Ole Miss Football will return to Oxford looking to get back on track against Auburn on Halloween. The Rebels fell to Texas, 34-27, on Oct. 24, dropping to 5-2 (3-2 SEC). With the College Football Playoff race tightening, Ole Miss needs a response before one loss turns into a slide.
Auburn has been on a roller coaster this season. The Tigers stunned then-No. 1 Georgia, 27-24, on Oct. 17 before getting blown out by LSU, 38-17, the following week.
Now, at 4-3 (2-3 SEC), Auburn enters Oxford looking for answers under first-year head coach Alex Golesh. The Tigers have shown they can beat elite competition, but Ole Miss will look to expose the inconsistencies that surfaced against LSU.
Quarterback Byrum Brown is a dangerous weapon for Auburn on the ground. He has thrown for 1,362 yards and eight touchdowns while adding 480 rushing yards and six rushing scores. His ability to escape the pocket creates another problem for opposing defenses, especially when a broken play turns into a first down.
Ole Miss must contain Brown. The Rebels have allowed 161.1 rushing yards per game, a number Auburn will look to exploit. Still, the Tiger offensive line struggled against LSU, allowing seven sacks. Ole Miss needs to pressure Brown and force him to make plays from the pocket.
The Rebels, however, also have issues to fix after the loss to the Longhorns. Ole Miss mounted a comeback but could not overcome its early struggles. The offense failed to produce early, putting the team in a hole it ultimately could not escape from. Slow starts and costly mistakes cannot become a trend.
Rebel quarterback Trinidad Chambliss will be key to getting the offense back on track. The quarterback has thrown for 1,926 yards and 16 touchdowns, leading an offense averaging 432.9 yards and 36 points per game. Those numbers show what Ole Miss can do when the offense clicks. The challenge is producing for four quarters.
Auburn’s defense presents Chambliss and the Rebels with an opportunity to achieve that. The Tigers have allowed 396.9 yards per game, including 250.7 passing yards.
Ole Miss should be able to find openings through the air, but establishing the run will be just as important. A balanced attack would take pressure off Chambliss and keep Auburn from selling out to stop the pass.
Injuries will also play a major role in this game. Running back Kewan Lacy and safety Edwin Joseph were declared out for the matchup in Pete Golding’s press conference on Oct. 26.
The stakes only get higher from here. With two SEC losses already, Ole Miss has little margin for error as it tries to stay in the College Football Playoff picture.
The Rebels cannot change what happened against Texas; they can only control what comes next.
Auburn has already proven they can knock off one of the country’s best teams, and the Rebels cannot afford to view that as a lucky win.
Ole Miss needs to protect the football, pressure Brown and start faster on offense. A win will give the Rebels much-needed momentum heading into November. A loss may be the end of the Rebels’ playoff hopes.
