AUBURN | Auburn won’t face many passing offenses as talented as No. 19 Missouri with senior quarterback Brady Cook and a talented group of receivers led by All-American Luther Burden III and senior Theo Wease Jr.
They’ll be going against a secondary that is expected to start one true freshman in cornerback Jay Crawford, and give significant snaps to two more in Kaleb Harris and Kensley Louidor-Faustin.
“We’ve been tested, for sure, but I think this would be the biggest one so far. We’re so young back there,” said AU coach Hugh Freeze. “Luther Burden is arguably the best in the league, and he’s not the only one they have. They’re all very, very talented.
“And then you add to it the play of Cook and his maturity and consistency, and Eli (Drinkwitz) and his staff to a very good job offensively. They’re going to make you execute very, very well to get off the field on defense. Our young guys will definitely be tested.”
In 40 career games, Cook has completed 66 percent of his passes for 7,824 yards and 45 touchdowns. He has also rushed for 1,110 yard and 19 more touchdowns.
In 32 games, Burden has caught 162 passes for 1,985 yards and 19 touchdowns. The junior has also rushed for 209 yards and four touchdowns on 30 carries. In 19 games, Wease has 80 receptions for 1,089 yards and seven touchdowns.
Missouri also has two running backs in Nate Noel and Marcus Carroll, who have combined for 137 carries for 752 yards and seven touchdowns.
“They have a really complete offense and Brady Cook is at the helm of that,” said linebacker Eugene Asante. “He’s certainly somebody that is super dynamic in getting the ball to his playmakers. On top of that, he has the capability of running. Just being able to limit him in any way possible and having tight coverage on the back end. Then getting in situations where we can go pressure the quarterback and get him off the spot to limit him.
“We understand what Luther Burden is. He’s a top draft pick. We understand what he brings to the game as a dynamic playmaker. Just challenging the corners all week to understand that this is elite competition going against him.”
Crawford has started the last two games at cornerback since Champ Anthony went down with a season-ending injury in the Arkansas game.
He’s already second on the team with three pass breakups.
“We are kind of throwing Jay Crawford in the fire, but we’re always emphasizing that he’s not a freshman anymore,” said Asante. “We’re like ‘Bro, you’re built for it.’ He’s certainly somebody that came into college ready to play. He doesn’t carry himself as a freshman.
“I know he’s going to have a great game."
Kickoff at Memorial Stadium is scheduled for 11 a.m. CT on ESPN.
