Previewing Auburn at No. 17 Arkansas and No. 20 Florida at LSU

There are two intriguing SEC matchups to discuss today, and those would be Auburn at Arkansas and Florida at LSU.

Brian Smith | Oct 13, 2021

Previewing Auburn at No. 17 Arkansas and No. 20 Florida at LSU /

The SEC is as wild as it's ever been. One week ago, it looked like a two-team race for SEC supremacy between Georgia and Alabama. Then, Texas A&M knocked off No. 1 Alabama. That’s why the SEC proves to be such a difficult league. Take a single play off, and it can cost your team dearly.

This week’s slate of games is interesting because there are numerous teams attempting to rise up and at least least reach the No. 3 overall spot in the SEC. With the two games previewed below, two of those teams will be involved, one in each game.

Auburn at No. 17 Arkansas

It will be wise for Auburn to run the football against Arkansas. Not just because running backs Jarquez Hunter and Tank Bigsby already proved to be very good, but because Arkansas makes a living off of one-dimensional offenses failing against them.

Last week, Ole Miss stayed balanced and it worked. 49 carries for 324 yards rushing allowed talented quarterback Matt Corral to then unleash his right arm in the passing attack for 287 yards and two touchdown passes against Arkansas.

That was an uncharacteristic game for Arkansas, but they can be beaten if the quarterback play is really good. That brings up Auburn’s quarterback situation.

Can Auburn quarterback Bo Nix be consistent and be a playmaker? That’s the knock on the junior signal caller. Yes, he makes some big plays, but often at the expense of poor throws and turnovers. If he does not play better, Arkansas comes out victorious. He only completed 55% of his passes against Georgia. That’s unfortunately on par for this season.

Bo Nix needs to play better than he did against Georgia when Auburn travels to play Arkansas. — Bo Nix needs to play better than he did against Georgia when Auburn travels to play Arkansas / Dale Zanine-USA TODAY Sports

In five consecutive games, Nix completed below 60% of his passing attempts. That’s not good enough against Arkansas, and It might not matter anyway.

Arkansas played lousy defense last Saturday, but that was also Ole Miss and all of its offensive weapons. Auburn does not possess the same fire power. Now the Tigers must face an Arkansas offense with a red hot quarterback.

Arkansas quarterback KJ Jefferson should no longer be considered a run-first quarterback. He picked Ole Miss's defense a part by going 25 for 35 for 326 yards, three touchdowns, and one interception. Jefferson also ran 20 times for 85 yards and three touchdowns.

Here’s an additional side note for people that love statistics. In two of the last three games, Auburn’s defense allowed over 200 yards rushing. The third game would be LSU, a team that currently ranks No. 127 in the nation in rushing offense, three from the absolute bottom of the FBS. In short, Auburn’s rush defense is terrible.

Good luck to Auburn's defense against an Arkansas rushing offense ranked at No. 10 in the nation by averaging 244.8 with Jefferson at the controls. Plus, Arkansas running back Trelon Smith just contributed 11 carries for 85 yards and one touchdown against Ole Miss.

The Razorbacks are at home, the quarterback play was spectacular last Saturday, they run the football well, and it’s wise to trust Arkansas Head Coach Sam Pittman more often than not. This matchup does not look good for Auburn.

Point of emphasis: Watch Auburn’s defensive line early in this game. Do the Tigers creare penetration or does Arkansas push them around?

Arkansas 38 Auburn 27

No. 20 Florida at LSU

There’s much to discuss about LSU and all the public heat the program is taking, but first let’s take a look at Florida’s offense. This is a Florida team that’s been taking a little bit of a public heat of its own.

After losing at now No. 11 Kentucky two Saturdays ago, Florida rebounded to shutout a bad Vanderbilt squad 42-0 in the Swamp. Do the Gators have their mojo back? Will quarterback Emery Jones keep from adding to his interception totals? He’s tossed at least one interception in five of six games this season.

That’s just bad football.

On the other hand, Jones completes 68.2% of his passes, which should be considered fantastic. He’s passed for 1,144 yards, nine touchdowns, and seven interceptions. If Jones can just eliminate that one or two plays in a game where he makes a poor passing decision, he’s one of the best players in college football. So far this season, he’s not been consistently able to do that.

Until backup quarterback Anthony Richardson learns a lot more of the playbook, it’s going to be Jones behind center for the Gators. This weekend will be a test against a LSU defense that’s No. 71 in the country in passing yards allowed at 230.8 yards per game. Jones should do damage, and his running backs should do well, too.

LSU is No. 77 in rushing defense by allowing 154.7 yards per game. In short, LSU’s defense, for all its talent, appears to be vastly underachieving. It will need to do far better than it did against Kentucky to slow down Florida.

The Gators will feature a rushing attack with its top five rushers all averaging 5.1 yards per carry or more. That’s truly remarkable. Can LSU’s defense be disciplined enough to handle Florida’s balanced offensive attack?

Probably not. Then again, maybe LSU will just attempt to out score Florida.

LSU’s passing attack, while now without star wide receiver Kayshon Boutte due to injury, is truly a big-play offense in the making. There’s so much young skill position talent, led by quarterback Max Johnson and a bevvy of talented running backs and wide receivers.

If nothing else against Florida, look for LSU to come out throwing and being aggressive offensively, with even the possibility of a trick play or two. The Tigers have nothing else to lose with Head Coach Ed Orgeron about as close to being fired as any major coach in all of college football. The first half against Kentucky put LSU fans in a really bad mood, so this weekend against Florida will be vital for Coach Orgeron and his Tigers. His signal caller could bail him out.

LSU Head Coach and LSU Headed to Locker Room — LSU Head Coach Ed Orgeron desperately needs a win against Florida to help save his job / Stephen Lew-USA TODAY Sports

Johnson can spin it; he’s 135 of 219 for 1,729 yards, 17 touchdowns, and four interceptions. Despite a disappointing offensive line, Johnson and the passing attack have done well. The rushing attack will need to help Johnson against Florida, however, as a one-dimensional offensive attack will not likely be enough to out score Florida.

Can LSU’s offensive rushing attack be good two weeks in a row? Finally, LSU ran the football well last week when it ran for 147 yards and two scores. Tailback Tyrion Davis-Price toted the football 22 times for 147 yards and two touchdowns. LSU needs him to produce like that against Florida.

The Tigers were inconsistent running the football versus Kentucky, but it’s a start after running the football for just 33 yards versus Auburn. As noted above, the Tigers are No. 127 in the country in rushing offense even after Davis-Price had his big game.

Point of emphasis: Does LSU’s defensive front confuse and cause issues for not only Florida’s rushing attack, but Jones? To win this game, LSU needs to be plus-one or possibly plus-two with the turnover margin. Creating havoc up front could do that, and LSU’s pass rush is good by averaging 3.2 sacks per game and recorded 19 overall so far this season. That’s good enough for No. 11 nationally.

Florida 34 LSU 24

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