The Auburn Tigers (2-5) will be visiting the Kentucky Wildcats (3-4) for a Week 9 SEC matchup in Lexington at Kroger Field. Kickoff is set for 7:45 p.m. ET on SEC Network.
Auburn enters this following yet another heartbreaking blown lead, this time on the road in Columbia against the Missouri Tigers.
Kentucky, on the other hand, enters following a road loss in the Swamp against the Florida Gators, 48-20.
The Wildcats are favored by 2.5 points on the spread with a moneyline of -135. The total is currently set at 43.5 at the time of writing.
Can Auburn steal one on the road, or will the Cats defend home turf? Here's my Auburn vs Kentucky predictions and my college football picks for Saturday.
Auburn vs. Kentucky Odds
| Auburn Odds | ||
|---|---|---|
| Spread | Total | Moneyline |
+1 -110 | 44 -110 / -110 | -105 |
| Kentucky Odds | ||
|---|---|---|
| Spread | Total | Moneyline |
-1 -110 | 44 -110 / -110 | -115 |
- Auburn vs. Kentucky Spread: Kentucky -1
- Auburn vs. Kentucky Over/Under: 44 Points
- Auburn vs. Kentucky Moneyline: Kentucky -115, Auburn +105
Auburn Tigers vs. Kentucky Wildcats Picks and Predictions
- Auburn vs Kentucky Pick: Auburn ML +115
Prediction
My Auburn vs Kentucky best bet is on the Tigers moneyline, with the best line currently available at BetMGM, according to our live NCAAF odds page.
Spread
PASS
Over/Under
PASS
Moneyline
I'm betting the Tigers on the moneyline.
Auburn Tigers vs. Kentucky Wildcats College Football Preview
Auburn Tigers Betting Preview: Need to Limit Mistakes
Coach Hugh Freeze has continually expressed his disappointment in his team’s inability to get out of its own way. The Tigers are 2-5 on the season, but they could very easily be 4-3 after blowing games against Oklahoma and Missouri with some bad turnovers and offense.
Freeze will be in a desperate position to win this week to try and avoid the same result as his predecessor, who was fired after his second season in Auburn.
The Tigers are led by Payton Thorne under center, but the real leader and key piece to this offense is running back Jarquez Hunter. Hunter averages six yards per carry and needs more touches offensively if the Tigers want to start winning games.
Thorne has had his turnover issues, throwing six interceptions this season. Recently, he's been playing a bit better in limiting those giveaways, so I would suspect this could be one week he and this Auburn team finally get over the hump.
Auburn is averaging 28 points per game and ranks first in Rush Success Rate. The Tigers also rank 18th in Explosiveness.
Auburn has arguably been pretty good outside of the huge mental mistakes and stalling out in key situations. If it can void those key mistakes in Lexington, it should have a chance to steal one on the road.
Defensively, the Tigers haven't been as strong as their offense. They have similar issues in getting off the field in key situations. The Tigers allow 21 points per game, which is solid, but those points are all scored at inopportune times.
The Tigers rank 49th in Success Rate allowed and 84th in Explosiveness allowed. They can get stops, but it seems like on the key third downs, they continue to allow big plays.
Kentucky Wildcats Betting Preview: Run Defense Paramount
Mark Stoops has led this Kentucky team for the 12th straight season and has had his ups and downs along the way.
This year seemed to be an up year after the big win against Ole Miss, but he's followed it up with back-to-back losses to Vanderbilt and Florida.
The Wildcats' offense averages about 20 points per game this season with their ground-and-pound style. They rank 22nd in Rush Play Rate on the year, really leaning into Demie Sumo-Karngbaye, who paces the team with 92 carries this season.
The Wildcats run the ball a lot and with success, ranking 18th in Rush Success Rate.
Despite the rushing success, the passing attack has been awful with quarterback Brock Vandagriff starting. The Wildcats rank 131st in Pass Success Rate, but they do take advantage of the play action, as evident by them ranking 21st in Pass Explosiveness.
Defense has been the strength of Kentucky ever since Stoops stepped into the head coaching role. The Cats are allowing 19 points per game on the season, and this defense plays fresh and free, ranking 12th in defensive Havoc.
Kentucky’s front seven has been very strong this season, and it shows in its ability to stop the run, which will be a problem for Auburn’s offense. The Cats rank 17th in Rush Success allowed, so Auburn will need to find another way to generate offense outside of rushing the football.
Kentucky vs. Auburn Matchup Analysis
Toggle the dropdowns below to hide or show how Kentucky and Auburn match up statistically:
Auburn Offense vs. Kentucky Defense
 | Offense | Defense |  Edge |
| Rush Success | 11 | 53 | |
| Line Yards | 19 | 19 |  |
| Pass Success | 69 | 95 | |
| Havoc | 103 | 16 | |
| Finishing Drives | 108 | 103 | |
| Quality Drives | 50 | 51 | |
Kentucky Offense vs. Auburn Defense
| Offense | Defense | Edge |
| Rush Success | 13 | 44 | |
| Line Yards | 60 | 17 | |
| Pass Success | 121 | 66 | |
| Havoc | 109 | 105 | |
| Finishing Drives | 95 | 23 | |
| Quality Drives | 63 | 41 | |
Pace of Play / Other
| | |
| PFF Tackling | 77 | 53 |
| PFF Coverage | 75 | 63 |
| Special Teams SP+ | 80 | 5 |
| Middle 8 | 25 | 42 |
| Seconds per Play | 26.1 (45) | 29.1 (111) |
| Rush Rate | 52% (83) | 61% (29) |
How to Make College Football Picks For My Auburn vs. Kentucky Prediction
This game figures to be a rock fight between two teams that like to beat you with heavy running games offensively and strong defense.
I think this one will be close throughout and come down to the wire in the fourth quarter, but I'll be taking the better offense in Auburn.
Thorne has cleaned up some of the mistakes he was making earlier in the season, and I believe this is a great spot for Auburn to finally get back in the win column.
Pick: Auburn ML +115
Auburn vs. Kentucky Start Time, TV Channel, Location, How to Watch
| Location: | Kroger Field, Lexington, KY |
| Date: | Saturday, Oct. 26 |
| Kickoff Time: | 7:45 p.m. ET |
| TV / Streaming: | SEC Network |
Auburn travels to Lexington to take on Kentucky on Saturday, Oct. 26, at 7:45 p.m. ET on SEC Network.
Auburn vs. Kentucky Betting Trends
- 80% of the bets and 80% of the money is on Kentucky to cover the spread against Auburn.
- 98% of the bets are on the over while 98% of the money is also on the over to hit in this SEC duel.
Auburn vs. Kentucky Weather
