Auburn falls to No. 37 in ESPN FPI following loss to LSU
The Auburn Tigers have lost their first three SEC games of the season.
After starting 3-0, Hugh Freeze’s team has mustered up just 16 points per game over their last three games, leading to two blowout losses and one could-have-been win vs. UGA.
Both of Auburn’s road SEC games have been blowout losses, and that probably is the reason why the Tigers have dropped eight spots in the week’s ESPN Football Power Index.
The FPI ranks each college football team by a variety of factors; Strength of record, strength of schedule, offensive efficiency, defensive efficiency, and overall efficiency.
Here is where Auburn ranks in each category ahead of their second SEC home game vs. Ole Miss on Saturday.
Overall Ranking: No. 37
Auburn has been outscored 85-24 on the road this season. That is nearly a 9 touchdown margin.
Last week’s game against LSU was a disaster, as the offense scored just 18 points and the supposedly great Auburn defense gave up 48 to Jayden Daniels and Co.
Auburn may be staring at an even farther fall in this category after next week, as they draw a tough matchup, albeit in Jordan-Hare, against Lane Kiffin and his 13th ranked Ole Miss team.
Strength of Record: No. 40
It’s hard to improve in strength of record when you keep failing to win games. It’s even harder when you fail to win games in awful fashion.
The Tigers dropped three spots in the strength of record category after their loss to LSU.
For reference, the team directly in front of them, the Washington State Cougars, just lost 44-6 at home to a middld-of-the-pack Arizona team.
Strength of Schedule: No. 9
Auburn actually jumped in the strength of schedule category this week, moving from No. 17 to No. 9.
ESPN’s FPI probably views Texas A&M as a better team after their close road loss to 17th ranked Tennessee, and the LSU Tigers jumping back into the top 20 helps Auburn’s schedule look better.
This ranking is bound to go down after this week though, as Auburn’s only remaiing game against a ranked opponent after Ole Miss is Alabama.
Overall Efficiency: 42
Auburn was anything but efficient in Baton Rouge.
The Tigers held possession for nearly 10 minutes less than LSU and picked up 260 less offensive yards despite only running five less plays from scrimmage.
The team will need to be much better with the ball if they hope to upset Ole Miss on Saturday.
Offensive Efficiency: No. 93
The Auburn Tigers barely have a top-100 offense in the nation.
Payton Thorne and Robby Ashford once again struggled to throw the ball, although the Auburn quarterbacks did throw for over 100 yards for the first time in their last six Power 5 games.
Defensive Efficiency: No. 16
Auburn’s defense showed signs of struggle for the first time in 2023 last week.
It was a tall task to begin with against Jayden Daniels in LSU, but giving up 48 points is concerning nontheless.
The defense should get a jolt playing at home this weekend and could be back to their dominant selves.
