’BURN NOTICE
Tigers put SEC on high alert with trouncing of Razorbacks
Keys for Auburn
FOLLOW LSU’S EXAMPLE: Louisiana State didn’t do anything fancy last week against Mississippi. It just kept handing the ball off and ran roughshod over a poor defense. Auburn had no trouble crushing Arkansas with a potent rushing attack that is now averaging more than 300 yards per game, and it’s safe to expect the Tigers to give the Rebels a heavy dose of Kamryn Pettway. The tailback had 27 carries last week and could see more at Ole Miss.
BADGER KELLY: Auburn beat Arkansas 56-3, and much of the attention was rightfully placed on a potent rushing attack. But the Tigers had four sacks and 11 tackles for loss in just 64 defensive snaps against the Razorbacks, and their defense has quietly risen to third nationally in scoring defense and 18th in total yardage allowed. Disrupting Mississippi QB Chad Kelly is well within this unit’s abilities.
Keys for Mississippi
STOP THE RUN: It’s the story of this game. Auburn just swamped Arkansas for 543 rushing yards last week, and Mississippi was flattened by Leonard
Fournette and Louisiana State in Death Valley on Saturday. Auburn ranks third in the country in rushing, and Mississippi checks in at 113th nationally against the run. There’s an obvious path to victory for Auburn, and the Rebels must figure out how to deny the Tigers on the ground. EXTEND SOME POSSESSIONS: There comes a point where a team’s offensive identity — especially an identity predicated on going as fast as possible in the hopes of wearing out opponents — must yield to the realities facing the other side of the ball. The Rebels haven’t stopped good offenses all season, and Auburn certainly qualifies as one. Mississippi is next-to-last nationally in time of possession, and an unproductive defense isn’t getting better by being overexposed.
Prediction
AUBURN 31-20: If it wasn’t obvious before its trip to Baton Rouge, Mississippi is in the midst of a lost season. At the same time, Auburn has played quite well during its four-game winning streak. It has the running game to exploit the same weakness Louisiana State did last week, and it is facing a Rebels bunch that has reason to be demoralized. Auburn probably won’t play as well as it did against Arkansas, but it should prove to be better than Ole Miss this week.