The SEC gauntlet continues for Auburn on Saturday.
The trip to Fayetteville, Arkansas will be a battle for the Tigers and we are taking a look behind enemy lines. We are asking five questions about Saturday’s game with Eric Wayne of Razorbacks Wire.
Arkansas is good at a lot of things and Auburn will have their hands full. The Razorbacks have not forgotten about the bad call from a year ago that helped Auburn win the game last year. The Bo Nix backwards spike that was ruled an incomplete pass is something that has not been forgotten about in Arkansas.
Let’s look at what Wayne thinks about the matchup.
Who should Auburn keep an eye out for on Saturday when Arkansas has the ball?
Marvin Gentry-USA TODAY Sports
Quarterback KJ Jefferson has received all the pub this week after his six-touchdown day in the bonkers game against Ole Miss. The best player, by far, is still Treylon Burks, whose freakish combination of size and skill make him, for my money, the best NFL wideout in the SEC.
Are Arkansas fans somewhat glad that Gus Malzahn is gone at Auburn? He always treated this game like a Super Bowl.
Nelson Chenault-USA TODAY Sports
Generally, yes, they’re glad. Personally, I think it’s just healthier for the Arkansas program and Razorbacks fans’ psyches that he’s gone. Malzahn is forever a divisive figure in and among the university’s power brokers. Not seeing him once a year will help facilitate a breakup, hopefully, that’s been a long time coming.
Do you think Arkansas will treat this game as a 'revenge game' this weekend from last year's poor call?
John David Mercer-USA TODAY Sports
I’d bet there isn’t another game a majority of Arkansas players and coaches would rather beat this year than Auburn. Not counting, of course, the automatic glamor that would come from besting Alabama, but that’s the case for every SEC team. Fans, for sure, because they feel slighted for every single call, marginal or otherwise. And considered the Auburn call was a clear case of wrongdoing, lots of folks carry a chip in 2021 about it.
Can Auburn run against this Arkansas defense?
Jake Crandall via Imagn Content Services, LLC
Maybe? That’s one thing that’s weird about the Arkansas defense. Ole Miss gashed it something awful. Georgia, too. But those two elite running teams. Every team that’s just slightly above average or worse has struggled. I think Auburn has the bodies to do it, but so far they haven’t, to me, played like they’re capable on the ground.
What's your score prediction?
AP Photo/Butch Dill
Before the season I said Arkansas 24, Auburn 21. That was when I figured the Razorbacks were a 5-7 team. They’re almost definitely better than that. Let’s go with 28-24, Arkansas. A negligible change, I know. But I truly cannot figure out how good this team is.
