The chaos of Week 6 in college football claimed a number of playoff contenders, with Alabama’s loss to Ole Miss or Oregon’s home loss to Arizona vying for the most unexpected.
But through the bloodshed, Nick Marshall and Auburn burst through unscathed, throttling No. 15 LSU at home 41-7 and silencing the offensive concerns that had been mounting in recent weeks.
The chaos of Week 6 also saw a number of Heisman candidates lose ground, with Alabama’s Amari Cooper and Oregon’s Marcus Mariota likely taking the biggest hits of all.
And just as Auburn burst through against LSU, Mississippi State quarterback Dak Prescott stepped onto the national stage in Week 6 with a 345 yard, five touchdown performance against then Top 10 Texas A&M.
This sets up the juiciest matchup in State history in Week 7 when the No. 2 Tigers come to Starkville to take on the now No. 3 Bulldogs.
The Bulldogs have never been ranked this highly in the 119 years of their football program, while matchups of this magnitude have been commonplace for Auburn under Gus Malzahn.
There seems to be a certain uneasiness among the Auburn fan base regarding this matchup, mainly due to Prescott’s performance so far this year.
One familiar name comes to the mind of many Auburn fans when they think of Prescott: Cam Newton.
I know, it’s a little unfair and far too early to make those comparisons.
But Prescott’s start to the 2014 season has been phenomenal. Better, in fact, than the start Cam Newton had in 2010.
It’s not just Newton Prescott has been outperforming. Johnny Manziel and Tim Tebow went on to take home Heisman trophies, but neither scored as many touchdowns through five games as Prescott has.
Prescott was a bit of an enigma in his first two seasons in Starkville.
The talent was obvious, but playing time was often split with fellow quarterback Tyler Russell, who was viewed as a better passer.
The stats showed that, too, with Prescott posting low accuracy and a high touchdown to interception ratio as he received more snaps in 2013.
2014, however, has been a sort of renaissance for Prescott as he takes on a much heavier role in the offense.
The junior already has 85 carries on the season to go along with 78 passes, not to mention his 20 total touchdowns.
This has translated into a significant jump in Heisman attention, with Bovada currently giving Prescott the second best odds at the trophy at 5/2 overall.
Meanwhile, Marshall vaulted up four spots to third overall according to Bovada, currently sitting with 11/2 Heisman odds.
Marshall, however, hasn’t quite received the same national attention as Prescott, likely for a couple of reasons that are mostly out of his control.
Firstly, Prescott’s stats (and usage) are way up.
Head coach Dan Mullen and the Bulldogs have relied upon Prescott in a manner similar to Auburn’s reliance upon Cam Newton in 2010. They need him to do a little bit of everything. (even catching touchdowns, a la Cam.)
This will never be the case for Marshall, who is surrounded by too many weapons to ever receive the usage that Prescott currently enjoys. Cameron Artis-Payne, Corey Grant and even Jeremy Johnson need their touches.
Secondly, Prescott is a hotter and more recent name.
The nation has already seen what Marshall is capable of throughout 2013 and 2014. As outstanding as he has been at times, Marshall’s accuracy has yet to improve as we heard it would this season.
That’s not to take anything away from the dynamic quarterback. Marshall is a perfect fit for Auburn and his comfort in the offense has made Auburn one of the most prolific offenses in the country.
Prescott, along with the rest of the Bulldogs, is a fresh commodity whose product is being displayed nationally for the first time. His performances, combined with State’s reliance upon him, make the junior must-see TV.
Finally, Marshall’s offseason marijuana citation quickly became national news, linking the quarterback with the illicit drug in fans’ minds and on social media.
Fair or not, the Heisman committee considers “integrity” in its discussions, adding a handicap to Marshall’s campaign.
This discussion will certainly be in the back of both these quarterbacks’ minds come Saturday when they square off in Davis-Wade Stadium.
While I’d say Auburn walks in with both the talent and experience advantage, the recent performance of State will make this a much tougher test than the Bulldogs usually provide.
In recent seasons that test has been a big one, as Malzahn has gone down to the final minute with State in his last three games against the Bulldogs. The cowbells, which are sure to be louder than ever, won’t make things any easier.
Two Heisman candidates are sure to walk into Starkville Saturday afternoon, but only one will likely walk out. For Auburn’s sake, they better hope it’s Marshall.
Follow Eric on Twitter @EWall14
