The hate just keeps on coming.
I myself am a fan of Saturday Down South. Their content is great, their podcasts are engaging. But SDS recently put out a take that seems wild to me
Connor O’Gara, a Senior National Columnist for Saturday Down South, has been putting out his annual “Crystal Ball Series” which predicts each individual SEC team’s record for the season. He goes through game-by-game and predicts wins and losses.
In this year’s Crystal Ball, O’Gara has Auburn going 5-7, including losses to Penn State, LSU, Georgia, Arkansas, Texas A&M, Mississippi State, and Alabama.
I can understand five of those losses. According to ESPN’s FPI, the Tigers are predicted to lose five of those matchups (all excluding Arkansas and MSU).
However, Auburn hasn’t lost to Arkansas at home since 2012. The Tigers haven’t lost to Mississippi State at home since 2015.
No SEC game is a guaranteed win, but I seriously doubt with all of the talent that’s on the roster, Auburn stoops to 2012 and 2015 levels this season.
Here’s what O’Gara had to say about his prediction.
Even if Auburn has one of the SEC’s better defenses and Bigsby lives up to the hype, there are 2 areas that will be Auburn’s downfall — the inability to stretch the field vertically and the lack of a pass rush. In this era of college football, you just cannot compete for conference titles by doing those things at a sub-par level.
This is going to be a trying year for Harsin. His patience will be tested. I have no doubt that his non-answers will frustrate those looking for some accountability. Will this year define him? No. Even at a place where buyouts have become a daily topic of conversation, Harsin won’t be going anywhere after Year 1.
O’Gara is correct in what he’s saying. However, it’s very hard to see both Auburn’s lack of a passing game and perceived lack of a pass rush (Auburn was 4th in the SEC in sack rate last season according to SEC StatCat) holding the Tigers back to the tune of 5-7. The offense won’t be what holds the Tigers back in matchups against Arkansas and MSU. If Auburn loses those games, the defense will have caved, specifically the secondary, due to the passing nature of those two offenses.
[listicle id=20901]
Contact/Follow us @theauburnwire on Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Auburn news, notes, and opinion.