‘I’m gonna punch the tiger.’ ESPN’s Matt Barrie didn’t enjoy Auburn mascot’s hijinks

Many of the nearly 90,000 people packed inside Auburn‘s Jordan-Hare Stadium weren’t in a particularly jolly mood on Saturday, Oct. 24, with the Tigers losing to LSU by 21 at halftime of their Week 8 matchup.

That included not just fans, but someone on the team airing the game.

During the "SEC Nation" halftime show on the field, ESPN’s Matt Barrie, Roman Harper, Jordan Rodgers and Tim Tebow were breaking down the first 30 minutes and discussing what Auburn needed to do to get back into the game. As they were doing so, Auburn‘s costumed mascot, Aubie, was standing behind them and tossing candy at them from a pumpkin basket it was holding.

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After one of the pieces hit Barrie on his back as he was transitioning out of the segment, the show’s host didn’t hide how he was feeling.

"I’m gonna punch the tiger if he doesn’t stop throwing candy at me," Barrie said, drawing laughs from his co-hosts.

"I’m gonna punch the tiger if he doesn’t stop throwing candy at me."

SEC Nation’s Matt Barrie wasn’t in the Halloween spirit like Aubie the Tiger. pic.twitter.com/JGhBU7Ri4R

— Awful Announcing (@awfulannouncing) October 24, 2026

https://t.co/lF8eJynV6Fpic.twitter.com/mKlQMsO72Z

— Matt Barrie (@MattBarrie) October 24, 2026

One week after pulling a massive rivalry upset on the road against then-No. 1 Georgia, Auburn was out-gained in the first half, 346-167, and allowed 261 passing yards. The orange-and-blue version of the Tigers stopped the metaphorical bleeding in the second half, holding LSU to a 7-7 draw in the final 30 minutes. By then, the damage had been done.

And, thanks to a little self-restraint from Barrie, Aubie avoided some damage of his own.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: ‘I’m gonna punch the tiger.’ ESPN’s Matt Barrie didn’t enjoy Auburn mascot’s hijinks

Source: sports.yahoo.com — article syndicated from the publisher’s feed; all rights remain with the original publisher.