Can We Boomer the Sooners?


Can We Boomer the Sooners?

    Last week, Auburn suffered a disappointing loss at home to the Arkansas Razorbacks by a score of 24-14. It was yet another game this season riddled with turnovers, 5 to be exact. I was excited to see Hank Brown in an SEC game and was so hopeful that he would succeed, but after throwing 3 interceptions in the first half, the second half saw Payton Thorne taking the field. It seemed to me like the turnover bug just kept Auburn from gaining any momentum in this game. We saw a promising opening drive get halted by an tipped interception, and a would-be touchdown run by Damari Alston get turned into a fumble recovery by Arkansas in the endzone. 
    
    It seems as though the dreaded turnover is the only thing holding Auburn back. The offense posted 431 total yards of offense, which almost 100 yards more than Arkansas. The Tigers offense is ranked in the top 25 in yards per play and features one of the most explosive receivers in college football so far this season in Keandre Lambert-Smith. However, with 14 total turnovers in just the first 4 games of the season, much success can't honestly be expected. I guess the good thing is we know what the problem is, now we just have to fix it. Can we fix it this week before the 21st ranked Oklahoma Sooners come to town?

    Oklahoma sits at 3-1 on the season coming off a home loss to the Tennessee Volunteers by a score of 25-15. One thing I notice from the Sooners in this matchup is an offense that struggled, but a defense that seems to have held their own. The offense only posted 222 total yards, now I know that the Auburn defense isn't on the same level as Tennessee's defense, but to me they shown improvement throughout the season so far and pleasantly surprised me with the amount of pressure they were able to put on Taylen Green last weekend. I believe our defense can have success against this Oklahoma offense. Oklahoma did not have much success running the ball against Tennessee, only posting 36 rushing yards, and stopping the run is something this Auburn defense does well. If we can shut down the run from Oklahoma and make them throw the ball, can this get enough stops or maybe even force a couple turnovers to give the offense a chance? Even if the defense can stop Oklahoma, this Auburn offense will be facing the toughest defense they have seen yet and must avoid turnovers at all costs. Before facing Tennessee, the Sooners defense held all other opponents to less than 20 points. The Sooners defense is led by senior linebacker Danny Stutsman who has recorded 36 tackles this season and whoever gets the start at quarterback for the Tigers will be facing pressure from sack leader R. Mason Thomas. The Oklahoma defense will storm the field ready to fight Saturday, can Auburn defend its home turf with success this week?

Illegal Substitution 

    The Florida State Seminoles faced the California Golden Bears this past weekend, 2 teams that both have left a sour taste in the mouths of Auburn fans. I thought this would be another sure loss for the Florida State Seminoles. Wrong. The Seminoles finally got their first win of the season in a 14-9 victory over the Golden Bears. As an Auburn fan I have to ask, does this make our loss to Cal at home look worse? Since the Golden Bears were held to only 9 points, did someone check to make sure Florida State wasn't putting extra players out on the defensive side of the ball? 

Key Matchups and Predictions

    There are a few interesting matchups happening this weekend in the world of college football. Let's talk about a few: 

    At 2:30 on Fox Saturday, the UCF Knights led by former Auburn head coach, Gus Malzahn, take on Deion Sanders and the Colorado Buffaloes. I think UCF is very good team that has flown under the radar this year. UCF is favored in this game, and I pick them to win this matchup. 

    The Auburn Tigers and the Oklahoma Sooners face off at 2:30 on ABC Saturday. As an Auburn fan it hurts my heart to say this, but I think the Sooners win this game. I think the turnover problem is just too much for Auburn to fix in one week, and I think this stout Oklahoma defense feasts off of that.

    In arguably the biggest game Saturday, the Alabama Crimson Tide host the Georgia Bulldogs in a matchup directly following Auburn and Oklahoma at 6:30 on ABC Saturday night. Georgia is favored in this game, but I think Georgia showed themselves to be beatable against Kentucky and I think Jalen Milroe's passing ability combined with his legs will prove to be too much to the Dawgs to handle. I have Alabama winning this game.

Notes From the Author

    Thank you for reading another installment of AUthentic Insights. I hope I am wrong about my prediction for the Auburn game this Saturday. However it turns out, I will still say...War Eagle!

 

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