Auburn Daily

How the Georgia Matchup Actually Favors Auburn's Jackson Arnold

Jackson Arnold has had his fair share of struggles. Ironically, one of Auburn's toughest matchups presents a favorable opportunity.
Terrance Biggs|
Auburn Tigers quarterback Jackson Arnold is looking for a bounce-back performance.
Auburn Tigers quarterback Jackson Arnold is looking for a bounce-back performance. | Maria Lysaker-Imagn Images

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Auburn Tigers quarterback Jackson Arnold faces a Georgia team that actually presents a favorable matchup for him.

Granted, you wouldn't think that a passer that gets dropped to the turf often should feel good about facing the Bulldogs. Yet, this isn't the recent Georgia team that was packed with future Philadelphia Eagles' draft picks. Aspects of Arnold's game should give Auburn hope of pulling the upset.

Arnold Cleaned Up Technical Flaws

If you look at the below clip from his Oklahoma tenure, as opposed to the debut against Baylor, you can see marked improvement. Arnold sets up far better to deliver throws at all levels. For example, watch his legs. Like a baseball swing, the hips fly through first, followed by the upper body. That motion creates torque, velocity, and distance, allowing for vertical throws.

Georgia is the 86th-ranked pass defense in all of FBS, allowing 231.2 passing yards per game.

More importantly, they surrendered eight touchdowns, which sits at 82nd overall. The Alabama game showed flaws in the pass defense: soft play down the seam and glaring weaknesses in coverage. Opponents do feel comfortable with taking shots against the second. For Arnold, none of his errors look physical.

Meaning, Georgia may not force him into bad throws. So far in SEC play, the Bulldogs allow eight yards per completion. If you take away Kentucky's 5.5 yards per throw, that number spikes to 9.3. Ty Simpson (Alabama) and Joey Aguilar (Tennessee), two quarterbacks with elite receiving corps, managed to torch UGA, combining for 651 passing yards and six touchdowns.

Underestimation

When Arnold arrived at Oklahoma, people questioned why Hugh Freeze pressed so hard for Arnold to come to the Plains. You even heard the Peyton Thorne comparison. First, from an athletic level, Arnold is light years ahead of Thorne in every aspect of the game, from speed to agility to arm talent.

Then, you heard how all of the offensive line troubles fall directly upon his shoulder. That opinion negates the fact that Xavier Chaplin, on more than one occasion, could not sustain a block. Or, right tackle Mason Murphy's failure to stop Texas A&M defensive end Dayon Hayes from bending the corner, sealing the win for the Aggies.

Granted, this does not absolve Arnold from holding the ball too long or lacking the pocket awareness to feel the oncoming rush. Still, when given a decent team, he shows the ability to make every throw. Entering the Georgia game, many people expect UGA to just show up and dominate without resistance. Arnold is a dual threat that can actually throw the ball with conviction.

Overview

In essence, much of the game falls upon Arnold's shoulders. Many already wrote the game off as a loss. At the same time, factors that Arnold can control could actually change the predicted
outcome. Checking down or working the screen/flats would keep defenders off of him. This isn't the Georgia team that waxed TCU in the national championship a few years ago.

They look mortal against better teams. While the stats do not claim it, Auburn's offense, from a talent level, can line up against anyone in the SEC.

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Terrance Biggs
TERRANCE BIGGS

Senior Editor/ Podcast Host, Full Press Coverage, Bleav, Member: Football Writers Association of America, United States Basketball Writers Association, and National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association, National Football Foundation Voter: FWAA All-American, Jim Thorpe, Davey O'Brien, Outland, and Biletnikoff Awards

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