The Auburn Tigers will begin the 2025 season in the "receiving votes" category of the US LBM Coaches Poll, and will aim to end a demoralizing trend by the end of the campaign.
It is no secret that Auburn has lost exactly seven games in four straight seasons, and the coaching staff, led by head coach Hugh Freeze, has worked during the offseason to develop current players on the roster, as well as fill gaps with transfer portal talent, to put Auburn in the College Football Playoff discussion.
When examining Auburn's coaches poll trends over the last ten seasons, it has been discovered that Auburn has begun each of the last four seasons in the "receiving votes" category, with each season ending with seven losses and zero votes in the final poll.
Auburn's season will begin the same way as it has since 2021 in the coaches' poll. Will this season be the year that their luck changes? Here's a look at where Auburn has started each season in the coaches' poll since 2015.
The Auburn Tigers will begin the 2025 season in the "receiving votes" category of the US LBM Coaches Poll by earning 50 votes. This season, the Tigers will face three teams ranked in the top-25: Alabama, Georgia, and Texas A&M, and will face eight teams that are receiving recognition from the preseason poll.
The Tigers kicked off last season by receiving 25 votes in the coaches' poll, which was more than teams such as Iowa State, Florida, and South Carolina. As expected, Auburn failed to receive votes in the final coaches' poll of the season after finishing with a 5-7 record.
Like in 2024, several coaches voted for Auburn to make the 2023 preseason coaches poll before the Tigers ultimately dwindled out of consideration. The Tigers finished with a 6-7 record under first-year head coach Hugh Freeze, losing four of those games to teams that finished in the top 25.
Year two of the Bryan Harsin era started with promise as the Tigers earned 98 votes to begin the season. However, Harsin did not finish the season, and Auburn concluded the 2022 campaign with a 5-7 record, missing a bowl game and losing out on a spot in the final coaches' poll of the year.
By now, you have noticed the trend that correlates between Auburn's seven-loss seasons and their starting position within the coaches' poll. Between 2021 and 2024, Auburn began the season by earning several votes in the preseason poll before ultimately ending the year with seven losses. Auburn's first season under Bryan Harsin began by earning 84 votes, and it would see a high ranking of No. 14 in October before losing five straight games to end the year.
The strange, COVID-altered season began with a ranking just outside of the top 10, and ended with 17 votes in the "receiving votes" category after finishing with a 6-4 record against mostly SEC teams. Gus Malzahn was fired at the end of this season after posting a 66-35 record in eight years.
Auburn was one of six SEC teams to begin the 2019 season in the coaches poll by checking in at No. 16. Auburn won nine games that season, and ended up finishing two spots higher in the poll than its preseason mark at No. 14.
Auburn's impressive 2017 season brought high expectations in 2018 with a top-10 preseason ranking. This season, however, ended in disappointment with five losses and 27 final poll votes, leaving the Tigers outside the top 25.
The Tigers were consistently in the polls during the 2017 season, finding its way into every one during the year. The Tigers ended the year ranked No. 12 after beating two No. 1 teams and making an appearance in the SEC Championship Game. Auburn ranked as high as No. 4 in the coaches poll before losing to Georgia in the SEC title game.
The 2016 season is one of the few that has a happy ending. The Tigers earned 17 votes in the initial coaches poll, but an eight-win campaign and a Sugar Bowl appearance led Auburn to a No. 22 final ranking.
The 2015 season was the most disappointing of this time frame. Auburn held a top-10 ranking to begin the year, but an overtime win over then-FCS foe Jacksonville State plummeted the Tigers' stock to a point where it never recovered. The Tigers dropped from No. 7 to No. 20 following the win over Jax State in week two, and were completely out of the poll by week four after losing to LSU and Mississippi State. Auburn's 7-6 record was not good enough to receive a vote in the final poll of the 2015 season.
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