With game one under their belt and a 1-0 start to the season, the Auburn Tigers now turn their attention to head coach Gus Malzahn's former team, the Arkansas State Red Wolves.
Arkansas State was dominant last week with a 62-11 victory over FCS team Arkansas-Pine Bluff. While Arkansas-Pine Bluff is not a SEC team like Auburn, the Red Wolves still did some impressive things in the victory.\0x2028 They had four different players rush for more than 100 yards, adding up to a total of 509 yards rushing for the team.
This was something the Tigers did not see much of last week when they faced Mike Leach's "Air Raid" offense, but when the Cougars did run the ball, they had success. Washington State finished with 120 yards on 23 carries.
This is not a mind-blowing statistic, but for a team that does not run the ball often, it does not speak highly of Auburn's run defense.
With an Arkansas State team that does run the ball well coming to town, this will be a concern for defensive coordinator Ellis Johnson.
The good news is Auburn's week one opponent was a quality team, while Arkansas State's was not.\0x2028 Auburn was tested last week, and while they did not play a perfect game, they did earn valuable experience and confidence.
On offense, Auburn's run game should be an ad- vantage against Arkansas State. The Tigers finished with 297 yards rushing on 45 attempts, averaging more than six yards per carry.
If the Tigers can repeat their success on the ground, with a little improvement thrown in, the Tigers will take a major advantage into week two.
A negative for the Tigers offense will be the passing game.
Nick Marshall's debut was far from impressive. He finished 10-for-19 for 99 yards with no touchdown passes. This must improve if the Tigers want to pull off a victory.
An improved passing game would also help make the run game more effective by not having the offense to be one-dimensional.
On defense, the Tigers have work to do from top to bottom. While the defense struggled at times last week, they did a lot of good things considering that four players were missing because of injury.
In 2012, the Auburn defense had two interceptions total for the entire season. In week one of the 2013 season, they had three.
Freshman defensive tackle Montravius Adams had a solid first game, finishing with two solo tackles and one sack. There are aspects he can, and must, improve, but he should be a solid player this week.
The biggest area Auburn will have to overcome this week is a lack of motivation.
Arkansas State, going into this game, has everything to gain and nothing to lose, while Auburn has nothing to gain and everything to lose.
The Red Wolves, a solid football team, will come into Jordan-Hare Stadium and look to get revenge on their former coach.
If Auburn does not take this team seriously, the Tigers could be in trouble.
While I think Auburn should be on upset alert, I still think the Tigers will come away with the victory.
But the victory will have to be earned with focus, motivation and solid execution.
Last week's performance should be a wake-up call for the Tigers, and it will help motivate them as they prepare for the Red Wolves.
The game will probably stay close for most of the game, but I predict Auburn will pull away to a 31-17 victory.
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