How Auburn is Handling Dominant Defense Vs. Outrageous Offense

AUBURN, Ala.- Almost all of this season, the Auburn Tigers' defense has been playing lights out, often keeping opposing offenses at bay. However, the Auburn offense has not been able to return the favor in its last three matchups, which could have been won if the offense had at least a decent performance. 

On the outside looking in, one could think that one side of the ball holding up their end of the bargain and not getting anything in return could create a rift in the locker room between the two units.

Head coach Hugh Freeze knows this and is working with his players and coaching staff to ensure this does not become a problem. 

“We had some good conversations, you know, we’re a team,” Hugh Freeze stated. “I love DJ (Durkin) and that staff’s approach. The facts are, we could have held them to three points, but offense has gotta produce points the way they (the defense) are playing. They just gotta keep doing what they are doing. Man, if they keep doing that, we are going to get over the hump eventually, and then I think the confidence grows. There’s no question that’s something you have to talk about cause it's real.”

In the last three matchups, the Auburn offense has either come out flat and stayed flat, had a good opening drive and then fell flat, or had an outstanding first half, then collapsed. 

Against Oklahoma, the Auburn offense had a mixed performance, but quarterback Jackson Arnold was sacked nine times. Against Texas A&M, the Tiger offense was, to put it lightly, atrocious, scoring three points the entire game. A fourth-quarter interception by Xavier Atkins, which was returned to the Aggies’ 3-yard line, set up Auburn's only touchdown.

Against Georgia, the Auburn offense looked on fire coming off a bye week until a controversial fumble on the 1-yard line by Jackson Arnold, which the Bulldogs recovered. The Auburn offense never looked the same for the rest of the game.

Auburn only managed to get 50 total yards in the second half while being shut out with three three-and-outs and two turnovers on downs. The Auburn defense eventually gave up a long drive in the fourth quarter, which chewed 8:45 off of the game clock and ended in a Georgia touchdown. 

The defense has been playing lights out all year, and it is time for the offense to start holding up its end of the bargain. Auburn hosts the 16th-ranked Missouri Tigers this Saturday, which has the second-best run defense in the entire country. Kickoff is set for 6:45 p.m. CST and will be televised on the SEC Network.

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