Louisiana Tech vs. Auburn Complete Game Preview

AUBURN, Ala. — It was far from the resounding-statement victory fans were hoping to see last Thursday night, but No. 5 Auburn escaped Manhattan with a tight 20-14 road win.

Now it's back to the friendly confines of Jordan-Hare Stadium for the Tigers, who have posted a pair of multi-touchdown home victories in the young campaign.

Saturday will be a sweet, yet early, homecoming game for Auburn against a Louisiana Tech team that reached rock bottom last weekend. The Bulldogs had some momentum going with a pair of wins following their blowout loss on opening day at Oklahoma, but Skip Holtz's team shockingly fell in an awful home opener to FCS opponent Northwestern State on a late field goal.

Louisiana Tech's big loss reinforced the fact that this should be nothing more than another tuneup game for an Auburn team that feels like it needs the tweaking after the narrow victory in Manhattan. Auburn should take care of business in this nonconference matchup, but the question will be how much the Tigers—especially the offense—will improve from the season's first road trip.

Before we get to a full breakdown of Auburn's homecoming matchup against a Louisiana Tech team looking to rebound from a crushing upset, here are all the basics:

• Date: Saturday, Sept. 27
• Time: 4 p.m. ET (3 p.m. local)
• Place: Jordan-Hare Stadium; Auburn, Ala.
• TV: SEC Network
• Radio: Louisiana Tech Sports Network, Auburn IMG Sports Network
  
• Spread: Auburn -33, according to Odds Shark

Louisiana Tech Keys to Victory

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Louisiana Tech HC Skip Holtz

Win the Turnover Battle

Why did Louisiana Tech post two big road wins against teams that went bowling last year but lose to a FCS-level opponent? Simple: turnovers.

After only giving the ball away once against Louisiana-Lafayette and North Texas, Louisiana Tech turned it over five times against Northwestern State. Those turnovers directly led to successful possessions for the visiting Demons, whose longest scoring drive only went 58 yards last Saturday.

If Louisiana Tech is going to avoid a big loss like it suffered in its season opener to Oklahoma, the offense is going to have to hold on to the ball. Conversely, the Bulldogs would love to see short fields against the heavy favorites, so forcing any turnovers against the Auburn offense will be important this weekend.

Avoid the Slow Start

Oklahoma was up 31-0 in the season opener before Louisiana Tech recorded its first points, and it's safe to say the visitors were never really in the game in Norman.

Slow offensive starts have been an issue in Holtz's brief tenure with the Bulldogs. Louisiana Tech was 71st nationally in first-half rushing yardage and 96th in first-half passing yardage last season as the team struggled to find an offensive identity.

The Bulldogs have a few weapons who could cause issues for the Tigers early, but they will have to make their presence felt from the opening quarter. This team is not built for comebacks, and Auburn could make things ugly quickly if the offense drags its feet again.

Catch a Few Breaks

This may be the Captain Obvious Understatement of the Season, but Louisiana Tech will not be able to square off and beat Auburn straight up this Saturday.

Any cracked door should be kicked down by the Bulldogs if they are to stand a chance at an upset. That means playing nearly perfect football while taking advantage of any opportunity that presents itself from Auburn miscues.

Just as Northwestern State capitalized on all of Louisiana Tech's blunders last weekend, Louisiana Tech must do the same this week if it hopes to flip the script on Auburn.

Auburn Keys to Victory

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Auburn HC Gus Malzahn

Fix the Offensive Issues from Last Week

Offensive coordinator Rhett Lashlee pulled zero punches when he was asked Sunday night about his unit's performance against Kansas State.

"Well, we didn't execute worth a crap," Lashlee said. "I don't know. We've all looked at ourselves, from myself to our coaches. We've got to make sure we don't take anything for granted or let anything slide."

It's obvious that a major goal for Auburn in this final tuneup game before the meat of the SEC schedule is to improve the offensive execution from last week. From Marshall to the running backs to the receivers to the offensive line, expect to see an offense focused on getting back to its deadly efficient ways against an overmatched opponent.

Gash Them on the Ground

One area of execution that needs to be improved from the Kansas State trip is Auburn's rushing attack, and it should get its opportunities to turn it around against Louisiana Tech.

The biggest hole in Louisiana Tech's defense is its ability to stop teams from finding the end zone on the ground. The Bulldogs have allowed 13 rushing touchdowns through four games this season, which ties them for fourth-most nationally.

After a game in which Auburn was held to its second-lowest rushing output in the Malzahn era, Nick Marshall, Cameron Artis-Payne and Corey Grant would probably love nothing more than to get back on track this weekend with a few scores on the ground. Some big rushing plays this Saturday could give the offense the momentum it needs heading into a tough October of SEC competition.

Protect the Red Zone

With a No. 24 ranking in total yards allowed per game, Auburn is on pace to have one of its best defenses since the departure of Tommy Tuberville in 2008.

Front-to-back improvement will continue to be the goal for Ellis Johnson's defense, and it will have a chance to notch another great performance heading into next week's battle with LSU.

One specific area to watch will be how Auburn contains Louisiana Tech between the 20s—the Bulldogs offense has scored on every trip inside the possession this season, a designation it shares with the Tigers offense early this season. Keeping Louisiana Tech from getting inside the red zone could be the difference between this contest being closer than expected and another blowout victory. 

Louisiana Tech Players to Watch

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Louisiana Tech QB Cody Sokol

QB Cody Sokol

The success of Louisiana Tech's offense will most likely fall on Sokol, a former junior college All-American and backup quarterback at Iowa.

The only sustained movement the Bulldogs got against Oklahoma was in the passing game, and Sokol had fantastic outings in victories against Louisiana-Lafayette and North Texas. However, in the stunning upset loss to Northwestern State, Sokol had three interceptions and only one touchdown pass.

A traditional pocket passer, Sokol won't test Auburn on the ground like Jake Waters did for Kansas State. He doesn't have a true top receiver at this point, so expect him to scatter passes all across the field in hopes of a bounce-back performance. 

RB Kenneth Dixon

Louisiana Tech has attempted more passes than rushes this season, but the Bulldogs have a running back who has the ability to make a big play every time his number is called.

Dixon, who has had four runs of 20 yards or more through the first four games of the season, recorded a 99-yard touchdown run to kick-start a blowout win against Louisiana-Lafayette. He was a freshman All-American in 2012 and was on track for another solid season in 2013 before an injury limited his production.

The junior has received an overwhelming majority of the runs for Louisiana Tech, with 69 touches for 404 yards and five touchdowns this season. His ability to create explosive plays will make him a priority to tackle on first contact for Auburn's defense.

SS Xavier Woods

If you're looking for a top player on the Bulldogs defense, look no further than Woods.

The sophomore safety leads Louisiana Tech with two interceptions this season, including a 46-yard touchdown off of one against Louisiana-Lafayette. He has also forced a fumble and is fourth on the team in tackles with 17.

Woods was a regular starter as a true freshman last season and already has experience playing on the road against power-conference teams such as Oklahoma. He will be an important factor in keeping Auburn's passing attack from burning Louisiana Tech deep while providing necessary run support against a big-play backfield.

Auburn Players to Watch

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Auburn WR Sammie Coates

QB Nick Marshall

Marshall turned it on in the second half against Kansas State, finding several receivers for crucial third-down conversions and a couple of game-deciding passes to D'haquille Williams.

The senior quarterback finished well against the Wildcats, but fans are still waiting on his first complete performance of the season after a strong second half against Arkansas and an up-and-down game against San Jose State.

The Louisiana Tech defense has given up more than 200 passing yards to every team its faced except for North Texas, so Marshall should have his fair share of chances to improve his game against the Bulldogs. Louisiana-Lafayette's dual-threat quarterback, Terrence Broadway, also got close to 100 yards on the ground, so look for Auburn to work the read-option game after struggling to get anything going against K-State last week.

WR Sammie Coates

After he sat out the San Jose State game with injury, Coates returned to action against Kansas State with mixed results.

He caught two passes for 24 yards in Manhattan, but he had several missed opportunities for big plays, including a disappointing drop late in the third quarter. Lashlee said Coates "wasn't full speed" late Thursday, and that was apparent on some deep routes.

If Coates plays against Louisiana Tech, it would be the perfect opportunity for him to get back to the form that made him Auburn's leading receiver a season ago. The Bulldogs defense is ranked 92nd nationally in allowing passes of 10 yards or more, which what made Coates such a big-play threat last season.

BS Josh Holsey

With senior safety Jermaine Whitehead indefinitely suspended for a reported "verbal confrontation" with an assistant coach, it's up to Josh Holsey to own the boundary safety role after his move back from cornerback.

"I thought he did a good, solid job [against Kansas State]," defensive coordinator Ellis Johnson said. "It was a tough move for him, it was done during the week and didn't have but one half of a practice and another small light practice."

With an experienced quarterback in Sokol, Louisiana Tech will most likely challenge Holsey and an Auburn secondary that continues to get crucial takeaways each week. Look for Holsey to play an important role in dictating how successful the Bulldogs move the ball this Saturday.

What They're Saying

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Auburn HC Gus Malzahn

Louisiana Tech

Head coach Skip Holtz on the mistakes from Louisiana Tech's loss to Northwestern State, per The Monroe News Star's Sean Isabella:

"

We were certainly our own worst enemy. Even as bad as all the mistakes were and as bad as we played, if we hold on to the ball in the fourth quarter, if we catch a punt, if we make a first down, you're not in that position. But we didn't and we weren't able to finish it.

"

Holtz on his offense's slow starts, per Isabella:

"

I think [quarterback Cody Sokol] is dialed in early in the game, he has not made a bad read yet. I don’t know if he needs to get hit a couple times to get competitive and make some of the throws he is making later in the game. Offensively it seems like it just takes us a bit to get going. Once we get rolling, Cody gets locked in and our receivers start making plays, it has been fun to watch.

"

Auburn

Offensive coordinator Rhett Lashlee on Louisiana Tech's defense:

"

Manny Diaz is a really well-respected, good coordinator. He’s been around a long time. We’ve played against him before. I’ve got a lot of respect for him. He has a very unique style that’s unique to him—and he’s been really good at it. I think you see in their first couple games against Louisiana-Lafayette and North Texas; they pretty shut those two teams down.

"

Defensive coordinator Ellis Johnson on Louisiana Tech's offensive scheme:

"

As I watched them, they're capable of being very multiple. They've got a good quarterback, and they can line up and run power football. They give you more variation from power to spread than anybody we've played.

"

Prediction

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Auburn QB Nick Marshall and LG Chad Slade

For an offense that wants to see improvement and a defense that wants to record another impressive performance, this game couldn't come at a better time for Auburn.

The changes that need to be made from the close Thursday night showdown against Kansas State will get addressed at practice this week, and the Tigers have a chance to put them in action against an opponent that shouldn't give them too much trouble.

Saturday's game will be important in recovering and fine-tuning before the tough combo of a home game against what will probably be an angry LSU team and a road trip to an increasingly dangerous Mississippi State team.

Expect to see a focused Auburn team implement those offensive corrections and set the tone defensively against Louisiana Tech. While the home attack will get back to full attack mode, the Bulldogs will probably scatter a couple of touchdowns in the first three quarters and get a garbage-time score against the Tigers' backups.

I see this homecoming game looking a lot like the San Jose State game as Auburn starts a new streak of winning against the spread.

Auburn 55, Louisiana Tech 21