AUBURN, Ala. – Auburn is 4-3 and headed into a significant game on the road at Ole Miss this weekend. Is it where the coaches and players thought they would be at this point? No. The Tigers expected to compete for a championship this season. But the season is not lost either.
"The reality is we're disappointed because we wanted to have a chance to win a championship this year and that's no longer the case," Auburn head coach Gus Malzahn said Tuesday. "But our players and our coaches are extremely close. We're in this thing together. We're going to roll up our sleeves this week – this is a big game for us, obviously, going on the road – and get a victory before we get to the off week."
Auburn leads the all-time series with Ole Miss, 32-10. The Tigers have won four of the last five overall and three of the last four in Oxford, including a 40-29 victory at their place two years ago. Saturday's game is scheduled for 11 a.m. CT and will be televised on ESPN.
Here are some of the highlights from Malzahn's press conference Tuesday
Florida freshmen
"Both [Anthony Schwartz and Shaun Shivers] have big-play ability. They've made plays and can really run. I think that's part of the evaluation process that I said after the game.
"I'm really excited about Anthony Schwartz. You're talking about a guy that's not playing like a freshman and making big plays. It's not just when you hand him the football, but it's the route he ran, turned it upfield and broke a tackle. And of course, he's super-fast. Worm (Shivers), I've been very impressed with him, his attitude and competitiveness. Both of those guys have explosive, big-play opportunities and you could see them with the ball in their hands a little bit more moving forward."
No Dinson in first half
"Jeremiah Dinson is one of our leaders. And he's one of our best players. Not to have him in the first half (due to targeting penalty against Tennessee), that's a blow no matter who you're playing. But we are playing a team who is dynamic on offense, and he is a leader on the field. We'll have to do a good job with those younger guys coming in and we'll have to have a good plan against these guys."
"Jordyn Peters obviously is a guy that has experience as far as that goes with that position. Smoke Monday is a guy, too, that has a chance to help."
Ole Miss scouting report
"Looking at Ole Miss, I think the first thing that stands out is their offense. They've got a lot of weapons on the outside. Their quarterback can really run -- he can hurt people with his feet and his arm. I think they're No. 6 in the country in total offense.
"Defensively, Wesley McGriff, their defensive coordinator, was here two years ago. We're very familiar with him. He has those guys playing extremely hard. They're coming off a big conference victory, and I know they have some momentum as far as that goes."
Injury report
JaTarvious Whitlow, Marlon Davidson and Jamel Dean are all "day to day."
"Those guys, we'll hope to have them back. This will be game eight, so our bodies are a little bit banged up. We hope to have those guys back ready to go."
Greg Ostendorf is a Senior Writer for AuburnTigers.com. Follow him on Twitter: @greg_ostendorf