Breaking down Auburn football's 2024 SEC schedule, most intriguing games
AUBURN — Auburn football's 2024 SEC opponents have been released, and it's an interesting draw for the Tigers.
In coach Hugh Freeze's second year, Auburn will host Arkansas, Oklahoma, Texas A&M and Vanderbilt, and go on the road to play Alabama, Georgia, Kentucky and Missouri. Notably absent are LSU, Mississippi State and Ole Miss. The Tigers had played those schools each season since 1992, 1955 and 1990, respectively.
The reason for the shakeup is due to the conference's presidents and chancellors deciding earlier this month to abolish divisions once the Sooners and Texas join the league. The Tigers will no longer be tied to teams in the SEC West after 2023, and the conference championship will feature the two teams in the SEC with the best records, rather than one squad from each division.
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With some longstanding matchups removed, Auburn will have the chance to play teams it doesn't usually see in the soon-to-be erased SEC East like Kentucky, Missouri and Vanderbilt. Since 2000, the Tigers have played the Wildcats six times, Missouri three times and the Commodores eight times.
These changes should bode well for Auburn, as it typically has one of the toughest schedules in the country, year-in and year-out. The Iron Bowl and the Deep South's Oldest Rivalry stay alive, but no longer will the Tigers be forced to play schools like LSU and Mississippi State every season. Both the Bulldogs and LSU are 6-5 against Auburn since 2012.
The abolishment of divisions will also force some of the conference's top teams to play each other more often. Auburn will still play Alabama and Georgia, but the Bulldogs will also have to travel to Tuscaloosa for only the second time since 2007.
With that being said, these three games are the most intriguing on Auburn's 2024 conference slate.
Oklahoma
For the first time ever, Oklahoma will play in Jordan-Hare Stadium.
The Sooners and Tigers have only matched up twice before, with both of those meetings taking place at a neutral site. Auburn and Oklahoma both disappointed last season, but with recruiting trending up for both programs, this game could get interesting by the time it rolls around.
@ Kentucky
The Tigers have taken a trip to Lexington just three times this millennium: 2015, 2010 and 2005. And the last time prior to that was 1995.
It's a rare meeting, made even more intriguing by the inability to predict with much confidence where Kentucky will be in 2024. Transfer quarterback Devin Leary will be out the door by then, but coach Mark Stoops has consistently had his team at least be respectable, evidenced by his 66-59 record over 10 seasons; since 2016, Kentucky has gone under .500 just once (5-6 in 2020).
Texas A&M
Similar to Kentucky, it's tough to predict what kind of team Texas A&M will be in 2024. Will coach Jimbo Fisher still be around? Will Bobby Petrino prove to be a good option at offensive coordinator? Or will the Aggies have an entirely new look after 2023?
Also, the last time Texas A&M came to Jordan-Hare Stadium, Auburn came away victorious in a 13-10 battle to give Cadillac Williams his first win as the interim head coach.
Richard Silva is the Auburn athletics beat writer for the Montgomery Advertiser. He can be reached via email at rsilva@gannett.com or on Twitter @rich_silva18.
This article originally appeared on Montgomery Advertiser: Breaking down Auburn football's 2024 SEC schedule, most intriguing games
