3 Things to Know About Auburn for Mizzou's Week 8 Matchup

From its deep receiving core to a star defensive lineman, here's everything you need to know about Auburn football.

Auburn Tigers wide receiver KeAndre Lambert-Smith (5) celebrates his touchdown catch as Auburn Tigers take on Oklahoma Sooners at Jordan-Hare Stadium in Auburn, Ala., on Saturday, Sept. 28, 2024. / Jake Crandall/ Advertiser / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

The Auburn Tigers (2-4) will stroll into Columbia, Mo. to take on the No. 19 Missouri Tigers for Week 7 of college football. Despite its record, Auburn presents a challenge for Missouri. The visiting Tigers have plenty of talent throughout its roster on both sides of the ball, mixing in veteran leaders and young, talented underclassmen.

The largest threat Auburn poses is at the receiver position, with a mix of players with different skill sets that can burn opposing teams in the air and with the ball in their hands. Its leading receiver, senior KeAndre Lambert-Smith, is a great jump-ball threat. They have three dynamic freshmen sitting behind him, all of which can make plays.

Arguably Auburn's best defensive player, sophomore edge rusher Keldric Faulk, has wreaked havoc all season pressuring quarterbacks. On the opposite side, the Auburn offensive line has done an excellent job opening running lanes for star running back Jarquez Hunter to break through.

With that, there are three things to know about the visiting Auburn Tigers.

Six capable receivers

A Penn State transfer, Lambert-Smith now leads Auburn with 510 receiving yards and six touchdowns. He's been quarterback Payton Thorne's prime target throughout the season and is reliable when tested with a jump-ball. His veteran presence in a room of young receivers is surely calming and he sets the tone with his route-running ability and work at the catch point.

Auburn's trio of freshman pass catchers are all capable of burning opposing secondaries on any given day. Malcolm Simmons, statistically, has been the best of the three so far. He has 260 yards and two touchdowns on 18 receptions. Close behind him is five-star Cam Coleman, who sits at 212 yards and one score. Last is Perry Thompson, with 123 yards and a touchdown on only four receptions. All three are versatile options, with the ability to run routes down the field and work with the ball in space. There is no predicting which one could hurt you when facing them.

Sep 28, 2024; Auburn, Alabama, USA; Auburn Tigers wide receiver Cam Coleman (8) makes a catch and is tackled by Oklahoma Sooners defensive back Peyton Bowen (22) during the third quarter at Jordan-Hare Stadium. Mandatory Credit: John Reed-Imagn Images / John Reed-Imagn Images

Sneakily, tight end Rivaldo Fairweather has emerged as a top target for Thorne and the Auburn offense. He now sits at 189 yards and a touchdown on the season, but is tied for the second-most targets on the team with 23. He's a big target and also moves well with the ball in space, providing whoever is in at quarterback a reliable dump-down option.

Top-tier defensive end

There is plenty of four and five-star talent to go around on Auburn's roster, but sophomore Keldric Faulk, a former top-100 four-star recruit, stands out in the bunch. He's emerged as one of the SEC's premier pass rushers, sitting at 19 quarterback hurries and five sacks on the season. Faulk is in the top ten in the country for hurries and is tied for No. 13 in sacks.

Faulk has already improved his sack totals from his freshman season to now, only recording one last year. He's been sent on blitzes more than any other player on his team and has won around 15% of those attempts, according to Pro Football Focus (PFF).

The second-year edge rusher is impressive for many reasons, but his 6-foot-6, 288-pound profile, combined with his athletic traits, stand out the most. His height and speed represent a new time for pass rushers, as they are getting taller, slimmer and more athletic. Faulk poses a similar threat that Texas A&M defensive end Nic Scourton displayed and if the Missouri offensive line does not contain him, quarterback Brady Cook might have a long Saturday morning.

Run blocking

The Auburn offensive line, according to PFF, has the second-highest run-blocking grade in the SEC, only behind Missouri. Both teams have dynamic running backs and part of that can be attributed to their running ability, but also to the strength of the offensive line.

A lot of the run plays called for Hunter are inside and outside zones and those are play-calls, evidently, that the Auburn front is capable of blocking for. They are able to create those gaps right at the line of scrimmage for Hunter, allowing him to quickly move around five yards up the field frequently.

Hunter's been able to run for 528 yards so far this season on 78 carries, good for 6.8 yards per carry. That puts him in the top ten nationally in the yards-per-carry category. Hunter and the Auburn offensive line are going to be important for the visiting Tigers on Saturday, especially if Thorne and the passing game struggle to get going.

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