With No. 17 Texas A&M and No. 8 Auburn squaring off tomorrow in what could be an SEC West elimination game, we went to Nathan King of Auburn's Rivals site for a better look at the 3-0 Tigers.
For AY's Mark Passwaters' answers to Auburnsports.com's questions, click here.
1. In past years, Gus Malzahn has had an offense that has been very uptempo and somewhat balanced. This year it seems a little slower and more run-based. Is that accurate and if yes, what else are they doing differently?
The Tigers ran for 467 yards in their Week 3 victory over Kent State — the most by a team in an FBS vs. FBS matchup this season. That inflated them all the way up to the No. 11 rushing team in the nation. But those numbers don't tell the story's of Auburn's offensive season thus far. The run game was stagnant for the first halves of the wins over Oregon and Tulane, forcing Bo Nix to throw 68 combined passes in those games — not exactly ideal for a true freshman. The run-blocking as a whole needs to improve like it did against Kent State if Auburn is going to be able to hang in the SEC.
2. Bo Nix was impressive against Oregon, but his overall numbers are pretty average. What are your thoughts on the true freshman to date?
Despite that go-ahead touchdown to Seth Williams with nine seconds remaining, Nix completed just 13 of 31 passes against the Ducks — plus two interceptions. During his 12-for-16 day against Kent State, he brought his completion percentage above 50 percent for the first time this season. My thoughts: Nix has a golden arm and a bunch of natural athletic ability, but he's being limited right now both by the conservative play-calls of his offense and the production of the skill-position talent around him. The former is to be expected with a true freshman, but the latter needs work. It's been "musical chairs" at receiver, Gus Malzahn joked, and getting starting Seth Williams and Anthony Schwartz back in this game can give the QB some much-needed assistance.
3. Prince Tega Wanogho and Derrick Brown were both out last week against Kent State and are the dreaded "day-to-day". Any update on where they are physically? That could be a big impact on the game.
If I were a betting man, I would lock in All-American defensive tackle Derrick Brown, starting left tackle Prince Tega Wanogho and the 2018 Freshman All-SEC receiver Williams all playing against the Aggies. Brown was dealing with upper-body pain and left the Kent State game; Wanogho tweaked his bum knee against Tulane and didn't play the next week; and Williams landed hard on his shoulder against Tulane and just returned to practice this week.But these are all "impact players," as Malzahn put it. I would argue these are three of the five most important players for Auburn. If all of them don't start, I'd be shocked.
4. How do you think the defense will scheme to stop A&M? Will they try to put the game on Kellen Mond's shoulders?
Isaiah Spiller has Auburn's attention. The Tigers have been stout against the run through three weeks, and, overall, they've just had a downright nasty defense once they get their feet under them. They've started slow in all three games, as all three opponents have scored on their opening drives. But in the second, third and fourth quarters, defensive coordinator Kevin Steele's unit has put the clamps down.
Most of the talk this week has been surrounding Kellen Mond, however. Auburn respects his play-making ability immensely and knows it'll have to keep him between the hashes. I'm not sure what exactly they'll scheme, considering nearly every Auburn defender utilized through the first three weeks has played excellent. But yes, I'm thinking if A&M is to win, it will need a big performance from Mond. I think that Auburn front is just too good to let A&M run all over them for the victory.
5. Game prediction?Â
This one should be tight, and I wouldn't be shocked at all if Auburn pulls it out. That would bode well for the Tigers to possibly be 7-0 going into the LSU matchup, as it seems backsliding Miss State and banged-up Florida are both beatable teams. But heading into College Station, I'm not placing any stock in Malzahn's offense just yet.
While I do give Auburn the edge against the Aggies' offensive line, I think Mond has enough playmakers at receiver to bail him out a handful of times — which should be enough to outscore Auburn's offense. On the other side of the ball, I don't trust the Tigers to set up a consistent ground game against a stiff defensive front, despite their big rushing performance last week. The Aggies held their own against Heisman candidate running back Travis Etienne when they faced Clemson, forcing Trevor Lawrence to beat them through the air. He did, of course, however I can't lean into thinking Nix — who has been up-and-down through three weeks — will do the same in his first SEC test on the road.
Texas A&M 23, Auburn 17
