Oklahoma Football: Ten Things to Know About the Auburn Tigers
By Chip Rouse
Oklahoma football history spans 122 years and 1,245 games. Only one of those games was contested against the Auburn Tigers. On Jan. 2 in the Sugar Bowl in New Orleans will be just the second meeting ever between these national football powers.
The one previous meeting between the Sooners and the Tigers, out of the SEC (Southeastern Conference), ironically took place in the Sugar Bowl 45 years ago.
At that time, the New Year’s Day game was played at Tulane Stadium. Four years later, it would move to its current location, now named the Mercedes-Benz Superdome.
Oklahoma, behind the late Jack Mildren and sensational running back Greg Pruitt, rolled over the Tigers and their Heisman Trophy-winning quarterback, Pat Sullivan, in the 1972 Sugar Bowl, 40-22.
That was then and this is now, but one thing remains constant: Oklahoma and Auburn are two of the best teams in college football.
Sooner fans are quite familiar with the seventh-ranked Sooners and their 10-2 football season that also produced a 10th Big 12 championship. But little, if anything, may be know about their opponent in this season’s Sugar Bowl matchup.
Don’t fret, though. Here are 10 things to help familiarize OU fans with the Auburn Tigers:
Auburn finished the 2016 regular season with an 8-4 record, 5-3 in the SEC, and as the second-highest SEC team in the final College Football Playoff rankings (No. 14).
The SEC has had a longtime agreement with the Sugar Bowl. Despite this, Oklahoma has actually made more Sugar Bowl appearances than Auburn. This year will be the eighth time Oklahoma has been to the Sugar Bowl; Auburn is making its sixth appearance all-time.
Auburn’s rushing attack is led by sophomore Kamryn Pettway, who averaged 124.8 yards per game in the regular season and 6.1 yards per carry. He had six 100-yard games this season. Kerryon Johnson averaged 78 rushing yards per game and totaled 862 yards on the ground in 2016.
The Auburn defense allowed 348.4 yards per game this season and ranked 20th in the country. That would rank first in the Big 12.
The Tigers don’t go to the air that often on offense, but when they do, White’s primary targets are Tony Stevens Ryan Davis, who combined for 54 catches and four receiving TDs this season.
Auburn’s field-goal kicker, Daniel Carlson, has one of the best kicking percentages in the country (15th best at 87 percent). He has been successful in 26 of 30 attempts and has made four of seven from greater than 50 yards.
The explosive Oklahoma offense has averaged 44.7 points per game. The Auburn “D” has yielded just 15.6 points per game this season. Something has got to give here.
Oklahoma has been highly efficient in the Red Zone on offense this season. The Sooners have scored on 87 percent of their trips inside the Red Zone, fifth best in the nation in 2016. Auburn’s Red Zone defense, by comparison, is fourth best among FBS teams this season.