1976 Auburn Tigers football team

The 1976 Auburn Tigers football team represented Auburn University in the 1976 NCAA Division I football season. At the end of the 1975 season, Ralph "Shug" Jordan retired after 25 years as head coach of the Auburn Tigers. Doug Barfield, Jordan's offensive coordinator, took over as head coach starting in 1976. He coached the Tigers to a 3–8 record his first season, winning just 2 of 6 conference games.^[1] However, Mississippi State was forced to forfeit their game that year, so Auburn's record officially improved to 4–7 (3–3).^[2]

1976 Auburn Tigers football
Conference	Southeastern Conference
Record	4–7 (3–3 SEC)
Head coach	Doug Barfield (1st season)
Offensive coordinator	Larry Beightol (1st season)
Defensive coordinator	P. W. Underwood (1st season)
Home stadium	Jordan-Hare Stadium Legion Field
Seasons ← 1975 1977 →

1976 Southeastern Conference football standings

v t e	Conf.							Overall
Team	W		L		T			W		L		T
No. 10 Georgia $	5	–	1	–	0			10	–	2	–	0
No. 11 Alabama	5	–	2	–	0			9	–	3	–	0
No. 20 Mississippi State	4	–	2	–	0			9	–	2	–	0
Florida	4	–	2	–	0			8	–	4	–	0
No. 18 Kentucky	4	–	2	–	0			8	–	4	–	0
LSU	3	–	3	–	0			6	–	4	–	1
Auburn	3	–	3	–	0			4	–	7	–	0
Ole Miss	3	–	4	–	0			5	–	6	–	0
Tennessee	2	–	4	–	0			6	–	5	–	0
Vanderbilt	0	–	6	–	0			2	–	9	–	0
$ – Conference champion Mississippi State later forfeited all 1976 wins due to NCAA violations. Rankings from AP Poll

Neil O'Donoghue (PK) received All-American honors and ^[2] for the 1976 season, yet there were no players named to the All-SEC first team this year.

Schedule

Date	Opponent	Site	Result	Attendance	Source
September 11	at Arizona*	Arizona Stadium Tucson, AZ	L 19–31	52,206	[3]
September 18	Baylor*	Jordan-Hare Stadium Auburn, AL	L 14–15	50,000	[4]
September 25	Tennessee	Legion Field Birmingham, AL (rivalry)	W 38–28	50,000	[5]
October 2	at No. 16 Ole Miss	Mississippi Veterans Memorial Stadium Jackson, MS (rivalry)	W 10–0	40,500	[6]
October 9	at Memphis State*	Liberty Bowl Memorial Stadium Memphis, TN	L 27–28	48,561	[7]
October 16	Georgia Tech*	Jordan-Hare Stadium Auburn, AL (rivalry)	L 10–28	63,786	[8]
October 23	Florida State*	Jordan-Hare Stadium Auburn, AL	W 31–19	58,500	[9]
October 30	at No. 12 Florida	Florida Field Gainesville, FL (rivalry)	L 19–24	65,129	[10]
November 6	at Mississippi State	Mississippi Veterans Memorial Stadium Jackson, MS	W 19–28 (forfeit win)	37,000	[11][12]
November 13	No. 7 Georgia	Jordan-Hare Stadium Auburn, AL (rivalry)	L 0–28	63,912	[13]
November 27	vs. No. 18 Alabama	Legion Field Birmingham, AL (Iron Bowl)	L 7–38	70,303	[14]
*Non-conference game Homecoming Rankings from AP Poll released prior to the game

^[2]

References

1. 2011 Auburn Tigers Football Media Guide, Auburn University Athletic Department, Auburn, Alabama, pp. 182–4 (2011). Retrieved August 19, 2011
2. 2005 Auburn Tigers Football Media Guide, Auburn University Athletic Department, Auburn, Alabama, pp. 142–143,178 (2005). Retrieved August 19, 2011
3. "Lunsford guides Arizona past Auburn". The Arizona Daily Star. September 12, 1976. Retrieved October 29, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
4. "Battered Baylor slips by fumbling Auburn". Fort Worth Star-Telegram. September 19, 1976. Retrieved October 29, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
5. "Clawed by swooping War Eagles, Vols lose 38–28". Johnson City Press-Chronicle. September 26, 1976. Retrieved May 8, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
6. "Auburn downs Rebs in defenseive battle". The Sun Herald. October 3, 1976. Retrieved October 29, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
7. "Memphis slips past Auburn, 28–27". The Tennessean. October 10, 1976. Retrieved October 29, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
8. "Tech upsets Auburn, 28–10". Florence Morning News. October 17, 1976. Retrieved October 29, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
9. "Gargis paces Auburn over Florida State". Panama City News-Herald. October 24, 1976. Retrieved October 29, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
10. "Gators get by Auburn; Chandler steals show". Fort Myers News-Press. October 31, 1976. Retrieved October 29, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
11. "Davison is 'big man' in Bulldogs' victory". The Commercial Appeal. November 7, 1976. Retrieved October 29, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
12. "Bulldogs forced to forfeit 19 football games". The Tuscaloosa News. Associated Press. May 24, 1978. p. 19. Retrieved October 29, 2023.
13. "Bulldogs blank Auburn 28–0". The Sunday Ledger-Enquirer. November 14, 1976. Retrieved October 29, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
14. "Rutledge keys Tide past Auburn 38–7". Tallahassee Democrat. November 28, 1976. Retrieved October 29, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.