Tigers ready for Bulldogs in SEC opener

By Staff
With his Auburn coaching debut behind him, Gene Chizik turns his attention to Mississippi State tonight for his first game against a Southeastern Conference opponent.
The Tigers have a winning record against Mississippi and lead the series 57-23-2.
The Auburn defense has had success stopping the Bulldogs in recent years. It has held Mississippi State to 19 points or less in each of the previous 10 games in the series, including a 3-2 win last season.
Both teams looked impressive in their season openers last week.
Auburn put together a strong second half to pull away from Louisiana Tech for a 37-13 victory while Mississippi State defeated Jackson State 45-7.
The Tigers recorded 556 yards of total offense, including 301 rushing yards as freshman Onterio McCalebb and senior Ben Tate each earn more than 100 yards on the ground.
Bulldog quarterback Chris Relf led the Mississippi State offense with 82 rushing yards and he also threw three touchdowns on only 10 passing attempts.
This will be the fourth time Auburn has played a game on Sept. 12. The Tigers shut out each of the previous three opponents on that date – Kansas 49-0 in 1987, Samford 55-0 in 1992 and Ole Miss 17-0 in 1998.