Auburn Football’s Offensive Identity Spells Trouble For Ole Miss
John Reed-USA TODAY Sports
Last Saturday in Baton Rouge, the LSU Tigers educated the world on how to beat the Ole Miss Rebels — stay on the ground and chew up the clock. In Auburn‘s case, no lesson is needed.
Gus Malzahn‘s run-happy offense dominated the SEC last season, and this year the game plan has not changed one iota. The Tigers average 281 yards per game on the ground, which is good for 16th in the nation and third in the SEC behind Arkansas and LSU. In fact, Auburn has attempted 173 passes all season — only eight other teams in the country have attempted less. Needless to say, pounding the rock down the field is what Auburn does best, and Ole Miss may be in a heap of trouble on Saturday in Oxford.
LSU ran for over 250 yards on the Rebel defense and attempted only 16 passes all game, two of which were intercepted. Nick Marshall will not be taking any chances with Cody Prewitt and Senquez Golson roaming the perimeter. As the old saying goes, “three things happen when you pass the ball and two of them ain’t good.” That especially holds true with the Rebel defense. Ole Miss must be prepared for the large Tiger offensive line to lay the groundwork for heavy doses of Cameron Artis-Payne and Marshall himself, who actually leads the team with seven rushing touchdowns.
Ole Miss is still reeling from the 10-7 loss in Death Valley and cannot be looking forward to another physical team bent on knocking them off the pedestal. Auburn has been a back story in the SEC West all season and are probably tired of hearing about the surging Mississippi schools. The Tigers are as dangerous as ever, and if the Rebels cannot match up physically, a two-game losing streak may be on the horizon.
Brad Stephens is an SEC Football writer for www.Rantsports.com. Feel free to follow on Twitter @bradstephens320 or add him to your Google network.
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