Auburn football: Updated game-by-game predictions for 2020 season
Mississippi State Bulldogs. player. 893. Scouting Report. Nov. 14. Starkville (Miss.). 7. Pick Analysis
In their second trip to the state of Mississippi in 2020, the Tigers will travel to Starkville and see how Bulldogs first-year head coach Mike Leach is getting adjusted to life in the SEC. Starkville is a tough place to play and has a great fanbase, so you can count on the cowbells being rung loudly when the Tigers come to town.
Mississippi State has the ingredients in place for a better-than-expected season, with former Stanford quarterback KJ Costello transferring in and he’ll have one year of eligibility remaining. The Bulldogs also return the SEC’s leading rusher in Kylin Hill and it will be fascinating to see his role in the offense because of how much Leach likes to throw the ball in his air-raid system.
Gus Malzahn is 4-3 against the Bulldogs ever since he was named the head coach at Auburn. It’s possible that Mississippi State could surprise some folks and be playing really good football at this time of the year, but Auburn will be coming off a bye and will be ready for the air-raid.
Final Score: Auburn 35, Mississippi State 20 (6-1)
Auburn (Ala.). player. Scouting Report. Nov. 21. 8. 839. Pick Analysis. Tennessee Volunteers
In Auburn’s other added on game for the season, they will welcome a Tennessee team that many feel like could be a darkhorse contender in the SEC East this season.
The Volunteers got off to the worst imaginable start last season, losing to Georgia State and BYU and there were rumors swirling that head coach Jeremy Pruitt would not be around much longer. Pruitt would right the ship and after a 2-5 start to the season, Tennessee finished on a six-game winning streak and won their bowl game against a solid Indiana team.
The Vols will have one of the best offensive lines in the SEC and quarterback Jarrett Guarantano is an experienced senior.
While I think there will be marketed improvement for Tennessee this season, I don’t believe they are capable of knocking off the SEC elite yet. Guarantano is experienced, but has never shown to be capable of raising the level of play around him. With top recruiting classes coming in, expect Tennessee to keep getting better, but they aren’t there yet.
Final Score: Auburn 35, Tennessee 21 (7-1)