AUBURN, AL. (EETV)- With the odds seemingly stacked against Auburn ahead of their upcoming game at home versus Oklahoma, fans are left wondering if Auburn can rise to the occasion.
Auburn entered this week haunted by questionable quarterback play, a season-ending defensive injury, and copious turnovers in last week’s matchup against Arkansas, wherein the Razorbacks left Jordan-Hare with a 24-14 victory. Despite this, Coach Freeze seems optimistic about his squad’s ability to produce in the toughest case they’ve yet to face– Saturday’s matchup against the 21st-ranked Oklahoma Sooners.
Oklahoma’s no slouch on offense– yet they still trail Auburn in every single yards stat on offense. The Sooners trail Auburn’s rushing yards per game by almost 60 and Auburn's passing yards per game by over 100, despite a comparable schedule to the Tigers. Additionally, Auburn leads the nation in yards per rushing attempt (6.2), and Jarquez Hunter and company seem to be in no position to slow this momentum.
On paper, it appears that Auburn should, if anything, enter this game as a favorite– if not for one thing: turnovers. Coach Freeze heavily emphasized giveaways in his Saturday and Monday press conferences, repeatedly stating that he feels “confident” in his team’s ability to limit this issue.
Turnovers and general field vision will certainly play a massive role in what Coach Freeze referred to as the “battle” between Hank Brown and Payton Thorne for Saturday’s starting spot, and I encourage Auburn fans to trust Hugh’s decision as to who gets the nod.
Without a doubt, each team’s defense is full of problems for their opposing offenses. After Cal and Arkansas, Auburn is now well familiar with dual-threat quarterbacks, so Oklahoma QB Jackson Arnold will be walking straight into the waiting and well-prepared arms of Eugene Asante and company. The same goes for the Auburn offense, though, as Oklahoma has proven to be a worthy defensive adversary, allowing an average of 14.75 points per game compared to Auburn’s 16.75.
Even if Auburn can truly adjust to their biggest issue and limit turnovers, I would expect a low-scoring game due to the absolute magnitude of these defenses; despite this, we will assumably see at least one big play, likely through the air to Oklahoma’s Deion Burks or any of Auburn’s high-flying receiver room.
Auburn looks to end their 5-game homestead with an exclamation point on Saturday at 2:30 p.m. CT against Oklahoma.
