The Auburn Tigers received some good news ahead of their New Year’s Day matchup with UCF.

During Wednesday’s press conference, head coach Gus Malzahn announced that star RB Kerryon Johnson looked good in practice and will play in the Peach Bowl. Johnson, who captured the 2017 SEC Offensive Player of the Year award, has been the driving force of the Tigers offense this year.

Johnson has eight 100-yard games this season and 17 rushing TDs while helping lead Auburn to the SEC Championship. Unfortunately, Johnson was hampered in that game by a shoulder injury he sustained in a win over Alabama. He managed just 44 yards rushing against Georgia and was clearly ineffective.

It will be interesting to see how healthy Johnson is when playing in the bowl game, but Malzahn’s comments are definitely a good sign. The Tigers will likely need a strong performance from Johnson and QB Jarrett Stidham to take down the Knights.

Josh Vitale shared Malzahn’s comments on Twitter:

Kickoff for the Peach Bowl is set for 12:30 pm EST New Year’s Day on ESPN.