Rece Davis predicts Auburn to go under 6.5 wins in 2023
The 2023 season is right around the corner, about a week and a half away. It’s the last chance to get those over/under bets in for your favorite team.
At least two prominent ESPN analysts are taking Auburn to go under 6.5 wins this fall.
“I’m going to say under but show vast improvement, probably clip somebody they’re not supposed to before the end of the season,” ESPN’s Rece Davis said on a segment with Pete Thamel on the ESPN College Football YouTube channel. “Six and a half’s the number, I’ll say they go 6-6.”
Davis explained some of his reasoning, which largely came down to a brutal schedule.
Even though Hugh Freeze has done work in the transfer portal, the sheer newness of it all might make it tough to come too far along in just one year. Thus the under prediction on this year’s over/under total.
“Hugh Freeze takes over, ton of guys coming in the portal,” Davis said. “Brings in Payton Thorne from Michigan State, who had a really good season two years ago. Jarquez Hunter has great speed at running back, they added Brian Battie from USF, who was an All-American kick returner a couple years ago.
“They had trouble on the offensive line and they’re going to have to replace almost the entire offensive line, which might not be a bad thing, because they have had some issues there. New coordinators, new everything, but they do return the third most production in the SEC, oddly enough. That’s largely, probably, because of Hunter and some of the guys who make tackles.”
But as Thamel pointed out, Hunter’s status is currently unclear and that’s no small deal for the Auburn Tigers as you eye the over/under for a potential bet.
“I will take the under too,” Thamel said. “I think prior to investing, any clarity on Jarquez Hunter’s status is important. The last I’d seen, and Hugh talked about it at media day, and I don’t think anything has broken tangibly in terms of whether he can play or not, it was I believe Hugh sort of said it was a school issue and he couldn’t comment on it. Whatever it is it’s not clear, and I think he is the best player on the roster.
“Without him, and I think he is a lot of that returning production that you mentioned.”
Both listed the schedule as a significant obstacle for Auburn in getting past the over/under of 6.5 wins in 2023.
“Go to Cal, go to A&M in the early part of the season,” Davis said. “They have Georgia at home, and then LSU the second week of October. I think they’ll be better at the end than the beginning, but I think it could get rough for Auburn.”
Added Thamel:
“That stretch at A&M, Georgia at home, at LSU, Ole Miss, that will be hard,” he said. “Look, Hugh Freeze has given us reasons to have faith in him as a head coach and as a playcaller, even though he’s going to let Phil Montgomery call plays. Imagine there will be some hand-guiding and his influence will be felt there. Phil Montgomery’s a great coach in his own right.
“But I really think, Rece, that this will be a year of struggle for the Tigers, and understandably so. The roster just wasn’t what it needs to be.”