AUBURN | Don’t look for excuses from Dillon Wade.
He didn’t transfer from Tulsa to Auburn just to play in big SEC games. He’s here to win those games, and a blowout loss at LSU or a close loss to No. 1 Georgia doesn’t cut it for the Tigers’ starting left tackle.
“We have to find out what our identity is because almost beating Georgia is not beating Georgia. It’s not good enough,” said Wade. “We lost to whoever we played by 30, that happens. But this week, we threw away the film and we’re just going to get better and go back to the fundamentals.”
Auburn is in the midst of a difficult stretch of games. After starting the season 3-0, AU lost at Texas A&M, to UGA at home and back on the road at LSU.
This week, the Tigers’ host No. 13 Ole Miss.
“You're gonna lose some games in this conference, and it's only gonna get harder,” said AU coach Hugh Freeze. “I think we're approaching the NFC/AFC version, somehow and some way. You don't want to have to, every time you lose a game, have to go, 'Well, what are we gonna do to finish the year?’
“We're playing to win a game at Jordan-Hare on Saturday night. Here are the truths of how we can improve to win it. We should play for each other, and we should serve each other and love each other enough to play. That's, I think, a greater challenge in today's times than ever before, truthfully.”
The Rebels have been installed as a 6-point favorite over Auburn, which is not a surprise considering AU’s 48-18 loss at LSU, a team the Ole Miss already beat 55-49.
Auburn will clearly need to step up its play too pull off an upset.
“Now it's crunch time, you know,” said Wade. “When you lose a game, usually a team falls apart. We need to come together and be stronger as a unit. I see a lot of off-the-field bonding, a lot of on-field, extra work getting in.
“The more time we spend with each and the more connections we get, the better we'll play. I feel like we just need to spend more time with one another. That will translate to the field.”
Kickoff at Jordan-Hare Stadium is scheduled for 6 p.m. CT on ESPN.
