SEC Bowl Previews: From Auburn to Vanderbilt

Monday, Jan.2

#14 Auburn vs. #7 Oklahoma, Sugar Bowl in New Orleans, LA (ESPN/8:30 p.m.)

If you told Auburn fans that after a 1-2 start to the season they’d be in the Sugar Bowl, they’d have thought you were pranking them. The Tigers rattled off six consecutive wins after that with the losses to Georgia and Alabama as the only blemishes to close out the season. Auburn QB Sean White is expected to return from injury and that gives the team some more options to play with, but everyone knows it’s all about the run game. Auburn is 9th in the FBS with 278 rushing ypg and they’re led by Kamryn Pettway’s 1,123 yards and seven scores. When he gets at least 17 carries, the team is 5-1.

The Tigers have the task of trying to stop one of the nation’s elite offenses in Oklahoma. The Sooners are sixth in FBS with 557 yards per game and 10th in points per game with 44. And unlike the one-dimensional Tigers, they’re 12th in passing yards per game and 26th in rushing yards per game. But to ensure all parts run smoothly, QB Baker Mayfield needs to get it going. He tore through the Big 12 with 38 touchdowns and hasn’t had a game with fewer than two. The Sooners are on a nine-game win streak and are one of CFB’s hottest teams.