We’re only three weeks into the college football season, and rebellion is already breaking out amongst multiple SEC fanbases.
By now you’re surely aware of the state of affairs down in Gainesville, where Florida fans were openly calling for head coach Billy Napier to be fired in the midst of a crushing loss to a Texas A&M team led by a backup quarterback.
It appears the seed of mutiny has spread to the Plains, as well, with Auburn fans staging a revolt of their own ahead of the Tigers’ matchup with Arkansas on Saturday.
Arkansas vs. Auburn Incites Fan Rebellion
Auburn’s official Twitter account has announced a “power stripe-out” in Jordan-Hare Stadium for this weekend. Usually, that’s something that gets fans excited for the upcoming game. Not so this time around.
“Please stop asking fans to wear specific colors to every game,” one fan replied. “It loses its fun and becomes a chore.”
Another user made their feelings known with a rather blunt gif:
Judging from the popular consensus, it seems the Auburn football faithful have grown tired of the marketing department’s repeated wardrobe concoctions on game day. Stunts like that can be really fun when you’re winning – but when the team is underperforming, it drifts toward becoming cringy. The Tigers lost to Cal in Week 2 and have been plagued by mediocre defensive performances thus far. This fan hits the nail on the head:
“Seriously, nobody is impressed if you coordinate outfits,” another said. “Just focus on making your team better.”
A Not-Fun Time in UAB Game
Auburn isn’t alone in this regard either, as Arkansas was guilty of a similar crime this past weekend. At multiple points throughout the game, giant red/pink smoke bombs were set off that sent billowing clouds into the east side of the stadium. Sounds awesome, right?
Sure…except for the fact that the entire stand reeked of what smelled like sulfur and the band spent the next few minutes coughing on the fumes. Again, stuff like this might be cool when you’re taking care of business. But when you squeak out a win against a cupcake like UAB, blowing celebratory columns of smoke into the air comes across as downright cringe.
Don’t take it from me, take it from senior defensive end Landon Jackson, who said postgame that the Hogs’ performance wouldn’t cut it in conference play.
Arkansas and Auburn Football in Same Boat
Through the first three games of the season, Arkansas and Auburn have been almost identical. Both teams beat FCS cupcakes by 70 points in the season opener before losing a non-conference matchup with a Power Four team by one score. Then, each team underperformed in their “bounce back” game, failing to cover the spread according to those rolling the dice at safe au casino real money against weaker opposition.
Granted, the Hogs had tougher opposition in a ranked Oklahoma State team on the road than the Tigers did playing California at home. But UC-Berkeley’s elite Twitter fingers in the aftermath of the upset win has earned the support of many. Cal fans embracing their west-coast liberalism led to some AI-generated gems on the timeline.
Auburn was supposed to beat the Bears, and Arkansas had the game in hand against the Cowboys before blowing it with a series of painful blunders.
It’s a little early for the “must-win” tag, but Arkansas vs Auburn is extremely important for both teams’ trajectories the rest of the season. Each face ranked opponents in their next three matchups, which means the road only gets tougher from here.
Lose on Saturday, and you’re on a slippery slope to entering the halfway point with a 2-4 record. With Sam Pittman already on the hot seat and Hugh Freeze underperforming, this is a vital matchup for both head coaches.
It’s also funny that, despite the two teams having mediocre starts to the season, this game will be broadcast on one of the better TV slots of the weekend: 2:30 p.m. CT on ESPN.
While Mississippi State and Florida have a lock on the “worst matchup of the week” label, Auburn fans’ rebellion and the state of affairs for the two programs mean Saturday afternoon could devolve into a beautiful disaster for both sides.
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Arkansas vs Auburn Preview
SEC analyst Jake Crain, whose bread and butter is the Auburn football program, noted in a recent episode alongside his two guests that this game will not come down to who will win so much as who will lose it. They draw a comparison to how Arkansas fumbled its second game of the year away against Oklahoma State and how Auburn did the same vs Cal.
“I haven’t been impressed with either of these teams on the defensive side, but I do know who Arkansas is on offense,” Blain Crain, Jake’s brother, noted. “Auburn doesn’t know who they are on offense yet. You had a new quarterback come in last week, he looked good, but this won’t be the same level of athlete you’re going to play this week.”
“I think right now if you’re Auburn, what are you confident in? I look at the defense and something has to change. I don’t think you can bring three guys and drop eight (Hugh Freeze has said they’re going to change that). That’s not going to work. I don’t think we’re that good upfront anyway.”
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Sam Pittman recaps UAB, previews Auburn:
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