LSU football visits Auburn on Saturday. Here are your three keys to an LSU Tiger victory.
By Matt Zemek
It’s an LSU-Auburn game we’re not used to seeing: a game in which neither team is a serious SEC West title contender. Usually, one of these two teams is in the hunt with Alabama for the division championship, but that can’t really be said right now. The loser of this game will suffer a third SEC loss by the midpoint of the season. The winner would have a chance to catch Texas A&M for second place, but Alabama seems out of reach for a pair of teams which already have two losses.
The meaning of this game is less about SEC positioning and more about winning a fierce Southern grudge match and having bragging rights for the next 52 weeks. LSU and Auburn can’t win trophies this season, but they can beat the other team and gain that measure of satisfaction from a disjointed and disrupted 2020 campaign. Let’s see what LSU has to do in Jordan-Hare Stadium.
1 – More fun with Finley
T.J. Finley surpasses all expectations against South Carolina. True, South Carolina is not an especially strong team, but LSU lost to Mississippi State and Missouri, two teams which aren’t particularly imposing. The blowout of the Gamecocks marked considerable progress for Ed Orgeron’s team, with Finley leading the way.
When looking at what social media had to say about Finley during (and after) the win over South Carolina, I noticed a comparison to Rohan Davey, the quarterback who helped Nick Saban establish LSU as a force in the SEC. It was Davey who, along with Matt Mauck, helped LSU win the 2001 SEC championship. Davey then starred in the 2002 Sugar Bowl win for the Bayou Bengals against Illinois. If an LSU quarterback can elicit a comparison with Rohan Davey, that’s pretty good. Finley is just getting started in his career, so as he continues to fill in for an injured Myles Brennan, the task is to stick with what works.
Auburn’s defense is not a sieve – the Plainsmen have not been terrible on defense this season – but AU is not imposing on defense, either. The secondary is inconsistent and the pass rush isn’t strong enough to relieve pressure from that secondary. LSU has a chance to put Auburn on the back foot with its passing game. Finley needs to avoid overthinking about this game or about the plays he has in front of him in the first quarter. Simplify the task and get the ball to the receivers. Finley can thrive if he doesn’t overcomplicate his main mission.
2 – Make Bo Nix throw the ball long
Bo Nix is simply not the answer for Auburn at quarterback. Gus Malzahn has failed to develop him into an improved passer this year. Auburn fans have been grumbling about Nix’s limitations, which seem to be a regular part of his identity and show no signs of decreasing. Accordingly, LSU has to put this game on Nix’s shoulders, taking away the ground game and making AU one-dimensional with the pass. Forcing Nix to push the ball downfield puts LSU in good position to win this contest.
3 – The true showdown
LSU-Auburn isn’t a showcase game in 2020, due to each team’s struggles. However, there is a true showdown to be found on Saturday: LSU cornerback Derek Stingley versus Auburn receiver Seth Williams. This will be worth watching, and you know NFL scouts will be keeping an eye on this one-on-one battle. It’s important for Stingley to play Williams to a draw. He doesn’t need to win, but he must avoid getting torched by Auburn’s best offensive player.
Saturday‘s LSU football game kicks off at 6:30 PM CT (7:30 PM ET). You catch on the SEC Network.
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