SEC INSIDER

Back home, No. 11 Auburn ready for Ole Miss

Field Level Media

October 30, 2019 at 8:21 am.

After three consecutive games on the road, two of which were losses at Florida and LSU, No. 11 Auburn is looking forward to getting back home to host Ole Miss on Saturday night.

“It’s a difference-maker,” Tigers coach Gus Malzahn said of playing at Jordan-Hare Stadium. “We play better at home, there’s no doubt. We feed off our crowd. Our group is a lot more comfortable, so we need to continue that.”

Malzahn expects freshman quarterback Bo Nix to get back on track at home. Nix completed a combined 26 of 62 passes for 302 yards and two touchdowns with four interceptions in the setbacks to the Gators and LSU that pretty much left Auburn with the role of spoiler in the SEC race.

The Tigers (6-2, 3-2 SEC) have games remaining against East Division contender Georgia and West leader Alabama at home in November. Ole Miss isn’t a contender, but the Rebels (3-5, 2-3) are coming off an open date and could present challenges to the Auburn defense.

The Rebels have been playing two quarterbacks in recent games, and both have had their moments. True freshman John Rhys Plumlee leads SEC quarterbacks in rushing yards per game (101.6) while redshirt freshman Matt Corral has passed for 1,101 yards despite missing two games to rib injuries.

Plumlee had what was called a “minor procedure” for a knee injury and sat out one practice this week, but he is expected to stay in the rotation.

“All the swelling was gone,” coach Matt Luke told reporters.

Luke said the open date came at a good time for his Rebels, who have lost four of their last five outings and will be up against “one of the top defenses we’ve faced since I’ve been here,” he said.

“You will always have a few wrinkles that you will throw in, especially coming out of an open date, but you have to be careful,” Luke said. “You have to be who you are because when you start trying to do stuff on the road that is different and you start getting into a bunch of negative plays, that’s what you can’t do.”

The teams are Nos. 1 and 2 in rushing in the SEC with Ole Miss averaging 232.5 yards per game and Auburn 225.9, but the Tigers gained an extra weapon last week when freshman D.J. Williams ran for 130 yards on 13 carries and grabbed two balls for 21 yards.

Williams’ breakout game was timely with sophomore running back JaTarvious Whitlow still recovering from a knee injury. Whitlow played at LSU but was limited to three carries for 9 yards. He still leads the Tigers in rushing with 553 yards.

“He’s got great hands,” Malzahn said of Williams. “He actually played quarterback in high school, too, so he’s got great hand-eye coordination. What really impresses me about him is his knowledge of the game and picking up things real quick. Having played quarterback helps with understanding the big picture.”

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