Kirk Herbstreit is a big fan of Auburn quarterback Bo Nix but also a fan of the job Gus Malzahn has done putting him in a spot to succeed.
Bo Nix already passed his first test with a comeback win vs. Oregon on a neutral field in Auburn’s season opener. Now the freshman quarterback heads into his toughest test with a date with undefeated Florida in The Swamp and the nation’s No. 5 scoring defense.
It’s the biggest game of the week and ESPN’s Kirk Herbstreit will be there for College GameDay and thinks it’s going to be a great game in a great atmosphere with Nix being at the center of the action.
“Anytime you get a top-10 matchup at The Swamp, it’s going to be a wild scene and at least a three-five point advantage for Florida going in,” Herbstreit told me while promoting Goodyear’s Headed to the Hall sweepstakes. “It’s a coin toss type game.”
The player who can be the difference is Nix, the freshman phenom emerging as the next big thing at quarterback. Herbstreit thinks a big part of Nix having early success because of Gus Malzahn putting him in a position to do what he does best.
"Gus Malzahn is back calling plays and he’s been very smart calling plays because he’s putting Bo Nix in a position to throw high-percentage throws. He’s completing 57.6 percent of his passes and only has two interceptions. He is running the ball just enough to keep defenses honest. Auburn has a dominant offensive line and a great defense. It’s old school SEC football from Auburn.Will that be enough to go to the Swamp against a really athletic Gator defense? We’ll see this weekend but Auburn has done as much as anyone could. They beat Oregon, beat Texas A&M in Kyle Field, dominated Mississippi State. It’s gonna get a lot tougher going to the Swamp, they gotta go to LSU and they get Georgia and Alabama at home."
The SEC West is always a gauntlet, but especially so for Auburn and their crossover rivalry with Georgia on top of their season-opening challenge with an Oregon team that’s looked unstoppable since losing to the Tigers. Malzahn, often the subject of hot seat rumors and talks of how much is remaining on his buyout, has Auburn ranked No. 7 after navigating one of the toughest schedules in the nation after five weeks.
He can take a deep breath knowing he’ll travel this road with a young and talented quarterback who looks special. Before the season began, Malzahn faced some criticism about his decision to name Nix the starter over Joey Gatewood. The decision has looked like a brilliant one so far for Malzahn who will need to call a great game to score on the Florida defense that allows 8.8 points per game.
While Nix will be in the spotlight in hostile territory, he won’t be the only quarterback Herbstreit will be watching.
Florida’s Kyle Trask has handled himself just fine after taking over for the injured Feleipe Franks. Florida head coach Dan Mullen has been able to get the most out of his quarterbacks throughout his career, which includes mentoring Dak Prescott and Tim Tebow, among others.
“I’m really excited to see Kyle Trask who up to this point has been put in a position to have a lot of success. Both these quarterbacks will ultimately determine who wins that game.”
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