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The Auburn Tigers are without Bo Nix for the rest of the season. The junior quarterback hurt his ankle in last week’s matchup with the Mississippi State in a game where everything that could go wrong... well, did go wrong. Auburn led 28-3 at one point and wound up losing 43-34 to the Bulldogs. Now they’ll hope to recuperate and rebound as they take on the South Carolina Gamecocks. The Gamecocks come into this one on the heels of a loss as well. They ate a 31-28 loss to the Missouri Tigers in Columbia last weekend, as they still are seeking bowl eligibility this year. At 5-5, they have two chances left: This upcoming game against Auburn, and one against rival Clemson next week.
How to watch Auburn vs. South Carolina
Time: 7 p.m. ET
TV: ESPN
Watch Online: ESPN App
Betting Odds
(via DraftKings Sportsbook)
Spread: Auburn -7.5 | South Carolina +7.5
Total: 44.5
Moneyline: Auburn -310 | South Carolina +245
Evaluating this game from the outset will be a bit tough with Nix’s injury. TJ Finley got limited time this season, but not quite enough to make a serious assertion of how he will fare. But, he will be facing a Gamecock defense that’s gotten roughed up lately. Over the last five games, the Gamecocks have allowed 6.6, 5.2, 6.0, 6.1, and 6.3 yards per play against their adversaries. They fared well in the first half of the season, but have since taken a nosedive.
Their offensive output hasn’t helped things out at all. While they’ve had two strong outings against Vanderbilt and Florida over that five-game stretch, they’ve played porously otherwise. They averaged 4.9, 3.2, and 3.8 yards per play in those contests, and went 0-3 in each of them. But they face an Auburn defense that hasn’t really fared too well themselves either. Only twice have they allowed an average of less than 5.0 YPP this season, and those were the first two games of the year. Since then it hasn’t gotten any lower than 5.0 and has been as high as 6.5 in each of the last two games.
Whether South Carolina can find a way to move the ball against an Auburn defense that hasn’t been too great down the stretch will probably determine the outcome here. With Finley at QB, Auburn has a few question marks that might make this one a low-scoring affair.