There’s no good way for Auburn to follow up a 20-13 loss to Georgia. It was a game that could have gone either way, but much like a few other occasions (Arkansas, Mississippi State and Ole Miss), it ended up as a setback.

If there ever was an opponent tailor-made for taking out a season’s worth of offensive frustration, it’s Idaho (4 p.m. ET, SECN).

The Vandals (3-7, 2-5 Sun Belt) are 122nd nationally (out of 128) in scoring defense, allowing almost 42 points per game. Their 127th against the run, giving up a whopping 279 yards per contest.

Idaho has lost three straight and owns only two wins against FBS competition this season. The Vandals are now 5-28 under Paul Petrino (Bobby’s younger brother), and the natives in Moscow are becoming a bit restless.

Suddenly, that 32.5-point spread looks a bit light.

Auburn coach Gus Malzahn is trying to keep his squad focused on this week and not looking ahead to the Iron Bowl. But even he found the humor in a fan’s suggestion on his radio show that Auburn “run the ball 60 times” this week.

“That sounds like a good plan right there to me,” Malzahn said.

I suspect we will get a healthy dose of the running game in this contest, but Malzahn will want to work the kinks out of his passing game with some combination of Jeremy Johnson and Sean White as well.

With Alabama also involved in a game in which it will be heavily favored (Charleston Southern), Auburn will try to get deep into its roster to keep its starters fresh for next week’s rivalry game.

But if it happens to score a bunch of points against a suspect Vandals defense, build a little confidence and take those good feelings through to next week — Auburn would take that, too.

IDAHO VANDALS CLOSER LOOK

Top player, offense: Elijhaa Penny, Sr. RB — If a back has 1,002 yards through 10 games on a bad team, he must be pretty good. He was held in check by Appalachian State last week, but in the three games before that, he tallied 511 yards and 4 TDs. He’s also the team’s 5th-leading receiver with 25 catches.

Top player, defense: Broc Westlake, Sr. LB — He’s the team’s leading tackler with 71, including 12 in last week’s 47-20 loss. It was the second time this season the Sparks, Nev., native had a dozen tackles (Arkansas State).

Top player, special teams: Austin Rehkow, Jr. P/K — Rehkow is one of the nation’s best in both punting and place kicking. As a punter, he ranks 5th nationally with a 46-yard average. While place kicking, he’s made 20 of his 23 field goal tries and 30 of his 31 extra points (one was blocked against Southern Cal).