UT-AU: A battle of 'unknowns' as both teams return from unexpected breaks
Bo Nix and the Auburn Tigers return to action this Saturday to face Tennessee at Jordan-Hare Stadium. (Auburn/Todd VanEmst)
By TIM GAYLE
After an unusual week of wondering whether they would be able to play a game, only to discover their game had been postponed, Auburn returns to the practice field this week to prepare for Saturday’s game with Tennessee.
“It’s been an interesting two weeks,” Auburn coach Gus Malzahn said. “Last week, we had to shut down a couple days. At the end of last week, we had some guys out but we just tried to improve the basic fundamentals and really stress stopping the run, run the football - true Auburn football – playing 60 minutes. That’s really been our focus with all of our guys.”
Tennessee, like Auburn, had last week’s game against Texas A&M postponed, leading to the Vols’ second open date in three weeks.
“This past week our team was really disappointed about not getting a chance to play,” Tennessee coach Jeremy Pruitt said. “I thought we put three really good consecutive practices together.”
What kind of season has 2020 offered? Tennessee went from planning a game without starting quarterback Jarrett Guarantano to wondering whether they may have to substitute another opponent into the schedule for last weekend to getting Guarantano back for this game. Auburn, likewise, went from a squad decimated by quarantine and coronavirus to getting back many – but not all – of its players for this weekend’s game.
“There’s lots of unknowns,” Pruitt said. “There’s nothing to draw from. There are no history books on COVID-19. This might be the norm for next year, too. It’s not like this is going to go away anytime soon.”
While this game could feature a lot of unknowns – the last time the two teams met, in 2018, Tennessee came away with a stunning 30-24 win in Jordan-Hare Stadium – both teams will enter Saturday’s game on different paths. Tennessee is coming off its worst performance in a loss at Arkansas, while Auburn is coming off its best performance in a rout of LSU.
“Circumstances change every week,” Pruitt said when asked about the Auburn defense. “Obviously, they’ve had some guys in, some guys out, but that week they had more guys in, probably more that were healthier. So they played really well, I thought, against LSU and I expect them to play really well against us.”
Unless the open date created more production for the Tennessee offense or the Vols defy statistical trends (as they did in 2018), Auburn’s defense should have the upper hand against a unit that ranks 13th in the Southeastern Conference in total offense and 14th in third-down conversions (23 of 84) at 27.4 percent.
Auburn is a 10-point favorite for Saturday’s 6 p.m. kickoff on ESPN, but don’t expect Malzahn to feel comfortable that his team is starting to play better at the right time in the season.
“This year, you’re taking everyone seriously,” he said. “They’ve got the majority of their guys back from last year and had a six- to eight-game win streak. We are taking it one week at a time and it’s not just coach-speak; that’s exactly what we’re doing. Two years ago, they came here and knocked us off. We played our best game two weeks ago and we have to keep building, it’s as simple as that.”