It’s Auburn and Georgia in Week 6 of college football, and the betting line opened with Auburn being 23.5 point dogs. As mentioned in the schedule preview, this will likely be a loss for Auburn; which is extremely inconvenient considering that to be bowl-eligible, the Tigers have to win four of their next seven games. Last week’s game adds to the frustration, as Auburn was up 11 points in the fourth quarter and still found a way to lose.
Despite his game-losing interception, quarterback Payton Thorne looked to be in total command of the offense. The misses he had prior to the interception seemed to be miscommunications with the wide receivers and them not being where they were supposed to.
That leads us to this week’s game. Auburn will have an incredibly difficult challenge with the Bulldogs this week, especially following their loss to Alabama.
Auburn Tigers vs. Georgia Bulldogs Football History
The Deep South’s oldest rivalry meets again; with Georgia leading the overall series 64-56 (and eight ties) and hold the current win streak at seven games. This game will come down to key players on both teams and whose defense can continue to hold on.
Key Players to Auburn
The key players for the Auburn offense will be familiar faces, because the veteran leaders of the team will have to step up. Jarquez Hunter, KeAndre Lambert-Smith and the offensive line will be the most important players for Auburn.
Hunter is the Auburn Tigers’ best player and head coach Hugh Freeze needs to remember that. He has 65 carries for 437 yards rushing and two rushing touchdowns with six receptions 47 yards and one touchdown receiving this season. Hunter is averaging over six yards per carry and deserves to help carry this team, especially late in games. Unfortunately, he has not gotten that opportunity frequently enough.
The offensive line is going to have to have a perfect contest. Last week against Oklahoma, the offensive line gave up four sacks. Zero sacks against Georgia is near impossible because of the talent they have, but if the Auburn offensive line can limit sacks, the offense can perform to a level to keep up.
Meanwhile, KeAndre Lambert-Smith is having one of the best seasons at Auburn in years. He is going to have to provide sure hands and good routes so that Thorne knows he has somewhere to throw that he can trust.
The defense will also be key for Auburn in this football game. The Tigers will have to find a way to contain the Georgia offense, which seemed to unlock itself a bit in the Alabama game. On the defensive line, Jalen McLeod and Keldric Faulk will have to make their presence felt early and often. They both have three sacks and one pass deflection each and have been bright stars for this team.
The Auburn defense had a breakout player in the Oklahoma game, in freshman linebacker Demarcus Riddick. Riddick had eight total tackles and one sack. He was all over the field harassing the Oklahoma offense. He will be an interesting watch this week against the Bulldogs.
Finally, Eugene Asante has to step up and make his presence felt. He has to be involved in as many plays as possible on defense. He has not recorded a sack or an interception and only has 12 total tackles. This number may need to double in this game, so that Auburn can stand a chance.
Key Players for Georgia
The Georgia Bulldogs come into the season were a frequent pick to win the national championship in the preseason. However, in their first four games, they have looked somewhat human and that has been because of a lack of playmakers on offense. They lost Ladd McConkey and Brock Bowers, so the question was and still is who is going to step up for them. Carson Beck, Trevor Etienne, and Dominic Lovett are the ones that need to continue to step up for this offense.
Beck was a preseason Heisman contender; and so far, has been good. Beck has thrown for over 1,000 yards passing and 10 touchdowns with only three interceptions.
Etienne, since serving his one-game suspension against Clemson, has amassed 36 carries for 212 yards and one touchdown. His low touchdown numbers and his lack of receiving stats are intriguing because he has the talent to do both as seen at Florida. Etienne will need to be used more in the passing game to help Beck in this game.
The final key player for the Bulldog offense is senior wide receiver Dominic Lovett. Lovett leads the team in receptions with 18 (which is surprisingly low) and has 214 yards receiving. He only has one receiving touchdown, and may need to be targeted more in the red zone as well as shot plays. The Bulldogs seemed to discover more of their offense against Alabama, and if that continues Auburn will be in trouble.
The Georgia defense is extremely talented, which is makes what Alabama did even more impressive. They are led by junior defensive back Malaki Starks and senior linebacker Smael Mondon Jr.
Starks is an athletic ball hawk who is not afraid to get involved in tackling, shown by his 19 tackles, tied for second on the team. Meanwhile, Mondon is a thumping linebacker that has 17 total tackles on the year and two pass deflections. He will be involved in most plays and all over the field consistently.
Sophomore linebacker CJ Allen has been a breakout player for the Bulldogs and is another player to watch in Georgia’s football game against Auburn. Allen leads the team with 21 tackles, yet still looking for a sack. These are just three of Georgia’s stud defenders that will wreak havoc against the Auburn offense this week.
Keys to Victory for Auburn
The key for Auburn to win this football game are to play as close to perfect of a game as they can. The offensive line is going to have to open holes in the run game for Hunter and Damari Alston, as well as keeping a clean pocket for Thorne.
Thorne is going to have to be in command like he was last week, but he cannot turn the ball over – at all. This will also involve getting help from his wide receivers, who also cannot have drops that kill drives or lead to interceptions.
Defensively, the Auburn Tigers are going to have to create pressure on Georgia’s offensive line. They will need to stuff the run and make Beck uncomfortable. If Beck has to make quick decisions or move outside of the pocket, the question will be does he have the playmakers to help him out in those situations and we still don’t know.
Recruiting Roundup
Deuce Knight has now officially flipped his commitment to the Auburn Tigers from the Notre Dame Fighting Irish. His commitment gives Auburn the third-ranked class nationally, and gives Auburn fans hope for the future.
Meanwhile, 2025 running back Alvin Henderson also visited against Oklahoma and stated that he is not worried with what Auburn has shown on the field. The sentiment was similar from defensive end Jared Smith who said “Auburn is missing one piece and it is clear what it is.”
Unfortunately, recruiting experts have logged a prediction for Auburn target Ousmane Kromah to commit to Georgia.
