It’s been a rocky season for Auburn. From the big win over then-No. 6 Washington in the opener to suffering a heartbreaking 1-point loss at home to LSU two weeks later, the Tigers have been up and down with several highs and lows.

Winning twice before losing twice, then winning twice again before dropping a game to No. 5 Georgia on Saturday, Auburn’s inconsistencies have led to more speculation about Gus Malzahn’s ability and future on The Plains. Even Malzahn, apparently, is wondering.

Through it all, the Tigers are bowl eligible. Here are five observations that have shaped this season’s 6-4 mark.

1. 1,000-yard rusher streak will likely end

Coming into the season, Auburn was one of only two schools to have at least one 1,000-yard rusher per season from 2009-17. Boise State is the other. But it appears as though that streak will end for a Tigers team that never got its running game going. Auburn ranks 13th in the SEC averaging 149.9 rushing yards per game. Only Tennessee (136.4) averages less.

Problems in the offensive line and injuries have hampered freshman RB JaTarvious Whitlow in his quest to add his name to the record book. Through 10 games, Whitlow has rushed for 668 yards. That means he would need 332 yards over the final three games of the season (bowl game included), or an average of 111 per game. So far, Whitlow is averaging 66.8 yards per game.

2. Stidham to Davis best ever

The combination of QB Jarrett Stidham and WR Ryan Davis is the most prolific in Auburn football history. The two have teamed up for 141 completions, breaking the mark of 140 set by Pat Sullivan and Terry Beasley (1969-71).

In doing so, Davis is also Auburn’s career receiving leader with 165 receptions, passing Courtney Taylor’s old mark of 153 (2003-06). Davis hauled in a career-high 13 passes on Saturday, the most by an Auburn receiver under current head coach Gus Malzahn.

Davis has caught a pass in 24 consecutive game, the most since Ricardo Louis put together a 24-game streak between 2013-15.

3. Stidham has regressed

After throwing for 3,000 yards last season, the expectations were through the roof for the Auburn quarterback heading into the 2018 season. There was talk of a Heisman run and first-round draft pick. Perhaps those expectations were a bit overblown, but Stidham hasn’t performed up to the standards he set in 2017.

His quarterback rating through 10 games this season is well below that of last year. In 2017 Stidham ranked fourth in the SEC with a 150.99 rating. It has dipped to 128.91, 10th among SEC quarterbacks.

Still, Stidham has thrown for an enormous number of yards in the short time he’s been at Auburn. He ranks sixth among Auburn passing leaders with 5,274 yards and fifth in completions (430), passing Dameyune Craig’s 427 (1994-97) on Saturday.

The most glaring difference between this year and last is in completion percentage. Stidham led the SEC in 2017, completing 66.5 percent of his passes (246-for-370). But this season, his accuracy has slumped to 61.3 percent (184-for-300) and ranks eighth in the conference. He threw 18 touchdown passes last season to just 10 so far this year. His total (28) moved him into the top-10 all-time on Auburn’s career list. He has a chance to catch Cam Newton (30), Patrick Nix (31) and Nick Marshall (34). Craig is fifth with 39.

4. There’s no quit in this team

Despite the roller-coaster ride of a season, Auburn has not given up. That was no more evident than against Texas A&M, when the Tigers trailed by 10 points with time winding down in the fourth quarter and the Aggies driving for a game-clinching score.

Instead of folding, Auburn came up with a key turnover and proceeded to drive for consecutive touchdowns and a 28-24 victory.

They did the same in Saturday’s game with Georgia, coming up with a key turnover, trailing by 10 points in the second half when the Bulldogs looked like they’d go in for the game-breaking score. Only this time they didn’t turn that interception into points. But the effort was still there as it has been all season.

5. Defense the same

The Auburn defense has played well enough to compete with anyone on its schedule, as it did last season. The stats are very similar. Auburn has been exceptionally stingy allowing only six rushing touchdowns through 10 games and have held six opponents without a rushing touchdown.

Senior LB Deshaun Davis has been a model of consistency, leading the team with 95 tackles. Nick Coe, named SEC defensive lineman of the week three times this season, has also played a key role with at least 0.5 tackles for loss in eight of 10 games this season to go along with a total of 7.0 sacks.