Florida football: 5 Auburn Tigers to watch Saturday

Well, the cream puffs are out of the way. Now, Florida football gets to the meat and potatoes of its 2019 schedule with No. 7 Auburn Saturday.

Last week, Auburn hung 42 points on Mississippi State in the first half while Florida football was struggling with a quarterback able to run the football effectively as well as find receivers in space.

While both teams closed out their opponents, it was pretty telling in terms of what each team had to focus on with the other on Saturday.

The No. 7 Tigers will come to Ben Hill Griffin Stadium for the first time since 2006 and face an undefeated Florida football team that’s suffered the loss of its starting quarterback, the growing pains of the offensive line and the emergence of a new star on offense.

Auburn, on the other hand, has been the pillar of consistency. The Tigers have already faced — and beaten — a pair of Top 25 teams with a lineup that’s been relatively unchanged.

With that, here’s a look at five Auburn Tigers to watch Saturday when they take on No. 10 Florida football.

Bo Nix, quarterback

Bo Nix, the son of former Auburn quarterback Patrick Nix, has been the story of the season for the Tigers.

A true freshman, Nix hasn’t been fazed by the pressure and hype of being a starting quarterback in the Southeastern Conference. In fact, he’s thrived on it.

He’s built up a 138.74 efficiency rating while passing for 980 yards on 72-for-125 with seven touchdowns and a pair of interceptions.

But, he can get flustered.

In a 28-20 win over then-ranked Texas A&M, Nix struggled mightily, going 12-for-20 for just 100 yards and a touchdown, meaning the running game had to be the catalyst.

Fortunately, the Tigers built up a 21-3 lead in the third quarter, only to watch the Aggies’ defense give up just one more touchdown in the last 17 minutes of the game.

The point here is Nix is fallible. If the Florida defense can apply the right pressure at the right time, they can force Nix to make mistakes.

JaTarvious Whitlow, running back

Sophomore running back JaTarvious Whitlow has been what keeps Nix from making too many mistakes.

Whitlow has rushed the ball 92 times this season for a net of 463 yards and seven touchdowns. He is explosive with the ball and powerful in the line scrum.

But, while he had three touchdowns against Mississippi State, he only rushed for 55 yards on 10 carries. Primarily because the Aggies’ defense clogged up the front, not allowing for Whitlow to really get started.

Instead, the passing game scorched Mississippi State for 361 yards on the day. Here’s a highlight of his speed … and his ball-handling:

Regardless, Whitlow is a player to watch. It will be up to the Florida football defensive front to make sure Whitlow doesn’t find space where he can utilize his speed.

But, one drawback is he may, or may not, dislike dogs.

Seth Williams, wide receiver

The other big offensive threat for the Tigers is sophomore wide receiver Seth Williams.

He has 289 yards on 17 catches with four touchdowns. He’s fourth in the Southeastern Conference in receiving touchdowns and 13th in total receiving yards.

Williams is 6-foot-3 and extremely fast.

He used that speed to help Auburn beat Oregon in the final seconds of their season-opener in Texas:

He will test Florida football’s corners and linebackers, the Gators do bring their own speed and athleticism to the table that can combat Williams.

Also, remember, Williams is just a sophomore and could be prone to big-game mistakes, especially in a hostile environment like Ben Hill Griffin Stadium.

Jeremiah Dinson, defensive back

Senior defensive back Jeremiah Dinson is the anchor of the Auburn defense.

He has a team-high 34 tackles (eight more than his closest teammate) and the only interception the Tigers have registered this season.

Now, the Auburn defense isn’t all that impressive. They have just one interception and just 13 sacks in the first five games of the season.

That bodes well for Florida football quarterback Kyle Trask as a simpler playbook has led to more confidence in the Gators’ signal-caller.

Defensively, however, if there is a player to keep an eye on, it’s Dinson. He casts a long shadow over his defensive teammates as he seems to be more active than anyone else on that side of the ball.

Auburn’s pass defense

While I would reserve all five spots for individual players, I think this is an important aspect of the Tigers’ defense to watch.

This season, Auburn has just one interception and has defended just 17 passes — fourth-lowest in the Southeastern Conference.

It provides a great opportunity for Florida football to exploit this as a potential weakness.

Auburn’s defense can be good at times, but they are inconsistent. They don’t defend against the pass well, which plays to the strengths of the Gators.

However, if Florida could manage to get its running game off the ground, it could lead to a serious imbalance for the Tigers that would be difficult to overcome.

But, that’s a lot of could’s and would’s.

No. 10 Florida will host No. 7 Auburn at 3:30 p.m. Saturday at Ben Hill Griffin Stadium in Gainesville.