I laughed out loud typing that headline, but then recoiled in horror when I relived the 2018 Auburn vs Tennessee game. That’s the beauty of playing in the SEC. Just when you think a team is down and out they come along and surprise the college football world by pulling out a big win.
Could Tennessee do that against Auburn on Saturday?
It would be highly unlikely, but not impossible as we all know. As of right now Auburn is favorited by 10.5 points. This spread is much less generous than 2018 when the Tigers were picked to win by 18. ESPN’s Football Power Index gives the Tigers an 86.4% chance to win on Saturday which adds further fuel to the fires already burning beneath Volunteer head coach Jeremy Pruitt’s hot seat.
Here are three reasons why Tennessee *could* beat Auburn.
Auburn forgets how to move the ball
The main reason why Tennessee is on a four-game losing streak is because the Volunteer defense is allowing 408 yards of total offense and 5.8 yards per play. Remember how pitiful Auburn’s offense was in the first few games of this season? It was a cautious tale that was quickly corrected after Auburn lost to the unranked dumpster fire that is South Carolina, but hear me out on this one.
The Tigers have had not one but two bye weeks due to an increase in COVID-19 cases throughout both Mississippi State and Auburn football programs. If the Tigers return from the bye weeks in the same sluggish fashion they began this season with then this is a game that could end up getting ugly.
Auburn defense lets Tennessee move the chains
Auburn’s defense has had a tough time getting off the field on third down which is something I greatly wish to see the Tigers improve upon in the last four games of this season. They gave up 315 passing yards to LSU and were gutted by the Ole Miss run game. The Tigers can’t afford to give Tennessee a multitude of opportunities here.
Auburn makes mental errors
Have you ever failed a test because you rushed through it so you could begin something more exciting? It’s easier to focus on bigger and more fun things than the mundane task at hand, but Auburn will have to maintain all of its focus on Tennessee instead of looking ahead to next weekend’s Iron Bowl. Any mental error or slip up could result in a player ejected for targeting, an injury, or a costly gift of unnecessary yardage. We’ll need all of the players we can get next weekend and in order for that to happen the Tigers will need to have a cleanly executed game against the Volunteers.
I don’t know about you all, but I can’t survive another repeat of what happened in 2018. Here’s hoping that Saturday is as painless as possible and that Gus Malzahn pulls out all the stops in celebration of his 100th game!