Our sports staff has mustered up our opinions and predictions for this weekend's contest. Here are our predictions about what will happen on the field, thrown out into the open.
Caleb Jones, Sports Editor: Auburn 41-36
"Auburn has a lot of momentum coming off a road win against Arkansas and had a bye week last week to recover from seven straight weeks of football. Seeing Auburn's history against Ole Miss, especially inside Jordan-Hare Stadium, I'm taking the Tigers in a shootout. Happy Halloween, Auburn fans."
Mattison Allen, Assistant Sports Editor: Ole Miss 34-31
"As Bryan Harsin mentioned this week, Ole Miss has a front-runner for Heisman under center. It is difficult to compete with that. I believe Auburn’s run game is better than Ole Miss’ and that is what is going to keep the game close. However, with Matt Corral’s arm, the Rebels will take home the win."
Henry Zimmer, Sports Reporter: Auburn 31-24
"Auburn is coming off its best win of the year against Arkansas and has had a whole extra week to prepare for Ole Miss and Heisman frontrunner Matt Corral. Auburn is going to have to match Ole Miss’s output on offense, but a defensive stop or two by the Tigers will give Auburn the leg up and eventually the win."
Evan Mealins, Editor in Chief (Guest Picker): Auburn 37-31
"Coming off Auburn’s most impressive showing and a bye week to recover, Auburn will be ready for Ole Miss. An energetic home crowd gives Auburn the slight edge against an Ole Miss team yet to produce any fireworks on the road; expect some CFP dreams to be crushed Saturday night."
Caroline Craig, Community Reporter (Guest Picker): Auburn 35-20
"I think if Auburn can stop Ole Miss from converting, Bo Nix can do what he does at home. If Owen Pappoe is back, then Auburn's defense will definitely make that happen."
Jacob Waters, Sports Writer: Auburn 38-30
"The Auburn defense will have its hands full with Matt Corral who is arguably the best quarterback in the country and leading one of the most high powered offenses in the SEC. Luckily for Auburn, the Ole Miss defense, though it is improved, is still shaky.
Auburn should not have trouble scoring, but if it does, Auburn is in big trouble. It can not afford to go down quickly and let Ole Miss seize momentum. I suspect Auburn will try to work the struggling run game early, but if it does not show any signs of life, expect Auburn to ride Nix’s arms and legs once again.
Both teams still have everything to play for; the intensity will be high in Jordan-Hare Stadium at night right before Halloween. With lots of explosive plays and big games from both quarterbacks, I think Auburn narrowly grinds out a win in one of the best SEC games of the season."
Dylan Fox, Sports Writer: Ole Miss 34-24
"The Rebel's rush defense showed their improvement last week vs LSU, holding the Tigers to 77 yards rushing. And with the Auburn defense possibly still missing some key players, the Rebels have key advantages on both sides of the ball."
Logan Glover, Sports Writer: Auburn 37-21
"The Rebels are entering their 5th straight SEC team. While Auburn is coming off a bye week. Auburn continues to find its groove on offense while the defense contains Ole Miss enough."
Nic Young, Sports Writer: Auburn 35-31
"Ole Miss has proven to have one of the most productive offenses in college football, averaging around 41 points per game. Their defense, however, ranked 100th out of 130 in total defense. Opponents of the Rebels average around 181 yards on the ground. Fresh off a bye week, I expect the Tigers to control the tempo, taking full advantage of an Ole Miss team that cannot stop the run. The X-factor in this game will be the turnover battle, one that I believe the more reliable Auburn defense will win."
Carl, No. 1 Ole Miss fan: Ole Miss 30-28
"It's gonna be close. I'm thinking it's gonna be a close game, but Ole Miss is gonna come out on top."
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