AUBURN, Ala. – Auburn will ring in the new year Friday at the Vrbo Citrus Bowl against Northwestern. It will be the 45th bowl appearance in the program's history.
The game will also mark the end to what has been a unique 2020 season. There was a point in early August where Auburn didn't know if it would play college football this fall because of the COVID-19 pandemic. But the Tigers made it through, going 6-4 in the regular season, and now the players have an opportunity to finish on a high note with a victory in the bowl game.
"With all that's going on, you look forward to a bowl game," senior defensive lineman Big Kat Bryant said. "It's a chance to maybe reward yourself or your team for all the hard work you put in throughout the year."
Next Game:
Northwestern
1/1/2021
12:00 PM
TV: ABC
Radio: Auburn Sports Network
"It's huge," added quarterback Bo Nix. "Bowl games can be great for the offseason – offseason prep, spring ball. It can really jump start you into the next year. To have guys come out and play well will be huge for their confidence and their impact for next year."
While it's easy to look ahead, especially with the excitement surrounding the hire of new head coach Bryan Harsin, the 2020 team should be celebrated for what they accomplished.
There was no spring practice. The team conducted meetings on Zoom before returning to campus over the summer. The schedule got pushed back a month and was changed to a 10-game conference-only slate. Players and coaches were frequently tested for COVID and had to follow strict COVID etiquette and protocols.
Through it all, though, this group stayed the course. They were resilient in the face of adversity.
"Experiences in life come in different ways," Interim head coach Kevin Steele said. "Experience is not what happens to you. The experience is what you do with what's happened. And these guys have adjusted.
"They've been flexible, they've been resilient. They have gained experience that will pay dividends for them for the rest of their life in terms of how they are finishers, they are fighters, and they are true Auburn men. That's what this group is. I think they will forever be remembered by this coaching staff and by each other as people you can depend on and how they fought through adversity."
Auburn and Northwestern will kick off at noon CT from Camping World Stadium in Orlando. The game will be televised on ABC with Dave Flemming, Rod Gilmore and Paul Carcaterra on the call. You can also listen to Andy Burcham, Stan White and Ronnie Brown who will have the radio call on 93.9 Tiger FM, online at AuburnTigers.com and on the TuneIn app.
THREE QUESTIONS WITH … DL BIG KAT BRYANT
Q. What has the preparation been like for the bowl game?
A: We've just been focused on us. We're trying to get into playing shape and just trying to make sure everybody is focused and ready – really locked in and ready to go, ready to finish the mission.
Q. What have you seen from the young guys in bowl prep?
A: Just their confidence. They are really just getting their confidence playing college ball. (Ladarius Tennison) made his first start (in the last game), so guys like him just getting their reps to kind of build their foundation for next year. Guys like Z (Zykevious Walker) who are going to have to play a big role in the game.
Q: This could be your last game at Auburn. How motivated are you to finish strong?
A: Going into this game, it's big motivation. I got hurt at the beginning of the year, so for me, it's not how you start; it's how you finish. I'm trying to finish as strong as I possibly can because it's been a rocky road for me and didn't turn out the way I wanted it to. Like I say, it's all about trying to finish as strong as I can. I've been working toward it and for it. It's just what I do on the field now.
BOWL HISTORY
Auburn is making its 45th bowl appearance all-time, and its eighth straight, the most consecutive seasons in a bowl for the Tigers since going bowling eight straight years from 2000-07.
Auburn is 24-18-2 all-time in bowl games and 3-2 in Orlando bowls with wins over Boston College (1982), Southern Cal (1987) and Penn State (2003) and losses to Michigan (2001) and Wisconsin (2006). The Tigers are 26-38 in all games played in the state of Florida, which includes games played in Gainesville, Jacksonville, Miami, Orlando, Tallahassee and Tampa.
This marks the second meeting in football between Auburn and Northwestern. The first came in the Outback Bowl at the conclusion of the 2009 season where Auburn posted a 38-35 overtime win in Tampa. The Tigers have a 12-10-2 record against current members of the Big Ten and a 9-7 mark against Big Ten teams in bowl games.
Bowl Record: 24-18-2
First Bowl Game: 1936, Bacardi Bowl (Villanova, 7-7)
Most AU points: 63, 2018 Music City Bowl (Purdue, 63-14)
Current Streak: L1BY THE NUMBERS
834: Tank Bigsby ranks second among all FBS freshmen with 834 rushing yards on the season. Bigsby, the SEC Co-Freshman of the Year, was the first Auburn freshman to rush for 100 yards in three consecutive games and four total games. Only Bo Jackson (1982) and Michael Dyer (2010) rushed for 100 yards or more three times against SEC opposition as Auburn freshmen.
52: Auburn is third nationally in the FBS allowing just 52 rushing touchdowns since the start of the 2016 season. The Tigers have allowed only 144 total touchdowns during that span (2.28 per game). They will face a Northwestern team who has rushed for 14 touchdowns in eight games this season.
1996: The only previous time an unranked Auburn team met a ranked opponent in a bowl game was the 1996 Independence Bowl where Auburn defeated No. 24 Army, 32-29. The Tigers are 11-14-1 against ranked opponents in bowl games and 7-9-1 vs. top 15 team in bowls.