Experts agree: Auburn belongs in the Post-Spring Top 25

Three college football experts have included Auburn in their post-spring top 25 rankings. This means each analyst took in the data: news, buzz, portal recruiting, and high school recruiting, plus, what each team returns in 2025. Auburn is a team these experts felt needed to be in the top-25 discussion.

Everything each expert said about the Tigers and why they belong…

On3’s ANDY STAPLES

**Staples ranked Auburn No. 13 in his post-spring rankings.

“That season sucked last year, right? Why did they lose the Cal game? Why’d they lose the Arkansas game? Why did they lose the Oklahoma game? Why did they lose the Missouri game? These are all games that could have been won with slightly better quarterback play. Slightly better. So, is Jackson Arnold slightly better than Payton Thorne?

Great question, we don’t know. When was the last time we talked about Auburn bringing back a pretty good offensive line? Auburn had a pretty good offensive line last year. Not only do they bring all of it back, they bring in some competition through the portal–not necessarily guys that we’re going to guarantee you starting jobs, but probably starter-quality and you will have to fight for a job.

OL INSIDER: The latest on Auburn’s chances at blue-chip offensive linemen..

I think Auburn could be quite a bit better record-wise even if they’re not significantly better roster-wise. They only have to be a little bit better roster-wise to be a lot better record-wise.”

Here’s the thing about Jackson Arnold: Remember that Oklahoma’s offensive line was not very good last year… We just talked about we think Auburn is going to have a pretty good one–by Auburn’s standards, a very good one. Auburn’s offensive line has not been particularly great over the last ten years. This is one of their better ones I think.

So, what was Oklahoma’s other issue? Their top five receivers were out for most of the season with injuries. Well, he has Cam Coleman and Eric Singleton Jr. now. That is a very different situation for a quarterback. I don’t think it matters what kind of offense he was in at Oklahoma last year, he was going to struggle because they didn’t block well and there was nobody to catch the ball or get open. Auburn has people who can block, who can get open and catch the ball.. So, I think Jackson Arnold’s job is easier on that front.

ANALYSIS: Why Jackson Arnold makes sense in Hugh Freeze’s offense..

That is the part I think people are discounting. Jackson Arnold didn’t have a good year at Oklahoma, but everything that could have gone wrong went wrong. Now, if he has a situation where some of the things actually go right–like Cam Coleman could be an elite talent at receiver, we saw him in the last couple games of the season breaking out. We know what Eric Singleton Jr. can do in that Georgia Tech offense, but he didn’t have anybody like Cam Coleman in the offense with him. Now, you’re playing “Where’s Waldo” with Eric Singleton Jr. and your defense has to think about where he is but also worry about Cam Coleman? I think that makes Jackson Arnold’s life a lot easier.”

FOX SPORT’s JOEL KLATT

**Klatt ranked Auburn No. 22 in his post-spring rankings.

“Auburn is a good football team, I’m going to throw them at 22. The talent level has been rising at Auburn for the last couple of years. Hugh Freeze, he recruits well, we all know that. He’s entering year three. They’ve had back-to-back top-ten classes as it relates to high school recruits, they’ve been active in the portal. Jackson Arnold transfers in from Oklahoma, the former five-star player, and he will be the quarterback at Auburn. They have Cam Coleman at wide receiver, who I think is a really good player. They’ve got a couple of guys in the portal, and one more in particular–this was quiet for the most part, maybe not down south amongst Auburn fans, but the No. 1 wide receiver in the portal, Eric Singleton from Georgia Tech. I think he could have a big year for the Tigers. So, we’ll see what they’re able to do, I’ve got them at No. 22.”

On3’s JD PICKELL

**Pickell ranked Auburn No. 24 in his post-spring rankings.

“At No. 24, I’ve got the Auburn Tigers. Auburn, to me, and the way we talk about them is a lot like bungee jumping when you put them in this top 25 conversation. I’m excited, I’m nervous, it makes sense in theory, but like–close your eyes and jump, here we go..

There is so much talent on this roster that Hugh Freeze and that staff have stock-piled, I have a hard time not putting them in the top 25. The question is, can you make it go? That falls on Jackson Arnold. Jackson Arnold has five-star prowess, but is he actually going to make sure he throws it to his team and not the other team? That will determine if they end up being in the top-25 at the end of the year or if they fall out of the top-25 and miss a bowl game yet again. Auburn for me at 24.”

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