After ending their AP Top 25 poll drought, the Auburn Tigers are smoothly sneaking their way into several other Top 25 rankings following a 2-0 start to the season.
Their latest ranking came in Greg McElroy's Top 25, where the analyst ranked Hugh Freeze's squad No. 16. Over the past couple of weeks, Auburn has worked heavily on improving its passing game and pass-rush since it struggled a bit against Baylor, and it showed against Ball State.
So, the surge in the rankings might come off as just Auburn's but here is where Baylor gets partial credit.
After losing to Auburn. Baylor beat SMU in a 48-45 in double overtime in Week 2. The win reflects well on Baylor's resume, sure, but it also strengthens the Tigers' profile. McElroy explained how.
"Their win against Baylor just got better," he saidon Always College Football." They spent some time this past week working on the passing game. And when Baylor beat SMU, guess what that did? That strengthened Auburn's resume."
Auburn's is again heavy favorites against their upcoming opponent, South Alabama. Although they have three players out due to injury, the Tigers are still expected to give their opponents a tough one.
Following their win over Ball State, Freeze mentioned two red-zone fixes his team needs.
"If you look at the stats, our rushing average was really good per yard and yards per game, but what was not good was the turnovers and our red zone scoring," Freeze said. "Whether it was field goals or whether it was the lack of touchdown production."