Auburn vs. Mississippi State: TV Info, Spread, Injury Updates, Game Time, More

Showdown No. 88 between No. 2 Auburn and No. 3 Mississippi State is the biggest ever—not to mention the SEC and inaugural College Football Playoff implications that make it one of the top games of the 2014 season. 

In the midst of the chaos that was last weekend, both the Tigers and Bulldogs took major bites out of brutal schedules in an SEC West that is shaping up in rather historic fashion.

Gus Malzahn's Tigers welcomed then-ranked No. 15 LSU to town and turned Les Miles and Co. back, 41-7. One week removed from also beating up on LSU, Dan Mullen and the Bulldogs made short work of a visiting and then-ranked No. 6 Texas A&M team.

These two have made a habit of going down to the wire in recent years even when the result was supposed to be lopsided, so expect nothing short of a classic now that the two programs stand on equal footing.

A Tale of Two Quarterbacks

Jim Lytle/Associated Press

Fans know about Nick Marshall, the man who helped to lead Auburn on that magical run one season ago.

By all accounts, the senior is a better passer than ever with 755 yards and eight touchdowns to one interception along with 392 yards and four scores on the ground. In that thumping of LSU, 207 passing yards and two scores, as well as another 119 yards and two more scores inserted Marshall into the Heisman Trophy conversation.

That conversation being a place Mississippi State quarterback Dak Prescott is getting quite familiar with.

Prescott actually reminds many of a former Auburn quarterback by the name of Cam Newton, but a comparison to Tim Tebow does not hurt, either. That may sound like legendary collegiate company, but Prescott has the numbers to back it up:

OPP	CMP	ATT	YDS	CMP%	TD	INT	RUSH ATT	YDS	AVG	TD
Southern Miss	18	26	284	69.2	4	1	8	23	2.9	0
UAB	12	25	211	48.0	4	1	18	111	6.2	1
@South Alabama	13	21	201	61.9	1	0	14	139	9.9	1
@LSU	15	24	268	62.5	2	0	22	105	4.8	1
Texas A&M	19	25	259	76.0	2	0	23	77	3.3	3

Auburn players such as cornerback Jonathon Mincy understand the unique challenge that Prescott poses.

"This will be the first quarterback in a while with that size and caliber," he said, per The Associated Press (via ESPN.com).

Prescott may be the lesser known of the two, but he has plenty of experience under his belt and clearly does not shrink in the spotlight. He is easily the best player under center the No. 9 overall defense has encountered to date—on the road, at that.

Fast out the Gates

Gerald Herbert/Associated Press

Auburn has been a notoriously slow starter this year. 

Mississippi State, not so much.

Prescott led the Bulldogs to a 17-3 halftime advantage against LSU, a margin which the Tigers would never recover from before the clock hit all zeroes. It was the same story in more impressive fashion against the Aggies, as the Bulldogs jumped out to a 28-10 advantage at the break and never looked back.

The lone exception for Auburn, of course, is that 31-point explosion against LSU before the break.

Still, this is dangerous territory for a team encountering its toughest test to date and a Bulldogs defense that quietly ranks in the top 25. While the Bulldogs are prone to giving up the big pass play, the last thing the Tigers want to do on the road is fall behind early and allow Prescott and back Josh Robinson (592 yards and six scores on a 7.5 yards-per-carry average) to pound out the clock and keep their offense off the field.

It is not unreasonable to think that the first team to score will go on to win. Then again, that would not be very entertaining, would it?

When: Saturday, October 11, 3:30 p.m. ET

Where: Davis Wade Stadium at Scott Field, Starkville, Mississippi

Television: CBS

Betting Lines (via Odds Shark):

• Over/Under: 63

• Spread: Auburn (-3)

Team Injury Reports

Player	Pos.	Date	Details	Status	Injury
Gage Batten	FB	08/31/2014	is out indefinitely	Out	knee
Jordan Diamond	G	09/26/2014	will miss the remainder of the season	Out	undisclosed
Raashed Kennion	DE	10/06/2014	is questionable for Saturday's game against Mississippi State	Questionable	ankle
Alex Kozan	G	08/02/2014	will miss the entire season	Out	back
Carl Lawson	DE	07/15/2014	is out indefinitely	Out	knee
Patrick Miller	T	10/05/2014	is questionable for Saturday's game against Mississippi State	Questionable	knee
Jermaine Whitehead	S	09/18/2014	is suspended indefinitely	Suspended	disciplinary
Patrick Young	FB	08/31/2014	is expected to miss the entire season	Out	knee

Player	Pos.	Date	Details	Status	Injury
Devon Bell	P	10/05/2014	is questionable for Saturday's game against Auburn	Questionable	groin
Shelby Christy	WR	08/31/2014	will miss the entire season	Out	knee
Dillon Day	C	10/05/2014	is probable for Saturday's game against Auburn	Probable	one-game suspension served
Cedric Jiles	CB	08/15/2014	is out indefinitely	Out	hamstring
Jameon Lewis	WR	10/05/2014	is questionable for Saturday's game against Auburn	Questionable	leg
Damien Robinson	T	08/19/2014	will miss the entire season	Out	knee

Injury reports per The Sports Network, via USA Today.

Prediction

An SEC West power is going to fall Saturday, and a superb quarterback's Heisman hopes will be seriously dashed in the process.

Mississippi State feels quite new to contests of this magnitude, so while home-field advantage helps, it is difficult to go against a more experienced roster.

This is especially the case when the defense is one of the best in the nation yet again, Marshall has done nothing short of improve under center and the offensive genius of Malzahn remains at the helm of a potent attack.

The Bulldogs have had a magical run to date, but a speed bump awaits when Prescott and Co. are asked to score more points than Malzahn against an elite defense.

Prediction: Auburn 40, Mississippi State 34

Statistics and info courtesy of ESPN unless otherwise specified.