Ad Disclosure
Auburn defensive coach Greg Brown discusses facing his former team, Missouri, Saturday
By Cody McClure
Published:
Auburn defensive backs coach Greg Brown will go up against his former team, Missouri, on the road Saturday when the 15th-ranked traveling Tigers battle the unranked Tigers.
Brown occasionally thinks about his former team, still, according to a report from AL.com.
“They’re a very formidable force to be reckoned with,” Brown said last month. “Yeah, I think about Missouri.”
Mizzou ranked 86th in the country in pass defense when Brown was the defensive backs coach in Columbia, allowing nearly 247 yards per game through the air. Still, Missouri head coach Barry Odom had positive things to say about Brown.
“I’ve got great respect for him and the things he’s done over his career,” Odom said. “He’s very, very knowledgeable. He’s a great coach in the meeting room, but that translates also over to the field. He’s a really, really good teacher, a great motivator, and there’s not really anything you can throw at him or talk to him about that he hasn’t seen over his career. He’s been so many places in his coaching career. I’ve got a lot of respect for him.”
Brown realizes going up against his former team on Saturday will be a challenge for Auburn.
“They do a great job. Barry Odom does a great job with that team,” Brown said. “Josh Heupel, the offensive coordinator, he’s a tremendous offensive coach, offensive mind. They have 10 of 11 starters back on offense. They’ve got some ability.
“Their quarterback, Drew Lock, has a cannon for an arm,” Brown added. “He can throw the ball … They have top-flight receivers, they have some big tall guys that can run out there and they stretch the field in a hurry.”
Brown noted Mizzou’s skilled weapons on offense will be difficult to contain.
“I’ll leave (predictions) to the prognosticators,” he said. “All I know is I saw those guys, Missouri’s offense, last year up close and personal run 117 plays against a team (Tennessee) for 700-plus yards and X-number of points, and 10 out of 11 of those guys are back. They’re got some skill out there.”
Kickoff is set for 7:30 p.m. ET on ESPNU.
Cody McClure is an SEC Football Writer for Saturday Down South. He lives in Knoxville, Tennessee, where he also co-hosts a midday sports radio show for FOX Sports. Cody previously worked for Athlon Sports.
