Auburn Weekly Roundtable - Week 2 vs. Southern Miss

Week 2 is upon us, and the Auburn Tigers return to the friendly confines of Jordan-Hare Stadium 1-0 after a 17-16 victory over the Baylor Bears. There are a lot of questions coming out of the opener about the offense, and Auburn will look to work out some of those issues in their Week 2 matchup against the Southern Miss Eagles before SEC play begins the following week.

This week, the crew is joined by Christian Griffin, who is the host of “On the Line” each weekday from 2-4 PM on ESPN 106.7 in Auburn & Opelika.

What was the biggest takeaway from Auburn's Week 1 victory over Baylor?

ZAC BLACKERBY: Defense looks good. Found a way to win when it mattered. 

CHRISTIAN RAUH: They found a way to win. As stressful as it was, they are 1-0. 

TREY LEE: When Auburn needed a big score to take the lead late, they went down the field and dug deep and scored despite offensive struggles throughout the game. When Auburn needed a big stop on the 2-point conversion, they dug deep despite giving up a touchdown right before. 

Auburn came into this game with a 0-6 record in 1 score games during the past season. That dark cloud haunted the Tigers all year last year, and I really think this team has the mental toughness and the drive to dig deep and win close games this year.

CHRISTIAN GRIFFIN: Auburn getting punched in the mouth and handling MULTIPLE streams of adversity and finding a way.

What team across College Football impressed you the most during Week 1?

ZAC: LSU was impressive. I don’t think Clemson has much of an offense with Chad Morris as the OC but man LSU was a buzz saw. 

CHRISTIAN R: LSU put it to Clemson. They might be for real.

TREY: LSU. I had a ton of questions coming into the year regarding Sam Leavitt, and he showed out in a big way against Clemson in the midst of a ton of noise to kick off the Kiffin era

CHRISTIAN G: LSU

What is your biggest question coming out of the Baylor game?

ZAC: What in the world was that offense? Can Auburn fix the self-inflicted issues on offense? Can Byrum Brown look more comfortable in the next few games?

CHRISTIAN R: Left guard play needs to be drastically improved. 

TREY: What will Auburn do going forward at the guard positions?

Cole Skinner and Jacob Strand went down for the Tigers late, and Jack Leyrer and Kail Ellis came in for the Tiger's go ahead touchdown that ultimately would decide the game. 

I can see Coach Golesh rotating a good bit of guys along the line this week to make sure the best 5 guys are ready for the Gators in Week 3.

CHRISTIAN G: How long can the secondary “bend don’t break” or can Byrum’s progressions speed up to SEC level by week 3

Looking ahead to Southern Miss - who is a player on the Eagles side of things that Auburn fans should keep an eye on heading into this weekend's game?

ZAC: Kobi Albert - one of their corners. He got a pick last week. 

CHRISTIAN R: Mario Sanders II. Illinois transfer. He has a good skill set.

TREY: Illinois transfer WR Mario Sanders torched Alcorn State last week with 6 receptions, 94 yards, and 1 touchdown. If Auburn can't fix the issues in the secondary exploited by Gavin Freeman last week, Sanders could have a big game on Saturday.

CHRISTIAN G: Kobi Albert- DB

What does Auburn need to do against Southern Miss to give you confidence heading into SEC play?

ZAC: I’m not sure there’s anything they can do this week to make me feel better than Florida. There’s certainly things that could happen that make me feel worse though.

CHRISTIAN R: Be more consistent on offense early while the starters are still in.

TREY: 3rd down stops. I think this defense is elite, but its one Achilles heel is the ability to get off the field on 3rd down.

CHRISTIAN G: Make the simple things look simple

Over/Under 300 yards rushing as a team for Auburn against Southern Miss.

ZAC: Under 

CHRISTIAN R: Under but barely. I'm hoping that type of production isn't needed.

TREY: Over. I think Auburn's identity on Saturday is a physical run game and I think they'll have their way against the Eagles.

CHRISTIAN G: Under 

Who will be Auburn's standout player against the Eagles this week?

ZAC: Jeremiah Koger

CHRISTIAN R: Bryson Washington. He had some great snaps vs. Baylor although the box score doesn't show much. That should change Saturday.

TREY: I think we see standout performances from all 3 major RBs (Cobb, Washington, and Mabson).

CHRISTIAN G: Jeremiah Cobb

Will Auburn cover the spread in this game? Current line : 31.5 on FanDuel

ZAC: No.

CHRISTIAN R: Yes.

TREY: Yes. I think Auburn scores early and often and works out the kinks that were shown against Baylor.

CHRISTIAN G: Yes. 

Bold Prediction for Auburn vs. Southern Miss

ZAC: Byrum Brown throws zero picks.

CHRISTIAN R: Rushing TD by 5 different Auburn Tigers

TREY: The trio of Jeremiah Cobb, Bryson Washington, and Omar Mabson combine for over 300 yards and 4 TDs on the ground.

CHRISTIAN G: Bryce Cain TD

Predictions & Final Score for Auburn vs. Southern Miss

ZAC: 35-10 Auburn

CHRISTIAN R: 45-7 Auburn

TREY: I think Auburn wins big here to give them a ton of momentum heading into their SEC opener against Florida. Look for the running game to go wild here.

Auburn 56 Southern Miss 17

CHRISTIAN G: 52-17 Auburn

Join us Friday as we break down more across the college football landscape!