The Auburn Tigers (7-3) look to rebound from a frustrating loss against Georgia as the welcome the
Samford Bulldogs (5-5) to Jordan-Hare Stadium. Here are the three keys:
By Steve Wright
Tune up Bo Nix
We have been waiting to see Bo Nix break out all season long and it feels like this is the spot where it
needs to happen. He was good against Georgia in spurts, but averaging 4.9 yards per throw isn’t going to
cut it against teams inside the top 10 in the country. Nix needs to get out there and air out the ball
against a Samford team that just doesn’t have the weapons on defense to get in the backfield and
pressure Nix in the pocket. Auburn can run the ball all day if they wish, but Nix needs to make some
plays for his own confidence here.
Be ready for a heavy passing attack
The Bulldogs have a former USF QB in their starting lineup in Chris Oladokun and he is certainly not
scared of bombing the ball downfield. His WRs aren’t going to be good enough to win one-on-one
matchups with the Tigers’ DBs all game, but they will have their spots here and there where they are
effective at making chunk plays. Samford will try to tempo Auburn out of the game on offense with their
ability to throw the ball.
Avoid injuries
The Iron Bowl is coming. With the Tigers taking their third loss of the season last weekend, the yearly
clash with high-flying – but potentially vulnerable – Alabama is going to be the focus of players and fans
alike even before the Samford game happens. Auburn should be able to sleepwalk through the game to
some degree, but not giving 100% on every play makes injuries more likely. Expect to see the Tigers’
starters pulled as soon as this one is wrapped up to avoid a big injury that would hurt their chances
against ‘Bama.
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