The electric Week 1 thrill of the college football season kick-starting is finally setting in the Plains as Auburn prepares to head to Waco to open its season against the Baylor Bears this Saturday.
Elevating this buzz is head coach Hugh Freeze and Dave Aranda sharing mutual respect for each other's programs, while maintaining the competitive edge.
"Obviously, I've known Dave for years. We've gone against each other, and I've gone against guys that have come up under him and have coached with some. It's all about the simulated pressures. That certainly hasn't changed," Freeze said in his press conference.
"They do a great job disguising it and not knowing exactly who it is that's going to be the pressure guy. But he hasn't changed that. I know he took over play-calling last year. I assume he is this year — don't know that. But I know that you'll see simulated pressures quite frequently, most every play," Freeze added, sharing Auburn's strategy for Saturday.
Aranda is the master of disguising their pressure guy. However, it is not something Freeze hasn't competed against.
Their SEC contender, Oklahoma's head coach, Brent Venables, is also famous for confusing offenses pre-snap and getting a pass rusher to the quarterback. Auburn faced them off last season, and although they lost in the 27-21 game, Freeze knows the drill and possibly has a plan to contain it.
Aranda, on the other hand, sneakily warned off Auburn in his game week press conference.
"A lot of respect for Auburn and Coach Freeze. I know a lot of the coaches there, and know a lot of those players. A lot of respect for them and what they can do, and what they're capable of. I really want them to achieve all of that — just not here in this first game," Aranda said.
More than just warnings, Aranda also shared how he plans to contain the Tigers' QB Jackson Arnold.
"A lot of respect for this QB that they have. We’ve watched a lot of film of him, whether it was at OU or even high school. He’s got a big arm, so he’s a big shot guy. I just think being aggressive and all these things are things that you want to do. But you gotta be sound. You gotta keep the quarterback contained.”
Looks like both Freeze and Aranda have their plan set. The crowd will be excited to see whose plan works out the best to lead them to a victory.