Auburn football entered the AP Poll Top 25 last week for the first time since 2021, breaking a prolonged drought that Tigers' fans won't be proud about. After Hugh Freeze's squad's 31-15 victory over South Alabama on Saturday in Jordan-Hare Stadium, the Tigers jumped two spots from No. 24 to No. 22.
It wasn't a perfect game for Auburn in its first-ever matchup against the Jaguars, as sluggish play and breakdowns in the secondary prevented the Tigers from having an easy blowout, while also keeping South Alabama from mounting a comeback in the second half.
After building a 28-9 lead in the first half behind two touchdown runs and one touchdown pass from quarterback Jackson Arnold, the Tigers' offense had only three possessions in the final 30 minutes as the Jaguars kept chewing up clock on long drives with multiple 3rd-down conversions.