Although the LSU Tigers have not had a great season, they still have plenty of fight in them. Just ask Florida. One week after losing to Troy at home, LSU went into Gainesville and knocked off Florida in a slugfest that gave head coach Ed Orgeron some job security. Orgeron still has a long way to go in order to be off the hot seat, but another win this week would go a long way for him. Beating the Auburn Tigers is a tough task though. Auburn has been humming in recent weeks and will be ready for LSU’s defense.
This matchup in Week 7 of the regular season will take place on Saturday, October 14, 2017,
at 3:30 p.m. ET at Tiger Stadium. This game will be broadcast on CBS.
College Football Opening Odds at BookMaker.eu
Auburn -6.5
LSU +6.5
Odds Analysis
Auburn is just 2-4 ATS, but three of their losses against the number have come by two points or less. The Tigers barely failed to cover against Georgia Southern, Clemson, and Ole Miss, but blew out their opponents in their two wins. They had no problem dispatching of either Missouri or Mississippi State, thanks to great efforts on both sides of the ball. This team is 3-0 in SEC play to date, with every win coming by at least three touchdowns.
LSU opened as an underdog against Florida last week, but bettors jumped on the Bayou Bengals late and made them the favorite by kickoff. That led to LSU failing to cover the closing line, but if you bet on them at any other point during the week, you were a winner. Still, this team has failed to cover in five straight weeks now.
Last Meeting
When these teams met last year, little did anyone know it was to be the final time we saw Les Miles patrolling the sidelines for LSU. Auburn and LSU were neck and neck the entire way in a close game.
LSU entered the fourth quarter with a 13-12 lead, but two Auburn field goals gave the home team the lead late in the fourth. That’s when the craziness started. LSU slowly drove down the field and appeared to score the game winning touchdown when Danny Etling found D.J. Shark in the back corner of the end zone as time ran out. However, it turned out that time had expired before LSU got the snap off and Auburn was awarded the victory.
The loss was the last straw for LSU’s administration. They had nearly fired Miles the previous year and losing because of poor clock management yet again was something they could not tolerate. Miles was fired the day after the game, and Orgeron was named the new coach.
Player to Watch
Jarrett Stidham has really come on in recent weeks as the point man for this offense. Stidham struggled in his first two games with Auburn, trying to find his footing under Gus Malzahn’s offense. It didn’t help matters that his offensive line wasn’t able to protect him either, as he was sacked 11 times in the loss to Clemson.
He has looked great over these past four games. Stidham has completed 79.1 percent of his passes in Auburn routs and has thrown for over 1,000 yards in that span. Malzahn has been pleased with his performance, and he hasn’t turned the ball over either, throwing just two interceptions. This will be his second real test of the season, as Clemson is far and away the best defense he has faced.
Free ATS Pick
Although you would think the under is a great bet in this game, three of the last four meetings between these two teams have gone over the total and each of those games were decided by 14 or more points.
That trend will continue here. Auburn looks much better than LSU does at this point and will be able to exploit LSU’s defense in a big way. Don’t be surprised to see Auburn win handily.
College Football Odds: Auburn 34, LSU 20
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