Increased national exposure and Ryan Mallett are on the brain as the No. 7 Auburn football coaching staff prepares to host No. 12 Arkansas Saturday in Jordan-Hare Stadium.
The game will be televised on CBS, with kickoff set for 2:30 p.m.
Razorbacks quarterback Mallett ranks second in the nation in passing yards, averaging 349.6 per game.
"He makes plays against everybody," said defensive coordinator Ted Roof. "So the discipline in our coverage and the discipline in our pursuit angles as far as tracking the football, and the ability to try and put some pressure on him and to disguise what we're doing a little bit, is going to be critical this week."
Auburn ranks 10th in the SEC in pass defense, giving up 220 yards in last week's game at Kentucky.
Coach Gene Chizik said he knows the game will be a significant test for the Auburn team.
"This probably will be the biggest challenge we've faced up to date in terms of receivers and quarterbacks and just defending their offense, period," Chizik said. "But certainly, the quarterback and receivers are among the best in the country as a whole. It'll be a great challenge for us again, and our guys will come out and fight."
Arkansas enters the game at 4-1 (1-1 SEC), head coach Bobby Petrino's best start since taking the reins in 2008.
Petrino said his team's biggest strength will be defense, which ranks second in the SEC in sacks and scoring defense.
"We felt like we were there at the beginning of the year, but it was always a test," Petrino said. "Like I said earlier in the season, we need to have a couple of games where we go out and dominate on defense and have big performances so our confidence level goes up. I think that's where we are now."
The Razorbacks however scored only three points in the second halves of the last two games.
Mallett has also thrown six interceptions so far this season compared to last year's total of seven.
"You know, you can't do nothing about that," Mallett said. "It's going to happen. Last year I was fortunate enough to not throw very many. Obviously, that's not my goal to throw interceptions.''
Regardless, Chizik said Auburn won't be able to rely on second-half heroics to pull a win Saturday.
"I feel like we're still in search for a really good, all-around, four-quarter game," Chizik said. "As I've said every week, I don't feel like we're where we need to be. I'm very proud of our team that we've continued to fight and battle. They don't look at the scoreboard. They just keep playing."
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