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Look, y’all, it’s real simple.
We don’t like Georgia.
This was a brotherly, friendly, aw shucks rivalry for awhile, but lately it’s gotten into the realm of hatred. Was it Soulja Boy and the black jerseys (which we might see tonight)? That certainly didn’t help. Was it Nick Fairley turning Aaron Murray into his own personal seat cushion? Yeah, that accelerated things a bit. Open letters? Georgia fans don’t take kindly to people calling out their personal fandom foibles.
It’s been a little more tame this year, though. Auburn fans don’t really expect to win, and with the game in Athens, the task’s even taller than if it was on the Plains. Georgia fans are somehow still mad about last year’s beatdown at Jordan-Hare, as if they didn’t get revenge a couple weeks later and advance to the Playoff.
Auburn finally found some offensive rhythm in the final eighth of the Texas A&M game, but I’m not sure how much we can count on a full game of success in the two-minute drill. Defensively, our rush prevention hasn’t been quite as stout as we expected coming into the season. Mississippi State tagged the Tigers for over 300 yards, and Texas A&M had plenty of success last week with Trayveon Williams up the gut. It’s worrying against a team that’s got Elijah Holyfield and D’Andre Swift alternating at tailback.
Meanwhile, the Tigers might not have the full services of their own top runner in Boobee Whitlow. He only had a few carries last week and didn’t do much. It stands to reason that much of the responsibility falls on Jarrett Stidham and the passing game, which most definitely had its best moments of the season in the comeback last Saturday.
We saw what we’d needed to see all season long. Stidham had time to throw, got the ball to the playmakers, and those guys made things happen with the ball in their hands. Ryan Davis and Darius Slayton broke out for really the first time this year, and Seth Williams showed that he’s a red zone monster with his two great touchdown catches. That needs to continue today if Auburn has a chance tonight.
Really, not many people expect Auburn to win. The Tigers can beat Liberty, win a bowl game, and finish with eight wins. Not bad, but not where we wanted to be to start the year. To truly get Auburn fans excited as we head into bowl season, there needs to be a win over one of our final two SEC opponents, and two Saturdays from now looks unlikely.
It’s got to be tonight.
The Deep South’s Oldest Rivalry renews between the hedges at 6 PM CST this evening. I suggest you pay attention, and when dealing with Bulldogs, remember...
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