The 2026 football season has yet to get underway for the Auburn Tigers. But for Auburn, a team that has not competed in the postseason since the 2023 season, it does not hurt to search for optimism in preseason bowl predictions.
The good news is that major publications, including USA TODAY Sports and ESPN, predict that Auburn will win the six necessary games to qualify for a bowl game. However, an aspect that could be viewed as a negative to Auburn fans is that these outlets do not expect Auburn to reach the College Football Playoffs, or even one of the high-profile games usually reserved for New Year's Day.
The Alex Golesh gets underway this Saturday when the Auburn Tigers face the Baylor Bears in the Aflac Kickoff Game at Mercedes-Benz Stadium
in Atlanta, Georgia, and a win would send a wave of optimism through the Plains. Here's a look at where each major outlet predicts the Auburn Tigers to play this postseason ahead of its season opener.
USA TODAY Sports
We will start this season's bowl season projections with USA TODAY Sports, which has forecasted the Auburn Tigers to face Kansas State in the Texas Bowl at Reliant Stadium in Houston, Texas, on New Year's Eve. Auburn football is 4-0 all-time against Kansas State and has never competed in the Texas Bowl.
ESPN
The duo of Kyle Bonagura and Mark Schlabach are back to produce bowl picks for ESPN again in 2026. Like USA TODAY, Schlabach projects Auburn to end its 2026 slate at the Texas Bowl in Houston. However, he swaps Kansas State with the TCU Horned Frogs. TCU has won nine games in each of its last two seasons, but is off to a slow start in 2026 after dropping its season opener to North Carolina in Week 0.
Bonagura projects Auburn to play closer to home this bowl season. He projects the Tigers to host Manny Diaz and the defending ACC Champion Duke Blue Devils in the JLabs Birmingham Bowl on Dec. 29 at Protective Stadium. Duke thwarted Virginia's College Football Playoff hopes last season by defeating the Cavaliers in the ACC Championship Game, and went on to win the Sun Bowl over Arizona State.
The Athletic
Preseason bowl projections by The Athletic show Auburn returning to the site of its last bowl appearance, Nashville. Auburn is projected to face former Arkansas head coach Bret Bielema and the Illinois Fighting Illini at the Music City Bowl in Nashville on Dec. 30.
Illinois has not been a College Football Playoff threat, but has found success against SEC teams in recent seasons. The Illini have won two straight bowl games, the 2024 Citrus Bowl against South Carolina and the 2025 Music City Bowl against Tennessee. The good news, though, is that Auburn is 4-1 all-time against Bret Bielema.
CBS Sports
CBS Sports expects Auburn to play in a convenient location for bowl season. The Tigers are projected to play in the Birmingham Bowl against an American Athletic Conference contender, UTSA. If this projection were to come true, it would mark the third time that Auburn has played its postseason game in the Magic City, and the first meeting with the UTSA Roadrunners.
On3
A third Birmingham Bowl forecast? Why not! Brett McMurphy of On3 opens the season by predicting Auburn will play in the Birmingham Bowl, becoming the third outlet to predict that destination for Auburn.
However, McMurphy believes Auburn's opponent will be the Wisconsin Badgers, a team no stranger to Auburn. Wisconsin holds a 2-1-1 record over Auburn, with all but one meeting being played in bowl season. Most recently, Wisconsin defeated Auburn in the 2015 Outback Bowl, 34-31.
Athlon Sports
Athlon Sports is the second outlet forecasting an Auburn-Kansas State bowl matchup. Unlike USA TODAY's forecast of the matchup being played in Houston, Steven Lassan projects the game to be played at the Liberty Bowl in Memphis, Tennessee.
Despite the Liberty Bowl being a staple of SEC postseason history, Auburn has only played in the game twice, ironically, against current SEC members. Auburn defeated Arkansas in the 1984 Liberty Bowl, 21-15, and lost to Ole Miss in the 1965 Liberty Bowl, 13-7.
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This article originally appeared on Auburn Wire: Week 1 bowl predictions for the Auburn Tigers
