Franklin American Mortgage Music City Bowl (Nashville, Tenn.): Purdue (6-6) vs. Auburn (7-5)
Friday, Dec. 28 at 1:30 p.m. ET on ESPN
This is the first ever meeting between Purdue and Auburn.
How They Got Here: Purdue
Purdue started the season at a poor 0-3, but would go on to win their next four games in a row, including a 49-20 thrashing of #2 Ohio State. Purdue gave Ohio State its only loss of the season and is the sole reason the Buckeyes aren’t in the College Football Playoff. The Boilermakers would then go on to trade wins and losses to end up 6-6. This is the first time Purdue has appeared in back-to-back bowl games since 2011-12. If they win this game, they will end up at 7-6, which is the same record they had last season.
Purdue is going to need their senior quarterback David Blough to put up big numbers like he has all season. Blough has 3,521 passing yards with 25 passing touchdowns, including seven 300-yard passing games.
How They Got Here: Auburn
Auburn started the season 2-0 with a win over Washington and a 63-9 win over Alabama State. However, the Tigers have been up and down since, never being able to string more than two wins together. All five of Auburn’s losses came from SEC teams, putting them at 3-5 in SEC play and 7-5 overall. Head coach Gus Malzahn might be on the hot-seat now at Auburn as this is his 5th straight five-loss season.
Auburn quarterback Jarrett Stidham seems to have regressed this year. His stats this year are lower than his stats from last season in almost every category, including touchdowns (down from 18 to 13), completion percentage (66 to 60 percent) and passing yards (3,158 to 2,421). Stidham has already announced that he will be entering the NFL draft next year. He’ll be looking to put up big numbers for his last impression on NFL scouts.
Player to Watch: Rondale Moore
Moore leads the nation in receptions with 103 and is tied for 7th in the nation for touchdown catches with 12. He has also recorded 1,124 receiving yards on the season. When Purdue beat Ohio State, Rondale Moore had 12 catches for 170 yards and two touchdowns against the #2 team in the country. Expect a lot of passes to go his way.
Gambling Stats:
The spread is Auburn -3.5 with the over/under at 55 points.
Prediction:
I’m picking Auburn to win this one. I think Gus Malzahn is coaching for his job and I think Jarrett Stidham is trying to leave a good impression for NFL scouts.
