FACTS & STATS: Site: Jordan-Hare Stadium (87,451) -- Auburn, Alabama. Television: ESPN2. Home Record: West Virginia 2-0, Auburn 2-0. Away Record: West Virginia 0-0, Auburn 0-0. Neutral Record: West Virginia 0-0, Auburn 0-0. Conference Record: West Virginia 0-0, Auburn 1-0. Series Record: West Virginia leads, 1-0.
GAME NOTES: The West Virginia Mountaineers and Auburn Tigers are set to collide in what figures to be a highly competitive and entertaining non- conference affair.
West Virginia has claimed back-to-back home wins to open the season. After a closer-than-expected 33-20 victory over Liberty to kick off the campaign, the Mountaineers knocked off a solid East Carolina team last weekend by a 35-20 final. Auburn appears to be the toughest test to date for Bill Stewart's WVU club, which hopes to make a run at the Big East Conference crown.
When Auburn hired Gene Chizik as its head coach after last season concluded, many were critical of the decision to say the least. Through two games, it appears that Chizik has the program headed in the right direction, as the Tigers followed a 37-13 non-league win over Louisiana Tech with 49-24 trouncing of Mississippi State in the SEC opener. This weekend's bout is the third of four consecutive home games to open the season for Auburn, which has eight scheduled home tilts in 2009.
West Virginia and Auburn met for the first time last season, and the Mountaineers won that clash by a 34-17 final in Morgantown.
The West Virginia offense has been consistent through the first two weeks of the season scoring 33 and 35 points, respectively. The Mountaineers are racking up 473.5 total ypg, and the biggest surprise is that the passing game, and not the annually-feared ground attack, has done the majority of the damage. Quarterback Jarrett Brown waited patiently behind Pat White for his chance to lead West Virginia, and now that White has taken his game to the NFL, Brown has shown in two games that he is just as capable of leading the program to victories. He has completed 75.4 percent of his passes for 577 yards and four touchdowns with only one interceptions. Jock Sanders has clearly been the club's top receiver, as he has 17 grabs for 194 yards. Noel Devine, the team's explosive tailback, has rushed for 192 yards and two touchdowns while averaging 5.3 yards per carry. Brown was sensational in the victory over East Carolina last time out, as he connected on 24-of-31 passes for 334 yards and four touchdowns. On a down note, four turnovers were committed by WVU, and similar errors this weekend will undoubtedly lead to defeat.
Opponents are scoring 20.0 ppg against West Virginia, which is yielding 268.0 total ypg. Brandon Hogan currently paces the Mountaineers with 17 tackles, and Julian Miller has three TFLs to his credit, including 2.5 sacks. As for Ovid Goulbourne, two of his nine tackles have been sacks. Stopping the run has been an obvious strength for the WVU defense, as it is holding foes to 75.5 ypg and 2.8 yards per attempt. The pass defense has two interceptions in as many games while allowing a pair of passing scores. Last week, all 20 of East Carolina's points were scored during a six-minute span at the beginning of the second half. The defense limited the Pirates to 237 total yards and racked up four sacks. Coach Stewart was thrilled with the blitzing defense, but doing the same against Auburn could be dangerous considering the Tigers' explosive running game.
In the game against Louisiana Tech, Auburn tailbacks Onterio McCalebb and Ben Tate both rushed for 100 yards. Call it a trend now, as the duo did it again in the SEC-opening victory over Mississippi State last weekend. Tate carried the ball 20 times for a career-high 157 yards and a touchdown, while McCalebb was able to post 114 yards on just 16 attempts with a score. Surprisingly, they are the first Auburn running backs to top the 100-yard rushing mark in back-to-back games, a feat that wasn't even accomplished by Ronnie Brown and Carnell Williams during their time with the program. As for quarterback Kodi Burns, he had three rushing scores and a passing touchdown on his only throw of the game against the Bulldogs. Chris Todd is the team's starting quarterback, and he connected on 10-of-23 passes for 186 yards. Darvin Adams led the receivers with five catches for 116 yards.
The Auburn defense permitted only 297 total yards to Mississippi State last weekend, and two interceptions proved to be key to the lopsided victory. Sure, the Tigers failed to record a fumble recovery and posted only one sack, but the overall effort of the defense was quite strong. The Tigers allowed just 5- of-14 third down conversion attempts to be successful, and forced the Bulldogs to take many costly penalties. Both Zac Etheridge and Josh Bynes had eight tackles for Auburn. Craig Stevens, who had seven stops, made two tackles behind the line of scrimmage. In the opener against Louisiana Tech, Etheridge, Steven and Bynes all had eight tackles, and Stevens posted 1.5 TFLs.
Expect this game to be decided in the fourth quarter, as West Virginia and Auburn appear to be evenly matched. Give the home team the nod, as the relentless rushing attack of the Tigers will eventually wear down the Mountaineers.
Sports Network Predicted Outcome: Auburn 27, West Virginia 20
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