Tonight, the Missouri Tigers face their first road test, traveling to one of the toughest environments in the country, to take on the Auburn Tigers. Missouri is coming off a close loss to the Crimson Tide, while the other Tigers are also coming off a heartbreaker against Georgia. Missouri needs to continue to win to keep its playoff hopes alive, while Auburn needs to win to keep its season alive and is desperately needing a morale boost.

The stage is set. The stadium sold out. Saturday night at Jordan-Hare, with Mizzou needing to bounce back. Here are three things Missouri must do to win this game.

• Get back to your bread and butter: Against Alabama, Missouri’s offense struggled to find any sense of rhythm. Ahmad Hardy and Jamal Roberts combined for 17 carries, a season low for the tandem. Granted, it’s not as if the run game warranted 50 carries, nor did playing down help. However, the run game was the primary reason why the Tigers were/are so highly regarded, and the team needs to lean into that identity.

Ahmad Hardy ranks second in rush yards in the country, so it’s an absolute disservice to yourself to only give him the ball 12 times. Auburn has a very stout defense and the Tigers need to be able to run the ball to setup a pass game that has struggled in it’s past two games.

2. Prevent Jackson Arnold from using his legs:

In five out of Auburn’s six games, Jackson Arnold has ran the ball 10 or more times. In games where Arnold has eclipsed 50 yards or more, Auburn is 2-1. Say what you want about Arnold’s ability tho push the ball downfield, but Arnold can certainly use his legs and that’s why he’s considered to be a dual-threat guy.

Pressure is going to be the key for Missouri. Damon Wilson and Zion Young are both in the top 5, as it pertains to pressure rate, in the country. Jackson Arnold struggles under pressure, so you must make him uncomfortable. Auburn will certainly draw up some designed quarterback runs, so Missouri must stack the box and hold those runs to 3 yards or less. Auburn runs plenty of RPO, so Missouri must be disciplined. Auburn has been one of the worst offenses in the SEC, so if Missouri can contain Arnold, I don’t see many paths for Auburn to win this game.

3. Beau Pribula must be a better decision-maker: Guys, the jury is not out on Beau Pribula, but if he throws two interceptions again, especially a game-costing one… there might be conversations. Beau has been better than most expected; however, he’s thrown 5 interceptions in the last 4 games. Today’s game will show how much Pribula has learned over this past week and will be a maturing opportunity, no doubt about it.

Auburn’s front-seven is very good, and Pribula will be facing pressure. Now, how does he respond? I’d really like to see Pribula be more comfortable in the pocket. Against Alabama, Pribula often left the pocket early, and I think it severely impacted the potential of the passing game to thrive. We shall see if that changes today.