting cast. While people say, ‘Well, he can’t elevate those guys,’ well, those other guys can elevate him, and he might end up having a heck of a year.”
Auburn has a very tough middle portion of the schedule with road games at Georgia, Kentucky and Missouri. What leads into that is a game with the new kids on the block: Oklahoma.
The Tigers have many tests throughout their schedule that will determine how the season goes, and with the development the program has had in the offseason, McElroy sees no reason why they should not succeed.
“So, if you look at just the amount of opportunities that Auburn has to solidify a big time, program-defining win, they’re all throughout their schedule. Which is why I think Auburn, at the end of the year, we’ll fast forward, they’ll be 8-4, but they’ll have a great win, maybe two, and that will elevate their perception,” McElroy said. “So, I think Auburn will finish the season in the Top 25. I mean, goodness gracious, they have two points right now in the poll, two. That’s right. Behind Kentucky, who has three, and above Colorado, who finished 4-8 last year.”
Auburn kicks off its season on Aug. 31 when it takes on the Alabama A&M Bulldogs at 6:30 p.m. CST in Jordan-Hare Stadium.