Inside Slant

The Sports Xchange

October 03, 2018 at 8:58 am.

Tigers looking to get ground game back

Auburn is well on pace to have its worst rushing season of the Gus Malzahn era, but the coach may have spotted a glimmer of hope in last week’s win over Southern Mississippi as the No. 8 Tigers (4-1, 1-1 Southeastern Conference) prepare for their first true road game of the season at Mississippi State Saturday.

Junior running back Kam Martin, forced to shoulder a bigger load because of an injury to freshman JaTarvious Whitlow, responded with 90 yards on 24 carries but more importantly provided a little spark to the offense in the 24-13 victory.

“He ran with a passion,” Malzahn said. “The game was on the line, and you could really tell that he was trying to will himself and will that offense to win. That was real impressive.”

After an interception gave the Tigers the ball at USM’s 25-yard line, Martin carried the ball on all five plays in Auburn’s final series, gaining 19 yards to get the Tigers in line for a clinching chip shot field goal.

“He bombed it, he hit it,” Malzahn said. “He went through some pretty small seams and kept his feet moving. Kam’s a very solid back.”

But no other Auburn back rushed for more than 23 yards against the Eagles, and the Tigers saw their per-game rushing average fall to 178.6 yards per game. That’s about 19 yards game under their average of 196.4 yards per game in 2015, their season low in six years under Malzahn.

Throw out the 429 yards the Tigers rushed for in a rout of Alabama State and they are averaging only 116 yards rushing against FBS opponents.

Now the Tigers will be up against a Mississippi State team that has a veteran defense looking to make up for losses in its last two games. The Bulldogs (3-2, 0-2 SEC) have held opponents to an average of just over 120 yards a game rushing, though Kentucky gashed them for 229.

“Very impressed with their front seven,” Malzahn said. “The safeties are very aggressive. Right now, they’re eighth in points allowed in the country. They’re 11th in total defense.”

The Tigers also will have to deal with being away from home for the first time since the opener, when they beat Washington in nearby Atlanta.

“It’s a tough place to play,” Malzahn said of State’s Davis Wade Stadium. “They have the cowbells and all that. That’s always a factor when you go there as far as being loud. It’s a different kind of loud. It’s not just human voices and everything. That’s really unique and different that you’ve got to prepare for.”

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