Auburn football HC Alex Golesh fires back at Alabama Iron Bowl dominance
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Ahead of his first season as Auburn’s head football coach, Alex Golesh knows his job is not just to win; he has to beat Alabama. As important as every game is, Golesh knows the Iron Bowl has significantly more weight than even most bowl games to Tigers fans.
When asked by a reporter about Auburn’s recent string of losses to Alabama, Golesh corrected him and said he is beginning a clean slate. The 41-year-old said his team “hasn’t played Bama” yet, and vowed to have them ready by the end of the 2026 college football season.
“I don’t super care about what the success has been or hasn’t been, to be totally honest with you,” Golesh said, via AL.com. “This team hasn’t played Bama. We’ll be prepared to go play Week 12 when it’s time to go play… We put an emphasis on what that game is. It’s the greatest rivalry in college football.”
Auburn’s Alex Golesh corrects reporter: “This team hasn’t played Bama.” pic.twitter.com/vbqoePWwbp
— Auburn Tigers | AL.com (@aldotcomTigers) April 29, 2026
Alabama has won 52 of the 90 all-time Iron Bowl meetings against in-state rival Auburn. They were particularly dominant during Nick Saban’s tenure, winning 12 of the 17 meetings from 2007 to 2023.
Golesh inherits an Auburn program that has not beaten Alabama in football since 2019, when it came out on top of a 48-45 thriller. The Tigers have only won four of the last 18 series matchups and have not beaten the Crimson Tide in consecutive seasons since 2007.
Golesh is already 0-2 against Alabama, losing to the Tide as the head coach of USF in 2023 and 2024. However, as he noted, it will be a completely different ball game now that he is running the show in Auburn.
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