Just looking at this matchup makes me think of the Washington State game where we knew so little about our team and the expectations we had for them. We have five wins and learned something of the character and fight of the team in the second half of our only loss. And looking back to 2010 I wonder how that team would have responded to an early season loss because there were some very close calls. Today we are all but a two touchdown visiting underdog to a team the number one ranked team narrowly defeated on the road, seen by most as its best victory to date. So it stands to reason Auburn needs to pass this mid-season test to gain more notice in the current polls and familiarize the rest of the country of what is to come.
Defensing Manziel requires mobile athletes up front to keep pressuring while your corners and safeties continually cover his receivers, at times more than once on the same play. Not many teams have fared well though some have hung in there long enough to have a shot. Auburn has the defensive speed and conditioning this time around to really put the heat on Manziel and sure tackling is required to pull it off. Hopefully when our linemen get a hand on him help will arrive and our much maligned linebacking corps will have its best game of the season, and it could given a couple of individuals that have emerged recently.Statistics have us most vulnerable between the forties and at our best in the red zone.
Even so, Auburn must run the ball and the clock matching score for score to have a chance to win though scoring upwards in the mid forty range might be needed to win today at Kyle Field. We have the playmakers to do it on the ground and just have to ensure that we connect when it counts in the air to keep a drive alive. There's no reason to hold anything back given the opponent today or the schedule ahead so we can expect to see virtually anything from this staff when it comes to the game plan.
I'm expecting to see a few series of J.J. at QB with Nick Marshall rising to the occaision and having his most productive day.. It wouldn't surprise me if we total over 350+ yards on the ground alone especially if Corey Grant has a big game outside the hashes where the Aggies have had problems and we connect on a few long passes to really keep them guessing. It would be a huge plus to get C.J. back in the mix to give us a boost too, On the other side of the ball, takeaways are at a premium whether it's a pick or strip. Our corners can't be beaten especially if we are playing zone because that's when we generally give up long gainers with a safety out of position. Holsey has to come up big on the boundary side, the direction where so many of Manziel's ad-lib runs take place. And lastly, I really don't want to see Steven Clark on the field at all unless we are trying to draw them offsides or pin them deep before the first half ends
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