Auburn hopes to redeem itself vs. another top-5 team

[aubiefifty 18,231]

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Auburn hopes to redeem itself vs. another top-5 team

By Tom Green | tgreen@al.com

5-6 minutes

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Nov 28, 2020; Tuscaloosa, Alabama, USA; Auburn head coach Gus Malzahn takes the field with his team at Bryant-Denny Stadium in the Iron Bowl. Mandatory Credit: Mickey Welsh/The Montgomery Advertiser via USA TODAY SportsThe Montgomery Advertiser-USA TO

Finding motivation after a lopsided loss at the hands of your biggest rival can be difficult for a team, especially when you’re so accustomed to that rivalry game signifying the end of the regular season. “You’re programmed for the postseason” as soon as the Iron Bowl ends, as Gus Malzahn said.

That isn’t the case during this strange season. Auburn has two games remaining on its regular-season slate and must quickly move past its 42-13 loss to top-ranked Alabama. And while that loss was certainly disheartening for the Tigers, they don’t seem to have any shortage of motivation coming out of it.

“The unique thing is we got a top-five team coming in,” Malzahn said. “We got a chance to redeem ourselves…. So, that’s the way we got to look at it. And that will be a big key for our guys to get ready to play a really, really big game at home. Highest ranked team we’ll play at home all year.”

Auburn’s chance at redemption comes Saturday at 11 a.m. against fifth-ranked Texas A&M. The Aggies (6-1) are just outside the top-four of the College Football Playoff rankings, and while their chances of winning the SEC West and competing for the conference title seem long — given the way Alabama has played this season, which includes a head-to-head win against Texas A&M — they remain firmly in the thick of the playoff discussion as the seasons winds down.

That means that, despite being out of the SEC race once again, Auburn can play the role of playoff spoiler in its home finale for the second straight year. The Tigers last year upset the Tide at Jordan-Hare Stadium to keep Nick Saban’s team out of the four-team playoff field, and a win this weekend for Auburn should have a similar impact for Jimbo Fisher’s squad.

“We’ve got a very good Texas A&M team coming in,” Malzahn said. “They’re top-five in the country, fighting for a college playoff berth. So, we’re excited to get that opportunity to play them at home.”

More than just having the opportunity to spoil the Aggies’ title aspirations, the Tigers have two other motivating factors in their quest for redemption following the 29-point loss at Bryant-Denny Stadium. Auburn has a chance to send its seniors off with a 5-0 record at home this season — and a potential 23-3 mark at Jordan-Hare Stadium over the last four years. It would be just the third time in the last decade that Auburn can finish a season undefeated at home.

The Tigers also have the chance to prove they’re better than last week’s performance indicated, which defensive end Colby Wooden called a “very valuable” opportunity for the team at this point of the season.

“We have to defend our home field,” Wooden said. “We have to go out there and show, ‘hey, last week, that wasn’t us and we belong with the big dogs, not just in the SEC but all of college football.’ It’s just a tremendous opportunity to go against a high-ranked team again.”

Auburn’s track record in those games hasn’t been the best. The Tigers are 5-13 against top-five opponents under Malzahn, though four of those wins have come at Jordan-Hare Stadium. Auburn is 20-25 overall against ranked opponents during Malzahn’s eight seasons.

If Auburn, which has won three straight against Texas A&M but is currently a touchdown home underdog, can knock off the Aggies, it will also keep alive the Tigers’ recalibrated goal of a 7-3 season against an all-SEC schedule. That would, in turn, put Auburn in position for a top-tier bowl berth. Most experts currently project the Tigers to play in the Citrus Bowl in Orlando, Fla., on New Year’s Day.

The question for Auburn, though, is whether all of those factors are enough to channel the necessary motivation required for the team to fulfill that redemption arc during this unique season.

“Absolutely,” center Nick Brahms said. “Like we said, man, we don’t get — we don’t usually get a game after the Iron Bowl, so coming off a loss like that and being able to play the No. 5 team like that, it kind of gives us momentum going into the next game and then next year, too. So, we want to end the year strong. That’s really our goal.”

Tom Green is an Auburn beat reporter for Alabama Media Group. Follow him on Twitter @Tomas_Verde.

[woodford 3,732]

46 minutes ago, aubiefifty said:

 

 

Finding motivation after a lopsided loss at the hands of your biggest rival can be difficult for a team, especially when you’re so accustomed to that rivalry game signifying the end of the regular season. “You’re programmed for the postseason” as soon as the Iron Bowl ends, as Gus Malzahn said.

 

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