Bye Week Gave Auburn Needed Extra Prep Time for Mizzou Matchup

The Auburn Tigers utilized the bye week to rest up and get extra work in ahead of the next SEC matchup

The Auburn Tigers head into the week rested after a bye and have done the extra prep for the next opponent / Jake Crandall / USA TODAY NETWORK

The Auburn Tigers head to their matchup with the Missouri Tigers coming off a bye week. After a rocky start to the season, it gave them the chance to hit the reset button and regroup.

Before their bye week, the Tigers had dropped three consecutive games and have two games remaining on this tough road stretch, featuring two ranked opponents.

Bye weeks are a golden opportunity for a team to recover according to Auburn defensive lineman Philip Blidi.

“Man, the biggest benefit of this bye week was really just getting our bodies back,” Blidi said. “We've been — really a lot of wear and tear and a lot of weeks of physical football. Being able to just get back in the training room and take a step back and really like have time to focus on your body.”

In addition to giving players an opportunity to catch their breaths, bye weeks provide teams a chance to get ahead. The Tigers did not let this opportunity go to waste and took the time to prepare for their next game.

“It's also been a really great week to get ahead of our opponent, too,” Blidi said. “So, another thing I felt like we really got better at during the bye week is just getting back to the basics. Getting back to the things that made us great and working on those things and working on our fundamentals and making that an emphasis at practice with the time that we had.”

Auburn sits at 2-4 (0-3 SEC) on the season with their chances of qualifying for a bowl game looking bleak.

It’s hard to find four more wins on this schedule when it’s virtually an all-SEC slate the rest of the way.  Blidi discussed the importance of enjoying the game despite the results not looking how you want.

“My message to the younger guys, playing this game for a long time, you play for long enough and you're going to have wins and losses,” Blidi said. “My message to the young guys is when you are only focused on the record, you lose sight of how fun this sport really is. You're losing the gratitude that you don't really get too many times like this. Have fun with the times that you get during this time of your career to do this.”

Blidi and the rest of the Auburn Tigers will take on the No. 19 Missouri Tigers on the road in Columbia, Mo. this week. Kickoff is set for 11 a.m. CT and ESPN will carry the broadcast.