At long last, Auburn's reworked 2020 schedule has been finalized and revealed.
During an unveiling show Monday evening on SEC Network, Gus Malzahn and his Tigers learned the order in which they'll face their 10 conference foes this upcoming season. SEC teams have known all 10 of their opponents since Aug. 7, just not when they would play said teams.
In its entirety, here is Auburn's 2020 slate, followed by the grid schedule for the entire conference.
2020 AUBURN SCHEDULE
Sept. 26: vs. Kentucky
Oct. 3: at Georgia
Oct. 10: vs. Arkansas
Oct. 17: at South Carolina
Oct. 24: at Ole Miss
Oct. 31: vs. LSU
Nov. 7: BYE
Nov. 14: at Mississippi State
Nov. 21: vs. Tennessee
Nov. 28: at Alabama
Dec. 5: vs. Texas A&M
Malzahn spoke Monday before the Tigers opened their 2020 fall camp about the uncertainty of a new schedule and having to prepare for early opponents with just over a month's notice.
“This is a year about adjusting," he said. "The teams that adjust, they’re going to have an advantage. It is what it is. We’re going to figure out who we play ... our coaches will start working extremely hard as far as that goes behind the scenes on off days just to get prepared. Usually, you go into the season and you’ve got the first three opponents broke down. So we’ll be playing catch up really fast, along with everybody else in the conference the next few weeks.”
Here are some notable tidbits from the Tigers' new gauntlet:
• Former Auburn quarterback Joey Gatewood, who transferred to Kentucky after losing the starting job to Bo Nix last season, figures to be the Wildcats' backup quarterback if he's granted immediate eligibility by the NCAA. If so, it'll likely be the only opportunity for Nix to face Gatewood in their college careers.
• The Deep South's Oldest Rivalry, now set for Week 2, will be played at its earliest date since 1892, which was the first meeting between the Tigers and Bulldogs.
• Auburn plays LSU on Halloween inside Jordan-Hare Stadium. Auburn's last Halloween game came in 2015, in a 27-19 loss to Ole Miss. Auburn and LSU last met on Oct. 31 in 1902.
• The Iron Bowl will not be played on the last day of the regular season like usual, thought it does retain its traditional Thanksgiving weekend slot.
• The last time Auburn played another game after the Iron Bowl was in 2001, when Auburn's matchup with LSU was moved from Sept. 15 to Dec. 1 because of 9/11.
• The last time Alabama played another game after the Iron Bowl was in 2002 and 2003, when the Crimson Tide played road games at Hawaii on the last day of the regular season both years. Alabama's two-year bowl ban allowed the Tide to play a 13th game if it was played in Hawaii.
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