As the buzzards continue to circle above head coach Bryan Harsin’s office, what kind of effort can we expect from the Tigers on Saturday?

Supreme, comes to mind. It’s LSU week. It’s the Tiger Bowl.

It’s a heated rivalry that dates all the way back to 1901, a game Auburn won, 28-0, in Baton Rouge. It’s 1 of 24 victories the Tigers have enjoyed in this series, one that has been played annually since 1992. Auburn is 24-31-1 all-time against LSU, but 13-8 against the Bayou Bengals at Jordan-Hare Stadium, where the teams will reconvene on Saturday for a 6 p.m. CT kickoff.

Auburn has won the past 2 meetings in a largely overlooked rivalry, at least nationally. But when these  teams get together, the intensity level is ratcheted up as high as it gets, even to the point of registering on the Richter scale.

In LSU’s national championship season of 2019, considered by more than a few as the greatest team in college football history, it was Auburn that gave them their toughest game. Ranked No. 2 at the time, LSU survived a 23-20 decision over No. 9 Auburn in Baton Rouge.

During Auburn’s 2010 run to the national championship, it was Cam Newton who dashed for a long touchdown run, and the No. 4 Tigers needed a late 4th-quarter TD run to break a 17-17 tie and beat No. 6 LSU, 24-17.

When these teams get together, regardless of the circumstances — imminent coaching change, national championship journeys, buildings burning in the background — this game always brings the passion that makes college football the great sport that it is.

Don’t expect anything less on Saturday. Despite the fact that LSU is an 8-point favorite, the teams have split right down the middle the last 6 meetings, with all but 1 ending in a 1-score game.

It’s one of those games where coaches have absolutely no need to fire up their troops, on either side. LSU 1st-year head coach Brian Kelly will get his 1st experience of SEC play on the road. He has his Tigers headed to Auburn with an identical 3-1, 1-0 record.

Isn’t perception interesting? Here we have Harsin with a 3-1, 1-0 mark through 4 games, and the media has him one foot out the door. Meanwhile, Kelly has the same 3-1, 1-0 record, and he’s still enjoying honeymoon status back in Baton Rouge.

Expectations are the difference. A win on Saturday will ease at least some of the pressure Harsin must feel from all the pushing toward the exit door. A loss, however, and he may not be the guy taking the Tigers to Athens the following week.

While the focus remains on Harsin’s future at Auburn, you can be sure the players will be lathered up and ready to tangle on The Plains.

What might we expect from Auburn?

Related: LSU is an 8-point favorite as of writing across the major sportsbooks. Sports betting is live in Louisiana.

For starters, we can expect the Tigers to put points on the board. Auburn has scored in 121 consecutive games, the 2nd-longest streak in school history. We can expect the defense to come out fired up. Auburn’s defense has allowed just 25 1st-quarter touchdowns in the past 70 games.

We can expect Robby Ashford to continue to develop as a dual threat under center after scoring his 1st career touchdown, an 11-yard run in the 1st quarter last week against Missouri.

We can definitely expect to see Tank Bigsby carry the weight of the offense on his shoulders. Now with 2,214 career rushing yards and 19 touchdowns, Bigsby passed Kenny Irons (2,186) into 16th place on the Auburn all-time rushing list and takes aim on Cameron Artis-Payne (2,218).

We could also expect that tight end John Samuel Shenker could have another record-setting game against LSU. It was last year, in Baton Rouge, that Shenker set the Auburn all-time single-season record for receiving yards by a tight end. He finished the 2021 campaign with 413 yards, and he has his sights set on another record.

Shenker needs 4 catches on Saturday to become Auburn’s all-time career receptions leader for tight ends. It would give him 60 and surpass the mark set by the late, great Philip Lutzenkirchen (2009-12), who holds the mark with 59.

One thing is certain — for 60 minutes on Saturday, we can forget about all the outside noise, the clutter, and enjoy the 2022 version of this long and hotly-contested rivalry.