After initially receiving a flex option, Auburn football's season opener against the Southern Miss Golden Eagles on Saturday, Sept. 12, now has a set start time and television network designation.
The Tigers will square off with the Golden Eagles at 6:45 p.m. CT on Sept. 12, and will air on SEC Network.
This season's matchup will be the 24th time Auburn and Southern Miss have met on the gridiron, with all but three of those games played at Jordan-Hare Stadium in Auburn. The lone exceptions occurred from 1946-48, when Auburn faced Southern Miss in Montgomery for three straight seasons, going 1-for-2 in that stretch. The teams played seven times in the 1980s, and annually from 1988-93. The Tigers and Golden Eagles have played just twice since the annual dates in the late 80s/early 90s.
Southern Miss defeated Auburn by one point in both 1990 and 1991, but the Tigers have rattled off four straight wins in the series, winning in 1992, 1993, 2008, and 2018. The 2026 matchup between Auburn and Southern Miss is a "buy game," with the Golden Eagles receiving $1.5 million from Auburn to play a game in Jordan-Hare Stadium this September.
Auburn football 2026 schedule
- Sept. 5 vs Baylor in Atlanta (2:30 p.m. CT, ABC)
- Sept. 12 vs Southern Miss (6:45 p.m. CT, SEC Network)
- Sept. 19 vs Florida (6 p.m. CT, ESPN)
- Sept. 26 vs Vanderbilt (TBA)
- Oct. 3 at Tennessee (TBA)
- Oct. 17 at Georgia (TBA)
- Oct. 24 vs LSU (TBA, ESPN/ABC)
- Oct. 31 at Ole Miss (TBA)
- Nov. 7 vs Arkansas (TBA)
- Nov. 14 at Mississippi State (TBA)
- Nov. 21 vs Samford (2:30 p.m. CT, SEC Network+)
- Nov. 28 at Alabama (TBA)
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This article originally appeared on Auburn Wire: Game time, TV network announced for Auburn football's home opener