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Auburn head coach Gus Malzahn discussed his football team and its upcoming game with Ole Miss during his weekly press conference on Tuesday.
The Tigers (4-3) host the 19th-ranked Rebels (6-2) at noon Eastern time, with the game being shown on ESPN.
Malzahn said the team is glad to be back at Jordan-Hare Stadium after spending the last two Saturdays on the road.
Auburn will be trying to bounce back from last week’s 54-46 quadruple overtime loss at Arkansas. Malzahn said the Tigers have put the loss behind them, and are now focused on this week’s game.
Gus: Said loss from Arkansas is now behind them. “We have to get better.” https://t.co/favylVLBPq
— Dana Sulonen (@DanaSulonen) October 27, 2015
Malzahn is impressed with Ole Miss, particularly after the Rebels beat Texas A&M 23-3 last Saturday.
“We’re playing a very good Ole Miss team. You can tell they’re playing very good football, with the game they played last Saturday,” Malzahn said. “I thought they played good in all three phases, and beat a very good Texas A&M team. Defensively, they’re very disruptive. They’re very talented up front. They do a lot of different things, and they play attacking style. They’re also very good at the back end with their coverage skills. Offensively, they’ve got wideouts that are long and fast, that are tough in one-on-one situations. … They’ve got a dual-threat quarterback (Chad Kelly). So they present a lot of challenges. We understand we have to play well to win this game.”
Auburn’s coach said Ole Miss wide receiver Laquon Treadwell is one of the best players in college football.
Malzahn on Laquon Treadwell: He’s one of the better players in the entire country. He’s a force, there’s no doubt. ¶ — John Zenor (@jzenor) October 27, 2015
Malzahn announced that defensive end Carl Lawson would return to practice on Tuesday. Lawson has been out since suffering a hip injury in the Tigers’ season opener against Louisville. Malzahn said his return will give the defense a lift, from a leadership standpoint if nothing else. But the Tigers are not sure how much Lawson will be able to play on Saturday.
Malzahn says Lawson is excited about being back “he’s a competitor and has gone through a lot” — Jason Caldwell (@ITATJason) October 27, 2015
Running back Roc Thomas is also expected to return this week from injury.
Auburn’s coach praised quarterback Sean White’s ball security, saying that you can see he understands the progressions in the passing game, and that he’s a tough player. Malzahn said he is not concerned that White hasn’t thrown a touchdown pass in his four starts, saying they will eventually come.
Malzahn says Sean White was an encourager during Saturday’s game when Auburn wide receivers were having problems with drops
— Jason Caldwell (@ITATJason) October 27, 2015
Malzahn and White both spoke highly of senior wide receiver Ricardo Louis, who had a key drop in last week’s game. The Tigers’ coach pointed out that Louis has also made some big catches for his team.
Gus on Ricardo Louis: “He’s extremely hard on himself. He was down…but he’s going to make a lot of plays for us” https://t.co/jNGALWJxbl
— Tom Green (@AUBlog) October 27, 2015
