The forecast of Auburn football’s trajectory heading into the 2025 season is difficult to predict, which makes it difficult to place high or low expectations on the program.
Seth Emerson of The Athletic released his initial SEC Vibes rankings this week ahead of week one of the 2025 college football season, where he has placed Auburn at No. 13 out of 16 teams. Emerson claims unpredictability as a major factor in the low ranking.
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“Yes, this seems harsh considering the Tigers have the talent to be a CFP contender,” Emerson wrote. “In fact, on a podcast this week, yours truly picked Auburn to upset Georgia, in another Hugh Freeze beat-anybody-lose-to-anybody special. But if things go sideways again, Freeze could be in trouble. And the summer angst over Freeze’s golf game didn’t help the vibes. This is Oklahoma on another level: CFP on the high end, crash and burn just as possible. Maybe more so.”
Yes, this seems harsh considering the Tigers have the talent to be a CFP contender. In fact, on a podcast this week, yours truly picked Auburn to upset Georgia, in another Hugh Freeze beat-anybody-lose-to-anybody special. But if things go sideways again, Freeze could be in trouble. And the summer angst over Freeze’s golf game didn’t help the vibes. This is Oklahoma on another level: CFP on the high end, crash and burn just as possible. Maybe more so.
Emerson shared that Auburn’s situation is easily compared to Oklahoma’s. Both programs snagged high-profile quarterbacks from the transfer portal (Jackson Arnold- Auburn, John Mateer- Oklahoma), and have quality rosters that could lead them to a berth in the College Football Playoff. However, the head coaches of both teams are under heavy pressure to perform well this season or risk being fired. Hugh Freeze is 11-14 in two seasons at Auburn, with one bowl appearance and two straight seasons of seven losses. Venables is 22-17 heading into year four in Norman, and is looking to find similar success in the SEC after posting a 10-win season in 2023, the final year the Sooners competed in the Big 12 Conference.
Arkansas, Kentucky, and Mississippi State have lower vibes than Auburn heading into the season, while Texas has the best vibes heading into week one. Auburn will look to shoot up the vibes rankings with a strong performance in Friday’s opener at Baylor, which will begin at 7 p.m. CT on FOX.
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This article originally appeared on Auburn Wire: Auburn begins season ranked No. 13 in SEC vibes rankings
