MMR Week 10: Auburn at Texas A&M
Well, well, well…it looks like Kyler Murray gave the Aggies a spark off the bench like I predicted. Now, you may be thinking the South Carolina defense was hardly a test, but the reality is that the Aggie offense was struggling with every team they were playing all season. The running game has been practically absent for the last month. Now all of a sudden the Aggies’ Kyler Murray rushed for 156 yards and Tra Carson ran for an additional 122 yards. The only thing that really changed was the QB, and the entire offense that opened up behind him.
Now, I am not blaming Kyle Allen for his bad performance, but what basically happened was a little bad luck and lack of depth at running back. With the running back stable falling thin this season, every defense we played knew that if they stopped Carson, they had a chance to stop Allen…and that’s exactly what happened. If there were a running back combo, or if the line was stronger, then Allen would have had a chance with a balanced offense. Kyle Allen is good, but the offense around him does not match his playing style. Now that we are in the heart of the SEC schedule, the better defenses showed up and exposed the Aggie offense weaknesses, not Allen’s weakness. He should become a pro quarterback; he has the pocket presence, the arm, and the awareness. It’s just hard to play against so many defenders when they know the A&M running games is not there. Who knows, change up the offensive line a little bit, or get an amazing running back and we could see Allen again. But to win this season, expect to see more of Murray.
Kyler still has some room to grow. He is just getting used to the speed of the game at the college level. He has only had so many reps during practice, and he needs experience in getting ready for game week. If he can maintain this pace and style of offense, if he can get the ball in the air and not always rely on his legs, if the playbook becomes easier for Murray to leverage, this kid could be great.
Overall, the win is what we needed against South Carolina. We are still 6-2, and playing for a 9-3 or 10-2 season right now, which I will gladly take considering how this team is doing this year. Remember, in Johnny’s Heisman year, we had 10 wins before our bowl game and ended the season in the top 5.
Auburn at Texas A&M
So many stories are circulating when these two teams play. In recent history, JFF cleared out the Auburn home crowd when the Aggies won 63-21. In 2013, JFF hurt his shoulder and almost pulled off the comeback, but 7th ranked A&M lost at home to Auburn 45-41. Last year, Kyle Allen showed the country why he was the top pick and stunned #3 Auburn on the road 41-38. Lots of drama for so few years, and we head into this game with the winner being able to build upon this game for the rest of the season. November is such a tough month in college football, teams that do well in November usually close the season out well.
Who does A&M need to watch for? The running back, of course. A&M is still ranked 13th in the SEC for rush defense. Thankfully the defense’s strong pass rush, killer instinct, and ability to make turnovers have made the defense the foundation of our team again. Auburn RB Peyton Barber is going to have a good game. Hell, I bet he has the best game all season, but that doesn’t mean much. Look for Barber to have a 200 yd game.
Why so confident Macho Man? Because the defense is the real problem at Auburn, and who do I see over the but the biggest fan of College Station, Will “BOOM” Muschamp. Talk about being one year too early. All he had to do was wait for Mack Brown to fall, which he did, and he would still be the head coach at texas. But oh no, he couldn’t wait, and after dismal seasons at Florida (funny how well they’re doing after he left) he’s now back as the defensive coordinator, and a bad one at that. (HAHA!)
All A&M has to do is run the same game plan as last week. If Murray can keep the defense guessing, the whole field becomes his playground. I like the fact that he will gobble up yards and not try to run through you. His baseball intuition tells him to slide and play for another down. The balanced running game will suck in the defense, open up more wide receivers and allow for more passing yards. This works well for A&M. Maybe another week of practice with Murray and the wide receivers to get their rhythm and timing down will do them well. The offensive line has to be ready and comfortable with a running QB in the pocket who can take off at any time, this weekend will be interesting.
Auburn 27
Texas A&M 44