Is It Time to Sound the Alarm on Auburn's Defense?

South Alabama also dominated the time of possession, tallying almost five more minutes on offense than Auburn. The Tigers only had three drives in the second half, one of which was when Auburn kneeled it out at the end of the game. Aside from the final 2:26 used to run out the clock, they recorded just over 10 minutes of possession on only two meaningful drives – the second was a quick three-and-out following a fumble recovery in Auburn territory.

All in all, the Tigers undoubtedly face aspects of Saturday’s contest to clean up, but it’s not worth panicking about just yet. Auburn was also without defensive backs Rayhawn Pleasant and Champ Anthony, who Freeze mentioned could’ve played but didn’t, while its top corner Jay Crawford exited the game in the first half after a minor “knee-to-knee” incident. So, they were shorthanded, but that still doesn’t excuse the errors and mistakes against a Group of Five team.

Looking forward to this week, Oklahoma boasts an extremely dangerous offense led by quarterback John Mateer, who many believe could win the Heisman Trophy at the end of the year. 

The Tigers gave up 483 total yards to Baylor in the season opener, including 419 yards through the air, and struggled heavily against the Bears’ passing attack, meaning Auburn needs to quickly figure out what went wrong and Waco and make the proper adjustments to prepare for a very talented quarterback. 

Although it has received a rather lackluster performance from the secondary in the first few weeks, Auburn has been stout against the run, currently ranking second in the SEC in rushing defense. Thus, if the Tigers can continue that success against the Sooners and force Mateer to beat them with his arm, Auburn could put itself in a good position to emerge victorious.