2013 Back on the Plains, Malzahn has quickly reignited AU’s ground game thanks in large part to the mobility of quarterback Nick Marshall. Auburn enters this year’s Iron Bowl averaging 320.2 yards per game with a 6.4 yards-per-carry average. And, yes, those are better rushing numbers than the 2010 team. Alabama is the SEC’s best run defense once more, yielding 91.2 yards per contest and 3.0 yards per tote. Iron Bowl forecast: Saban has gone against a Malzahn-coached Auburn offense three times. Each time the Tigers gained well below their season-long rushing average. Look at the numbers — 61 yards below, 176 yards below, and 104 yards below. Even the Tigers’ national title-winning 2010 team saw its per-carry average fall to 2.2 versus Team Saban, three-and-a-half yards per carry less than normal. In the three Malzahn/Saban head-to-head Iron Bowl matchups, Auburn is 1-2. The Tigers’ victory in 2010 came not as a result of their powerful ground game, but as a result of the efficient, big-play passing of Newton. If Saturday’s game holds true to form, Alabama’s rush defense will once again be able to slow — if not shut down — Auburn running game. If that happens, the weight will fall on Marshall and his Tiger receivers to beat the Crimson Tide through the air. At times, Saban’s secondary has had lapses (most obviously against Texas A&M and LSU). But can Marshall do what Johnny Manziel and Zach Mettenberger did? This is no knock on Marshall, but to date he’s looked more like Newton on his rushing attempts than on his passing attempts. If the Tide stymies the Tiger rushing attack once more, Marshall’s arm will become more important than his legs.
Posted on: Fri, 29 Nov 2013 05:03:28 +0000
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