Alabama Will ‘Take Care Of Business Versus Auburn’: CBS Sports’ Aaron Murray Previews College Football Matchups

(CBS DFW) — The assemblage shot regular play ends this weekend, with plentifulness of league titles inactive hanging successful the balance. Bowl games and the College Football Playoff, of course, volition follow, with bids inactive perchance riding connected this weekend’s action.

CBS and CBS Sports Network person different beardown slate of assemblage shot enactment scheduled for the agelong vacation weekend. Third-ranked Alabama meets Auburn successful the Iron Bowl this Saturday. Arkansas, ranked 25th, takes connected Missouri successful much SEC action. Boise State faces #22 San Diego State, with a spot successful the Mountain West Championship perchance connected the line. And UNLV hopes its late-season surge tin transportation it implicit Air Force. CBS’s Norm Elrod talked to CBS Sports’ Aaron Murray astir the matchups.

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#3 Alabama @ Auburn, Saturday, November 27, 3:30 p.m. ET connected CBS

Auburn has mislaid 3 successful a row. And they’re without backmost Bo Nix, who suffered a breached ankle successful the Mississippi State game, ending his season. Can Auburn support up with third-ranked Alabama, oregon bash you spot the Tide rolling distant with this one?

I spot the tide rolling away. Obviously, for Auburn, this is simply a immense rivalry. We cognize things get truly crazy, particularly astatine Jordan-Hare, their location stadium. I conscionable don’t deliberation they person capable firepower connected offense. They truly deficiency consistency astatine the receiving presumption this year. Started disconnected a small spot sluggish, got a small spot amended toward the mediate of the season. They decided to portion ways with their receiver coach. They person regressed these past mates weeks astatine that spot.

Tank Bigsby has been benignant of up and down. The violative enactment has been up and down. And evidently they mislaid their starting quarterback. It’s conscionable unsmooth sledding close now, for that team. I deliberation they’re a small spot demoralized, particularly the mode they’ve mislaid these past mates weeks. Being up large connected immoderate teams, they were up connected Mississippi State. They came backmost and won that shot game. You’re up 14-0 connected South Carolina. South Carolina came backmost and won. So it’s been a pugnacious 3 weeks. I’m wondering if they’re lacking immoderate assurance astatine the moment. TJ Finley is simply a bully quarterback. I conscionable don’t deliberation he’s bully capable to bushed the number-two squad successful the country.

Alabama, what tin you say? Offensively, they are juggernauts. Bryce Young is top-two feline for the Heisman close now. He’s had the accidental the past 2 weeks to marque a lawsuit for it, with this game, the title game. A batch of velocity astatine receiver spot. And I similar their defense. I went backmost and watched the crippled versus Arkansas. And Arkansas truly couldn’t bash overmuch successful the archetypal half. And it was conscionable a mates truly good placed balls from the quarterback, large sum conscionable better-thrown football. And Arkansas besides made immoderate large plays down the tract to truly constrictive that spread a small spot successful the shot game. So Alabama, I deliberation they instrumentality attraction of concern versus Auburn.

Missouri @ #25 Arkansas, Friday, November 26, 3:30 p.m. ET connected CBS

25th-ranked Arkansas has won 3 consecutive and stayed with Alabama past week. Missouri has mostly held its ain this season, but against ranked competition. Will they beryllium capable to bent with Arkansas?

I anticipation so, due to the fact that I’m connected the telephone for the game. Football game. Connor Baselak is 1 of my favourite quarterbacks successful the SEC, dating backmost to past year. He’s been a small spot banged up astatine times this year. He’s been a small spot escaped with football, excessively galore turnovers. But, overall, he’s a talented thrower of the football. They bash deficiency a apical receiver connected the extracurricular to marque his beingness a small spot easier. But Tyler Badie is 1 of the premier backs successful the country. Badie is an implicit stud. I similar their violative line. They tally a large agelong scheme, wherever helium has tremendous imaginativeness of either hitting it inside, bouncing outside. So Arkansas is going to person to dilatory down Tyler Badie.

Defensively, they’ve gotten a batch amended present the past mates weeks. They’re tackling amended successful space. They’re making plays. They’re getting aft the quarterback. And that’s truly what’s been the biggest quality successful them winning implicit South Carolina, and past winning versus Florida is stopping the run, making tackles, each that bully stuff. So this is simply a determined Missouri squad that is playing with a batch of assurance close now.

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Arkansas, I emotion I emotion Coach Pittman. I emotion their staff. They person fun. Their antiaircraft strategy is an implicit nightmare to spell against, particularly if you privation to effort and propulsion the football. Obviously, Alabama did their happening past weekend, but that’s that’s Alabama. It’s hard for anyone to dilatory those guys down. But what they’re doing connected that broadside is beauteous darn good. They person a batch of seniors that came backmost this season, to marque it a peculiar year. Senior night, you cognize those guys are going to beryllium playing highly tough, highly hard.

KJ Jefferson has truly improved a batch this year. And evidently Burks is 1 of the amended receivers successful the SEC. So I deliberation it’s a beauteous bully matchup. Arkansas is possibly a small spot amended shot team. Missouri is decidedly playing with confidence. Defense has improved.

Boise State @ #22 San Diego State, Friday, November 26, 12:00 p.m. ET connected CBS

Boise State and 22nd-ranked San Diego State some bring winning streaks and 2 of assemblage football’s amended defenses into this matchup. Both teams besides inactive person their eyes connected the Mountain West Championship. The Broncos are somewhat favored connected the roadworthy implicit Aztecs. How bash you spot this 1 playing out?

I benignant of similar the Broncos. I’ve had the accidental to screen some these teams. I covered Boise State 3 weeks agone versus Fresno. And I covered San Diego State doubly this year. San Diego State is precise akin to what we conscionable talked astir with Arkansas and what they privation to bash defensively. Very pugnacious connected that side. They play fast, they’re physical, they alert astir the football, tremendous scheme. And they tally the ball. Greg Bell is an implicit beast. The absorbing happening with them is the backmost position. They’ve been rotating guys near and right. I deliberation they’ve recovered their feline successful Johnson. He’s good, decent thrower of the football.

Boise State is the much implicit team. I deliberation they’re playing large defensively astatine the moment. They’ve been perfectly connected occurrence since the nonaccomplishment to Air Force. They they enactment it to Colorado State. They held Fresno to 14 points, and Fresno is 1 of the champion offenses successful the Mountain West. They held Wyoming the 13 points; you saw what Wyoming did past week versus Utah State. And they held New Mexico to nary points astatine all. Soon that broadside of the football, they’re playing the champion the’ve played this year. And I deliberation Hank Bachmeier and Shakir are conscionable implicit dynamic playmakers erstwhile it comes to a quarterback-receiver combo. So I’m going to springiness the flimsy borderline to Boise, conscionable due to the fact that I inactive don’t truly spot San Diego State and their quality to people points.

UNLV @ Air Force, Friday, November 26, 3:30 p.m. ET connected CBS Sports Network

Air Force is tied for the pb connected the Mountain broadside of the Mountain West. And they inactive person a changeable astatine a spot successful the league championship. UNLV has travel connected of late. But sitting past successful the West, they’re simply playing for pridefulness astatine this point. Will Air Force and its triple-option tally each implicit UNLV?

Yes, Air Force is 1 of the champion teams successful the Mountain West. Obviously look astatine the record, 8-3, 5-2 successful the conference. I had their crippled a mates of weeks agone against Colorado State. They’re nasty. They’re different squad that’s conscionable playing good connected some sides of the football. Defensively with Jordan Jackson up beforehand coming back. Meeks and Mock, and the backend with Bugg and some Taylors. Very bully defense, a tremendous defense.

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Obviously, we cognize what they tin bash offensively. Daniels has had a bully twelvemonth astatine helium backmost spot. Brad Roberts is an implicit beast astatine fullback. And they tin propulsion the football. They’ve proven this twelvemonth that they’re not acrophobic to propulsion it down the field. Brandon Lewis is simply a heck of receiver, tremendous stop-and-go ability. Can instrumentality the apical disconnected a defense. Kinamon does a large occupation arsenic well. So I conscionable think, erstwhile you look astatine Air Force, they’re playing with a batch of confidence. They’ve had immoderate truly large wins arsenic of late. Even their losses were games they astir apt could person won. Versus Army, they could person won that game. And San Diego State, they were up by similar six points. They bushed Boise State,. They enactment it to Colorado State. And past a large triumph successful triple-overtime versus Nevada. So I conscionable emotion this Air Force team. I deliberation they’re complete. I deliberation they instrumentality of concern astatine location this weekend.