The Auburn Tigers’ head coach, Alex Golesh, didn’t give any benefit of the doubt when it came to the transfer portal, especially at the quarterback position. Even after landing his own gunslinger from USF in Byrum Brown, Alex Golesh went bullish and brought in one of the brightest young talents out of the Power Four to keep the room ultra-competitive. However, nobody was more stoked for this signing than Auburn’s OC/QB coach Joel Gordon.

In fact, Joel Gordon took pride in announcing it to the public with their war-cry message.

On January 11, the Auburn Tigers’ QB coach hopped onto X to celebrate the news with just the “WDE” (War Eagle) rallying cry on social media to welcome his newest recruit. That recruit was four-star quarterback Tristan Ti’a, fresh off a weekend visit he described as nothing short of eye-opening.

“The visit was great, probably some of the best facilities I’ve seen. This is the first SEC school I’ve been to.” Tristan Ti’a said about his last week’s visit. “It was amazing just seeing everything available to the players and just everyone.”

The young playmaker, who still has four years of eligibility left, chose the Tigers after checking out other big-name schools like Cal and Stanford. He also gave props to head coach Alex Golesh and OC/QB coach Joel Gordon.

“They care. Being around here is really stress-free, almost. They truly care about you, and whether you slip up or not, they’re gonna be there for you and back you up. They’re looking out for the best for you. Like, they’re gonna push you to the heights that you also see in yourself,” Ti’a added.

It’s safe to say Gordon has a massive reputation for turning quarterbacks into stars, including NFL starter Brock Purdy, and he clearly sees that same high-level potential in Ti’a. He was a highly touted recruit coming out of Amador Valley High School in California. During his senior year of high school, he put up huge numbers, throwing for over 3,400 yards and 29 touchdowns. Plus, rushing for 731 yards and 16 more scores on the ground.

In Ti’a’s short pit stop at Oregon State in 2025, before redshirting, he played in three games, completing nearly 70% of his passes for 385 yards and three touchdowns. Tristan Ti’a’s stats clearly indicate that he is not coming to sit on the sidelines in the upcoming season behind Byrum Brown. He’s coming directly for the QB1 role.

Tristan Ti’a will go toe-to-toe with Byrum Brown at Auburn

During his time on the Plains, Ti’a spent hours “talking ball” and watching film with the coaching staff. He was reportedly blown away not just by the fancy facilities but by the energy of the new staff led by Alex Golesh. The coaches have made it clear that while they already have talent in the room, they aren’t promising anyone a starting spot without a fight.

This commitment means Auburn fans can expect a very tight battle for the starting job this spring. For Tristan Ti’a, it’s going to take something from him to take over the mantle from Byrum, considering he’s already played under Joel Gordon’s offense back at USF. And he’s done a pretty good job at it, throwing for 28 touchdowns, 3,158 yards, with just seven picks. Plus, he rushed for just over 1,000 yards and 16 touchdowns.

Rather than being intimidated by those numbers, Ti’a made it pretty clear that he’s hungry to compete. He’s ready to prove he belongs at the top of the depth chart. With these two dual-threat quarterbacks now on campus, Auburn’s offense is looking completely different for the 2026 season. It remains to be seen how their next campaign pans out.