NO. 10 ARKANSAS VS. NO. 15 AUBURN

Something to prove

Arkansas and Auburn want to stay in the mix

Razorback Quarterback Tyler Wilson will face number 15 Auburn on Saturday.

— The importance of tonight’s match-up between No. 10 Arkansas and No. 15 Auburn is clear to see.

The Razorbacks (4-1, 0-1) need a victory at Reynolds Razorbacks Stadium if they want to retain any hope of winning the SEC West or making back-to-back appearances to a BCS bowl, one of their preseason goals.

Auburn (4-1, 2-0), the defending BCS national champion that couldn’t buy respect entering the season, went from being un-ranked last week to No. 15 in The Associated Press poll after beating South Carolina for its 11th consecutive SEC victory. The Tigers want to stay at the top of the SEC West standings.

“This is a big game,” said Arkansas Coach Bobby Petrino, whose Razorbacks are a game down in the conference standings. “We need to find a way to win the game.”

Arkansas is favored by 10 points in an ESPN match-up of teams from a division that has produced three of the past four national champions and includes four teams ranked among the top 15, including LSU at No. 1 and Alabama at No. 2.

Auburn Coach Gene Chizik said the Tigers (4-1, 2-0) are anticipating a tough test.

“It’s going to be a great game atmosphere up there in Arkansas,” Chizik said. “An extremely talented team and well-coached, as we all know, offensively.”

The Razorbacks are coming off three erratic performances when they were outscored 94-45 over the course of eight quarters by Troy, Alabama and Texas A&M.

“Every week is crucial when you’re trying to make it to the top and prove your team is among the elites,” said Arkansas quarterback Tyler Wilson, who passed for a school-record 510 yards last week in a 42-38 victory over Texas A&M. “A win this week would put us at 5-1 and then into the bye week.

“I think this is crucial, and I think everybody in the locker room needs to understand that.”

Arkansas lost to Auburn 65-43 last season in the highest-scoring non-overtime game in SEC history, but the score was misleading. Arkansas led 43-37 early in the fourth quarter before Auburn took advantage of three turnovers to outscore Arkansas 28-0 down the stretch.

“We do have a little vengeance to come out and play a lot better than we played last year,” said Arkansas receiver Jarius Wright, who is coming off a school-record 281-yard receiving game last week.

Auburn has won 11 consecutive games against SEC opponents, a streak that includes victories over teams ranked Nos. 12, 12, 6, 9, 18, 16 and 10. Overall, Auburn has won 19 of 20 dating to a victory over Northwestern inthe Outback Bowl on Jan. 1, 2010.

Auburn’s will to win and its ability to produce clutch plays and drives have helped the Tigers go 9-0 in games decided by four points or less under Chizik.

“They really believe they can win, and that’s half the battle,” said Auburn offensive coordinator Gus Malzahn, originally from Fort Smith, who returns to the state along with top tailback Michael Dyer of Little Rock and reserve quarterback Kiehl Frazier of Springdale. “There are a lot of teams that get in similar situations and don’t find ways to win, but the last two years our guys have really done that.”

All-SEC defensive end Jake Bequette is expected to return from a hamstring injury to help the Arkansas defensive front, but the status of starting cornerbacks Isaac Madison (arm) and Darius Winston (leg) isn’t known.

The Tigers will be without freshman receiver Trovon Reed (shoulder) and could be missing leading wideout Emory Blake (leg), who was injured last week, and cornerback Chris Davis (ankle).

The offenses sport contrasting styles.

The Razorbacks rank No. 7 nationally in passing (351.8 yards per game) and No. 16 in total offense (471.8) and scoring (39.4). Wilson, who shared SEC offensive player of the week honors with Wright, averages 303 passing yards per game. He came off the bench and passed for 332 yards, with 4 touchdowns and 2 interceptions, in last year’s game at Auburn.

“It’s just going to be a huge passing week, and we’re going to keep them one-dimensional and stop them for sure,” Auburn linebacker Jake Holland said.

Auburn ranks No. 37 nationally in rushing offense (186.6), and its ball-control plan against South Carolina helped a Tigers defense that ranks No. 106 (439.8) nationally.

“I think they’re getting better,” Arkansas offensive coordinator Garrick McGee said of the Auburn defense. “I think the best part about it is they’re simple. They don’t do much on defense, and a lot of times teams that don’t do much, they understand all the details of what they’re doing.”

Arkansas is preparing for a heavy dose of Dyer, the SEC’s third-leading rusher(113.4 ypg) who carried 41 times for 141 yards in a 16-13 victory at then-No. 10 South Carolina last week, along with quick sweeps to Onterio McCalebb and a mix of Barrett Trotter and Frazier as the passing and running quarterbacks.

“The keys? Stop 5 [Dyer] and eliminate 23 [McCalebb] on the jet sweep and just run to the ball and watch out for the trick plays,” Arkansas safety Elton Ford said.

Dyer, the BCS title game MVP, is averaging 5.5 yards per carry and has scored seven rushing touchdowns.

“He’s short, and behind those big guys sometimes you lose him,” Arkansas linebacker Jerico Nelson said. “You just have to be able to follow his footsteps and read your keys and be able to find him and make the tackle.”

AUBURN AT ARKANSAS

WHEN 6 p.m. Central

WHERE Reynolds Razorback Stadium (72,000), Fayetteville

RECORDS Auburn 4-1 (2-0 SEC); Arkansas 4-1 (0-1 SEC)

RANKINGS Auburn is No. 15/23, Arkansas is No. 10/12 AP/Coaches

BETTING LINE Arkansas by 10

COACHES Gene Chizik (26-6 in 3rd year at Auburn, 31-25 in 5th year overall); Bobby Petrino (27-16 in fourth year at Arkansas, 68-25 in 8th year overall)

SERIES Auburn leads 11-8-1 and 5-3 in Fayetteville

TV ESPN

RADIO Razorbacks Sports Network, including KABZFM103.7, in Little Rock; and KQSM-FM, 92.1, KEZA-FM, 107.9, KUOA-AM, 1290 and KUOA-FM, 105.3, in Fayetteville. XM-Radio 91, Sirius 91

Sports, Pages 21 on 10/08/2011