After making it out of October with a 3-2 record, Auburn (6-3, 4-2 SEC) begins the first leg of "Amen Corner" as they travel to Athens to take on SEC East leader Georgia (7-2, 5-1) Saturday.
Only 38 points separate Auburn and Georgia over the course of the 114 meetings between the two teams. Georgia has outscored Auburn 1,809-1,771 in all of the meetings dating back to their first game in 1892.
Coach Gene Chizik knows the historical significance of this rivalry and what makes this annual meeting something special.
"I think when you talk about rivalries, part of what makes a rivalry a rivalry is that there's great competition, and it usually goes back and forth," Chizik said. "A rivalry is always made up of two teams that usually have something in common and are great competition for and with each other. I don't think you could go back and do the math and think anything other than that's one of the reasons this has been a great rivalry."
Coming off nine straight Saturdays of football and five consecutive SEC games, Auburn took a much-needed break last week. Chizik said the week was used for rest--mental and physical.
"I think the week off has certainly helped us just kind of mentally and physically rejuvenate somewhat," Chizik said. "We've had some really good practice days. We have a whole other week to prepare, which we'll need to beat this very good team."
Chizik thought the break was especially important for starting sophomore quarterback Clint Moseley.
"It's good to come off a win--in really (Moseley's) second start--to get a win and to be able to build on some of those things that we did not so well and some things we did do well," Chizik said. "We really focused more on Auburn than we did on Georgia by design. I think for him, personally, that was invaluable, but for the whole team as well."
After sitting out three straight games, Emory Blake made his return against Ole Miss, and by his own admission he was only 75 percent healthy. With the bye week, Blake was able to fully rest his injured ankle and will be close to full speed in Athens.
"Having Emory back the other night versus Ole Miss--it was obvious in some third-down situations--him making some big catches and things of that nature that were all at the right time makes a difference for your whole football team," Chizik said.
Having Blake back for the Ole Miss game had a positive effect on Moseley. He had a clear safety net if a play broke down, and Blake responded with five receptions for 71 yards and one touchdown.
Georgia presents an interesting matchup for the Tigers on the defensive side of the ball.
Sophomore quarterback Aaron Murray leads the SEC in passing touchdowns, even with All-American receiver A.J. Green in the NFL.
Freshman running back Isaiah Crowell, who Auburn recruited heavily last season, provides a steady rushing attack that was thought to be lacking with starting running back Washaun Ealey being kicked off the team before the season began.
After starting the season 0-2, the Bulldogs have won seven consecutive games, including five straight SEC contests. Georgia will be Auburn's second to last SEC opponent in the regular season.
"No. 1, I think the biggest thing, and you can see it when you watch their film, is you have a team that's won that many games in a row, and they are playing with a huge amount of confidence and they're getting better every week," Chizik said.
The Tigers have won 72 consecutive games when scoring 30 points or more.
The last time Auburn lost when breaking the 30-point barrier was in 1996 to the Bulldogs, 56-49.
The Tigers are 289-4 all-time when scoring 30.
"It's one of those games where we're going to have to go in and play the best road game we've played, no question about it, and win," Chizik said.
The game will be televised by CBS at 2:30 p.m Saturday.
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