AUBURN | If there’s one main point Auburn’s coaches have driven into their players during practices this week it’s been about playing physical.

The 12th-ranked Tigers are set to take on No. 13 Texas A&M Saturday in a game that will have major implications in the SEC West race.

“That’s what coach preached all last week and keeps preaching: the most physical team wins,” said defensive lineman Colby Wooden. “For us, we just have to do, not do nothing different, just keep playing physical, keep staying in our gaps, playing our responsibilities, you know, seeing our keys, read, react.”

Auburn comes into the game 6-2 overall and 3-1 in the conference, a half-game behind Alabama (7-1, 4-1) for first place in the West. The Aggies are 5-2 overall and 3-2 in the conference but gave the Tide their only loss Oct. 9.

Texas A&M has won three consecutive games and is coming off its bye week.

“I think offensively they're very good at scheming,” said Auburn coach Bryan Harsin. “Coach (Jimbo) Fisher does a great job of putting together a game plan, so you've got to be ready for whatever it is to try and attack you on that particular week. And they’re talented. Their quarterback can throw it. He's a very good thrower. Their two tailbacks are explosive. Their tight end, their receiver, (Ainias) Smith, all are very good players. They win their 1-on-1 matchups quite often, so you've got to be prepared for that and how to slow them down.

“Defensively, their defensive line is very good. They’re physical. I think they’re very talented. They play hard, and they’re, statistically, very good defensively, and they have been.”

The Tigers are on a bit of a roll themselves with consecutive wins at No. 17 Arkansas and last week over No. 10 Ole Miss. The chance to knock off another highly-ranked opponent and take another step in setting up an epic Iron Bowl showdown comes in College Station.

“Well, you're gonna see that they're a physical bunch,” said Auburn tight end Tyler Fromm. “They're fast. You're just gonna see them play hard. You can expect a game where, obviously, the most physical team is gonna win. We're gonna go over there and try to bring it. We're gonna expect a good bunch to play hard against us.”

Kickoff is scheduled for 2:30 p.m. CT on CBS.