Auburn @ Ole Miss preview

Last Meeting ( Oct 7, 2017 ) Mississippi 23, Auburn 44

Auburn took a dramatic tumble out of the top 25 with back-to-back losses and has yet to show the type of offensive firepower that was expected of the team. The Tigers will try to bounce back and find the end zone with some consistency when they visit Ole Miss on Saturday.

Auburn failed to score a touchdown in a 23-9 loss at Mississippi State on Oct. 6 and committed three turnovers in a 30-24 home loss to Tennessee last week that snapped the Volunteers' 11-game SEC losing streak. "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 told reporters. "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." The Tigers will see what a team firing on all cylinders offensively looks like with the Rebels, who are averaging 41.6 points behind standout quarterback Jordan Ta'amu and are coming off back-to-back wins. "Now you're coming home at 5-2 and you get some momentum and the crowd fired up about coming and playing another big game in Oxford," Ole Miss coach Matt Luke told reporters. "I think that's what you're most proud of is you get the momentum going forward."

TV: Noon, ET, ESPN. LINE: Auburn -3.5

ABOUT AUBURN (4-3, 1-3 SEC): All three turnovers in last week's loss came from quarterback Jarrett Stidham, who threw a pair of interceptions and lost a fumble. Malzahn reiterated this week that Stidham is his starting quarterback despite the junior posting career worsts with a completion percentage of 60.6 and 7.04 yards per attempt. Malzahn's teams are usually renowned for their rushing attacks, but this season's Tigers rank 11th in the SEC at an average of 158.4 yards on the ground while leading rusher JaTarvious Winslow was held out of the end zone in each of the last three games and is nursing a shoulder injury.

ABOUT OLE MISS (5-2, 1-2): Ta'amu is up to 2,298 yards passing and threw for at least 336 yards in each of the team's five victories. The senior from Hawaii showed off his dual-threat abilities with 141 rushing yards on 17 carries to go along with 387 passing yards and three total touchdowns in last week's 37-33 victory at Arkansas. Ta'amu gets plenty of help from running back Scottie Phillips, who is averaging 6.7 yards per carry with nine TDs on the ground and two more through the air.

EXTRA POINTS

1. Ole Miss WR D.K. Metcalf will miss the remainder of the season after suffering a neck injury.

2. Auburn DB Jeremiah Dinson is suspended for the first half of Saturday's game after being ejected for targeting last week.

3. The Tigers have taken four of the last five meetings, including a 44-23 home victory last season.

PREDICTION: Ole Miss 31, Auburn 24