Ole Miss @ Auburn preview

Last Meeting ( Oct 29, 2016 ) Auburn 40, Mississippi 29

The rest of the SEC might not want to hear this, but Auburn head coach Gus Malzahn believes his team still has room to improve. The No. 13 Tigers will look to do just that as they seek a third consecutive conference blowout victory against visiting Ole Miss.

Auburn's 49-10 evisceration of Mississippi State last week gave the Tigers their first back-to-back wins over conference opponents by 30 or more points in three decades - but Malzahn isn't satisfied. "Our challenge has been to continue to get better," he told reporters. "Few teams around the country are able to improve each week with execution and getting better at who they are and what they do. That is really the formula." Ole Miss can certainly get better - by a lot - after kicking off conference play in the worst way possible, winding up on the wrong end of a 66-3 drubbing at the hands of Alabama. "The most important thing for us moving forward is to go wash this tape, flush it and move on to the next one," head coach Matt Luke said afterward.

TV: Noon ET, SEC Network. LINE: Auburn -21

ABOUT OLE MISS (2-2, 0-1 SEC): Any chance of a bounceback begins and ends with quarterback Shea Patterson, who looked sensational in passing for 918 yards and nine touchdowns in season-opening wins over South Alabama and Tennessee-Martin but was exposed in road games against Cal and Alabama, throwing for a combined 528 yards with two TDs and five interceptions. The run game has been a weak spot all season, averaging fewer than 75 yards per game - among the worst rates in Division I - and just 2.9 yards per carry. The receiving tandem of A.J. Brown and DeMarkus Lodge has combined for 34 catches, 751 yards and eight touchdowns, though all but one of those scores came in the first two games of the season.

ABOUT AUBURN (4-1, 2-0): The Tigers have tinkered with their offensive line to start the season - rolling with three different configurations through the first five games - but appear to have found a mix they like. The combination of Austin Golson at left tackle, Mike Horton at left guard, Casey Dunn at center, Braden Smith at right guard and Darius James at left guard helped Auburn average a whopping 9.1 yards per play while not committing a penalty against Mississippi State, and will be kept intact for this week's game against the Rebels. "I think we'll be able to build upon things up front," Malzahn said of the offensive line, which surrendered just two sacks in the lopsided win.

EXTRA POINTS

1. The Tigers are the only Division I team yet to allow more than 14 points in a game this season.

2. Auburn QB Jarrett Stidham has completed 72 percent of his passes, tops in the SEC and eighth-best in the nation.

3. Ole Miss has yet to score a point off a turnover in 2017, while giving up 38 of its own.

PREDICTION: Auburn 45, Ole Miss 20