Auburn Tigers Odds – Improved offense can’t save Tigers in SEC
Auburn has many starters coming back for 2009, which helps their NCAA football betting odds, but with a tough conference, the Tigers should just be happy to get back to a bowl game. Floundering offense and weak quarterback play killed Auburn last season; with most of that still in place, it’s hard to believe a significant improvement is on the way.
Auburn Tigers odds: New coach, rough SEC West means another long year
- Burns needs to step his game up under center
- Secondary and D-line are good, but what about the linebackers?
- Tigers chomping at the bit for Nov.27 Alabama game
Seven starters return from a 2008 squad that was downright brutal, finishing 104th in the nation in offense and 110th in points scored. Kodi Burns seems to be the frontrunner for the quarterback spot after splitting time with Chris Todd last year, and he’ll have three his top five receivers returning.
Ben Tate and Burns were Auburn’s best rushers, and they’ll be behind three returning starters on the offensive line. The Tigers had been moving toward the spread offense, but Burns needs to be much more accurate as he completed only 52.5 percent of his passes, with only two touchdowns and seven picks. Those numbers won’t boost anyone’s sports betting lines.
There are also seven starters back on defense, where Auburn was a solid 29th in 2008. The safety duo of Zac Etheridge and Mike McNeil led the team in tackles, while Walter McFadden is looking to close out his Auburn career on a high note. The pass rush, powered by defensive linemen Antonio Coleman and Zach Clayton, should improve on their sack numbers as they were just 76th in the country. The inexperienced linebacking group could be a problem though. In the SEC that could be a sportsbook wagering disaster.
A visit from West Virginia is the toughest non-conference game on the Tigers’ slate, and they also head to Tennessee, Arkansas, LSU and Georgia in the SEC. A Halloween meeting with Ole Miss could either take the Tigers out of the race in the SEC West, or keep them in it. However, all eyes will be on the “Iron Bowl” on Nov. 27 when the Crimson Tide comes to town. The Tigers are dying to avenge a 36-0 humiliation they took at Alabama to close out last season.
Offshore sportsbook odds have the Tigers at +800 to win the SEC and a whopping +12000 to take the BCS title. Tommy Tuberville was let go after 10 years for Gene Chizik, who was Auburn’s defensive coordinator from 2002 to 2004. With the experience on the Tigers’ roster, they should be able to improve on last year’s 5-7 mark, but they’re in a very difficult division with Alabama, LSU and Ole Miss, and the Tigers aren’t on that level yet, especially on offense.
Unless the offense really explodes and Burns takes a really big step forward as Auburn’s signal-caller, the Tigers won’t make it past a lower-level bowl this year.
For more NCAA football picks and tips as we head towards the season, follow Blake in the Betting Edge at BetOnline.com.
Blake walked onto his college football team and had a brief stint as an assistant coach after he graduated. He brings a sharp mind to the world of sports handicapping. Blake understands the nuances of the game that only someone who has played would understand.
