Nick Saban picks Auburn to be SEC's most improved team in 2024

The college football season is officially underway with the first slate of games taking place on Saturday. The kickoff of the fall festivities could not be complete without the return of ESPN’s “College Gameday,” which had many headlines to discuss.

Amongst the topics that were talked about was who the nation’s most improved teams would be. When mentioning it in the context of the SEC, analyst Kirk Herbstreit picked the Auburn Tigers. Even more notably, former Alabama head coach Nick Saban agreed, which may come as a surprise to many.

Herbstreit’s remarks gave way for Saban to make his, which he is very sincere on.

“I think Auburn is going to be the most-improved team in the league. I really do,” Saban said.

With Saban having coached the Tigers’ arch-rivals into a dynasty during his career, many might not trust his comments. Considering last year’s woes and the recruiting success Auburn has had lately though, this statement might not come as a surprise to some.

The Tigers are coming off of their third-straight losing season after going 6-7 in year one under head coach Hugh Freeze. A wealth of talent is now surrounding quarterback in Payton Thorne in 2024 though after the team brought in numerous young receivers like Cam Coleman to extend Thorne’s options.

Auburn takes the field for the first time this season on Aug. 31 when it takes on Alabama A&M at 6:30 p.m. CST in Jordan-Hare Stadium.

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