AUBURN, Ala. – When the Southeastern Conference asked its television partners before the 2020 season to select games they'd like to broadcast, CBS quickly identified Auburn's Halloween matchup with LSU.
For the network, there was no need to wait until 12 or six days before kickoff to make the call, not when Auburn and LSU annually provide epic SEC West showdowns.
Next Game:
LSU
10/31/2020
2:30 PM
TV: CBS
Radio: Auburn Sports Network
This Halloween, it's Tigers v. Tigers. pic.twitter.com/lra2S9bFP0
— Auburn Football (@AuburnFootball) October 28, 2020
"Our guys are extremely excited and motivated to play this game," Auburn coach Gus Malzahn said.
In the past three weeks, Auburn has rushed for 695 yards on 124 carries, an average of 5.6 yards per carry.
"That's Auburn football," Malzahn said. "We just have to keep building upon that."
Malzahn credited continuity on Auburn's offensive line for the rushing success. Against LSU, the Tigers' O-line will feature a new starter at right guard, Keiondre Jones, who replaces Brandon Council, who was injured in Auburn's win at Ole Miss.
"He's in a good spot to take that next step," Malzahn said. "We need a good week of practice. You have seen the guys improve. We're not going to have one of those five, but trying to keep developing that continuity."
At 6-2, 300 pounds, freshman tight end J.J. Pegues qualifies as an honorary offensive lineman. Against Ole Miss, Pegues pancaked backside defenders to create running lanes for Tank Bigsby, who's rushed for more than 100 yards in three consecutive games.
"He's getting more comfortable with the offense," Malzahn said. "You'll see him be more of a bigger factor moving forward. He has really good hands. You saw the run in the wildcat a couple weeks ago. He's an enforcer as far as blocking."
Auburn (3-2) begins the second half of the season Saturday at 2:30 p.m. CT with Brad Nessler, Gary Danielson and Jamie Erdahl calling the action on CBS. Fans can also listen to the Auburn Network call with Andy Burcham, Stan White and Ronnie Brown on 93.9 Tiger FM, Sirius 133/XM 191, online at AuburnTigers.com and on the TuneIn app.
"Getting back to play good ol' hard-nosed Auburn football," Malzahn said of Auburn's 35-28 win at Ole Miss. "We handled adversity extremely well."
THREE QUESTIONS WITH….OL BRODARIOUS HAMM
Oct 3, 2020; Oxford, MS, USA; Brodarious Hamm (59) defending during the game between Auburn and Ole Miss at Vaught Hemingway Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Todd Van Emst/AU Athletics
Q. How important will the running game be vs. LSU?
A: Very important to come out there and be able to do both, run and pass. They're a solid front. We've got to be able to do everything and not just be stuck on one thing.
Q. With Keiondre Jones starting for Brandon Council, how big of a challenge will that be?
A. With Keiondre and Trox (junior Austin Troxell), we've got guys who can step up, fill the role and be able to. We can't miss a beat.
Q. How has the O-line improved since the first game?
A. We're growing as a group overall. We're trying to take the next step each week, find something to get better at. We have a lot of room to improve. Coach Bicknell talks about that every week. He feels like we can get a lot better by improving on the little things.
INSIDE THE SERIES
Gameday Program
This will be the 55th meeting in the all-time series. Auburn trails the all-time LSU series 31-22-1.
Auburn leads 12-8 in games played on the Plains, although LSU won the most recent Jordan-Hare Stadium matchup 22-21 in 2018. The home team has won 17 of the last 20 in the series.
Eleven of the last 16 meetings in the series have been decided by seven points or less, including the last four, which have been decided by a total of 14 points.
In 24 of the last 25 meetings between Auburn and LSU, at least one of the teams was ranked at the time of the game; in 14 of those, both teams were ranked. From 2002-2014 at least one team was ranked in the AP Top 10 at the time of the matchup, with both teams ranked in the top 10 three times in that stretch (2006, 2008 and 2010).
Series: Auburn trails 31-22-1
At Auburn: Auburn leads 12-8
Most AU points: 41 (1999, 2014)BY THE NUMBERS
30: The Auburn defense is the only unit in the SEC that has not given up more than 30 points in a game this season.
6.5: Colby Wooden leads the SEC with 6.5 tackles for loss this season; Wooden has recorded at least 1.0 TFL in four of five games.
163.2: True freshman Tank Bigsby leads the SEC in all-purpose average with 163.2 yards/game, and ranks No. 3 nationally.
Jeff Shearer is a Senior Writer at AuburnTigers.com. Follow him on Twitter: @jeff_shearer