Kentucky Wildcats vs. Auburn Tigers, 11/1/2025, 6:30pm CST

Kentucky 10 – Auburn 3, Attendance: 88,043

Weather: Partly cloudy, 61; Ticket: $200 Supplier: Tic Pic, Face: $80 Parking: $120

“It was great until it wasn’t” by Tree

The visit to Auburn was a group effort with my cousin Phil and his daughter Taylor coming in to support Kentucky. We were hosted by my good friend and Auburn alum, Katie.

The University of Auburn is located, unsurprisingly, in Auburn, Al. It is not exactly easy to get to. Montgomery, AL is about an hour away, but the more convenient(?) Atlanta airport is about two hours away. I drove down from Virginia, giving me a chance to see my son along the way. The challenge with driving is trying to miss traffic snafues in Charlotte, Greenville and Atlanta. I did not.

Thanks to Katie, we stayed a bit farther afield in Dadeville, as in “Al from Dadeville.” We enjoyed staying at her family’s lake house on Lake Martin, but we also spent some time in Auburn proper since it was only a half hour away. Our first stop was at a friend’s condo right next to the stadium. Claude Collier and his dad helped us with our Bama video, so I wanted to deliver them some Somanystadiums swag. Their place at the Tiger Suites was all decked out in Auburn colors, and they gave us the low down on all the Auburn traditions.

From there, we walked through Toomer’s Corner (but did not get a lemonade), hit a local campus bar, and caught the sunset at Walt’s On the Roof while enjoying some nice drinks and small plates. We felt a bit too old for the most popular joint, Skybar, which at 10pm was just starting to heat up, and headed back to the lake house. In general, Auburn is a classic college town. The only drawback was that we did not plan enough for our morning breakfast. It was a rookie mistake because everyone knows Sunday breakfast joints fill up fast.

We anticipated tailgating would be popular and while we had been invited to several tailgates, I wanted to do some on our own. I purchased a parking spot in the Campus Security Lot for $120. Given our heavy social schedule, we arrived five and half hours before kickoff, enjoying very light traffic. While not the most robust of the tailgating areas, it was both close to the stadium and walking distance to the first and original Momma Goldberg’s Deli. Katie made a quick run to complement our tailgate with fare from this Auburn institution. We relaxed and chatted up a steady stream of fans for a couple of hours on a beautiful fall day.

Like several other SEC schools, you can tailgate all over campus for free but not being local, we opted for the easier approach. However, we didn’t stay put given the amount of tailgate invites we had received prior to the game. Phil and Taylor went over to the REVELxp tailgate area to visit their friend. If you aren’t familiar with REVELxp, they sell premium(ish) tailgate spots across the country. I have never used them because they are generally cost-prohibitive unless you are doing a corporate event. In my experience, their tailgate spots are hit or miss, and they can have a bit of an industrial trade show feel at times. However, they started out in Auburn, so they have a prime location. Our group’s general assessment was that it was fine, if a bit crowded.

Katie and I followed Taylor and Phil out about a half hour later to hit some other tailgates. Auburn has a beautiful campus, and we happily made our way to visit her cousin Mac’s local tailgate. It was very robust and well organized as were all those around us. Mac filled us in on some of the game day traditions although some were, literally, “up in the air”. Normally there would be a military fly-over before the game, but with contentious government budget debates going on, he wasn’t sure if it was going to happen. It was the age-old question: “Flyover or SNAP payments?”

We then continued around the stadium, hoping to catch up with Phil and Taylor at the other tailgate. As we progressed, the crowds were getting bigger as we approached the Tiger Walk pathway (more on that later). With a slower pace I was able to take more of the scene in, and suddenly I thought I saw a somewhat familiar tailgate spot. Thanks to my Georgia tailgate buddy, Barry, I had been connected with “Shane” as a potential tailgate to join. Shane, like everyone else we met at Auburn, was very nice and said he was happy to have us swing by. He dropped me a pin and sent me a photo of their setup.

It was that photo that triggered me to check out the tailgate. I walked up to a group of guys and asked if someone could direct me to Shane. One guy stuck out his hand and quizzically said, “I’m Shane.” When I introduced myself and mentioned the texts, he gave me a very strange look. And then, he broke into a big smile and said you want the other “Shane.” Indeed, the other Shane made the connection, showed us around the tailgate and refreshed us with an adult beverage or two. Auburn hospitality was re-confirmed.

By the time we had finished with Shane, we discovered that we had just missed the “Tiger Walk” where the fans line the path for the players to walk to the stadium. I was a bit dismissive of the tradition, pointing out that lots of schools do that. However, as Katie immediately reminded me, Auburn did it first – specifically noting “it was the most copied tradition in college football” Fair enough – credit to Auburn.

Speaking of traditions, the Tigers have a lot of them. So much so that our group was politely guided to arrive early. The last time I was inside a stadium an hour before kick-off I was wearing a helmet and shoulder pads. It did, however, make for a very easy entrance into Jordan-Hare Stadium. At 88,000-plus, it is a big and resplendent stadium. There are two video scoreboards, two video ribbons and a lot of Yellawood signs. It also has all the lights and sound system for big entrances.

We had lower-level seats at the 10 yard-line that ran us $200 each via the after-market. They were good seats, but only bleacher style. I saw lots of orange seat backs so I am sure you can rent them even if we didn’t see them when we walked in. The concessions were standard, although they did serve a local hot dog. They sell alcohol and the souvenir cup was a simple but well-received classic design.

We were early, but impressively, so were the Auburn students. We got to see Aurea (War Eagle VIII) fly into the stadium. In what may be a new add to their signature tradition, the preflight warmup included the playing of Lynyrd Skynyrd’s “Free Bird.” This felt very on brand. The crowd was now officially fired up. The team entrance was good, if perhaps a bit too long. The fashion sense was very SEC – Girls in Pearls, Guys in Ties. There was some club wear in the mix; it was noted by a certain Auburn alum that it was not as “skanky as Bama.” The more mature fans were of the polo and sun visor set, with the women leaning a little more toward “smart casual.” All the fans we came across were exceedingly friendly.

Auburn’s mascot is Aubie the Tiger. Aubie motivates the crowd during the game and makes various appearances off the field also. Aurea, the War Eagle, is another mascot. Lastly there are the War Eagle Girls and Plainsmen, the omnipresent, nattily clad ambassadors in Auburn orange and navy. With multiple cheers and songs for each down, the pom-pom waving fans maintained their enthusiasm throughout the game, cheering “War Eagle HEY!” after each first down. The Auburn University Marching Band is good, so good (and I am paraphrasing here from their website) that they don’t need some stupid nickname.

The Auburn campus, tailgating and in-stadium experience is top tier. With nine claimed national championships, the football team is usually the same. Usually.

Kentucky came into the game with a 2-5 record. Auburn was 4-4, but fans I talked to felt they were much better, having been on the wrong end of “the three worst calls” made that season so far. Auburn’s play that night did nothing to support that argument. This was a tough game to watch unless you love punting. It was a scoreless tie at the end of the first quarter, 3 – 3 at the half, and Kentucky went ahead for good with a touchdown on their first drive of the third quarter.

Auburn just couldn’t put together a decent drive. Kentucky’s pass rush had something to do with that, garnering seven sacks to Auburn’s two. The Tigers could not get out of their own way. Late in the 4th quarter, Auburn intercepted a pass, returned it to the 50-yard line where it was promptly fumbled back to Kentucky. On the next possession the Tigers got one last chance to put something together. Their two-minute drive got to the Wildcats 35-yard line and the Auburn faithful perked up. Alas, another sack, followed by an interception, ended the game. There would be no joy (or toilet paper) in Toomers Corner that evening.

Despite a terrible performance on the field, I rate Auburn as a must-see stadium. While they might not have the championship pedigree of their rivals over at Alabama, the vibe at Auburn is better. I love the disdain they have for the Crimson Tide and their commitment to tradition. From keeping a cringy title like War Eagle “Girls” and not letting Lee Corso wear Aubie’s head, the Tigers are nothing if not defiant in their right to be considered among the best in college football.

Their pride, however, does not get in the way of being outstanding hosts. Case in point, as I was finishing my lunch in Dadeville, I briefly talked with a local farmer about Auburn football. It was a friendly conversation and at the end of it, he insisted on buying my lunch. Dadeville (btw) is the home of Al, the killer of the southern live oak trees of Toomer’s Corner that were showered with toilet paper after every win. Even that grievous assault on a grand Auburn tradition is met with a kind shake of the head and a gentle shrug of the shoulders.

At Auburn, the spirit is strong and so is the hospitality. Both kind-hearted and classy, it is worth the visit. War Eagle.