AUBURN | It might be better to describe Auburn’s upcoming bye week as a work week.

The Tigers head into the break 2-4 overall and 0-3 in the SEC after Saturday’s 31-13 loss at No. 5 Georgia.

“When times like this happen, you look inward. You look inwards at your team,” said senior linebacker Dorian Mausi Jr. “You look in on everybody and just demand more out of everybody, so it’s not really a one-person thing.

“It’s an everybody thing. So just demand more out of the person next to you and the results will come.”

Errors have plagued Auburn throughout the first half of the season including 15 turnovers in their first three losses. AU played a clean game in that respect against UGA with no turnovers, but for the first time this season, Hugh Freeze questioned AU’s effort.

“I expect more fight than what we saw for the 60 minutes today,” said Freeze. “I told them that in the locker room, and I mean it. It's my job to get that out of them, and I'm gonna die trying.”

Auburn also had its share of mistakes that continue to hold the team back including being 4 of 12 on third down and 1 of 3 on fourth down including a critical 4-yard loss on a 4th and 1 at AU’s 44-yard line to start the fourth quarter.

AU’s defense has just four takeaways this season, which ranks 109th nationally.

“We've got to, as coaches, figure out how to coach them harder and make sure we don't make critical errors at critical times that cost us a chance to win a football game,” said Freeze. “I keep saying we're not that far off, because, you know, I think — they're the No. 5 team in the country, and we should have been in this game.

“We're not playing winning football in critical times and moments. We, as coaches — it's our job, it's my job, to get that fixed.”

Mausi, for one, welcomes tougher coaching this week and in the coming weeks as the Tigers navigate a tough second half of the schedule, which includes three more difficult road games.

“I agree wholeheartedly with my coach,” said Mausi. “He wants them to coach us harder? We need to be coached harder.

“If the person next to me, if the linebacker next to me isn’t being at his best, I need to demand the best out of him. My coach demands the best out of all of us too, so I'm in 100% agreement with that.”

Auburn returns to action Oct. 19 at Missouri.