SEC Championship Game
Georgia Dome - Atlanta, GA
Kickoff: Saturday, 4:00 p.m. ET
Line: Auburn -2, Total: 58

Coming off a stunning upset against then-No. 1 Alabama, No. 3 Auburn will look to complete its ascendance from the SEC cellar to the conference crown with a win against No. 5 Missouri on Saturday.

Auburn stunned the world last weekend when Chris Davis returned a missed field goal with time expired to beat the Crimson Tide 34-28. With the victory, Auburn moved to 10-2 ATS on the season, now having covered in nine consecutive games. Auburn is now 11-1 ATS after gaining 225 rushing yards or more in three straight games since 1992. Missouri is also 10-2 ATS this season, ripping off four straight wins (SU and ATS), and prevailing big in both games when it was billed as an underdog, winning by 15 at Georgia and beating Florida by 19 at home. Missouri’s only SU loss this year came in double overtime to South Carolina while QB James Franklin was injured. Both teams have extremely favorable coaching trends, as Gus Malzahn is 12-1 ATS after 2+ straight wins as a college head coach, and Gary Pinkel is 39-21 ATS (65%) after a game where his Missouri team forced 0 or 1 turnovers. The winner of this game may be able to reach the BCS national title game if No. 1 Florida State falters against Duke or No. 2 Ohio State slips up against Michigan State.

Who will win the SEC Championship on Saturday? For the answer, connect to College Football Best Bets for all the StatFox Experts picks throughout the 2013 regular season and bowl season. The four experts have been led by StatFox Dave who is 58% ATS (35-25-2) in college football Best Bets this season, including 67% ATS (22-11-2) during a run of 10 straight weeks of .500 or better. StatFox Gary is 55% ATS (18-15-1) in college football Best Bets since Week 3, and StatFox Brian is in the midst of his fourth straight winning season at 51% ATS (30-29-1).

Senior QB James Franklin leads a Missouri offense that ranks 15th in scoring nationally at 38.8 PPG. Franklin has completed 66.9% of his passes for 1,952 yards, 16 TD and 4 INT. He also has 412 rushing yards and three touchdowns with his legs. The team has a top-notch ground game (237 YPG, 18th in nation) featuring three strong running backs. Henry Josey (951 rush yards, 6.2 YPC, 13 TD) leads that crew while Russell Hansbrough (624 rush yards, 6.3 YPC, 4 TD) and Marcus Murphy (561 rush yards, 6.9 YPC, 9 TD) are also major contributors. Franklin’s top two receiving targets are L’Damian Washington (824 rec. yards, 10 TD) and Dorial Green-Beckham (686 rec. yards, 10 TD). The duo combined for 190 yards and two scores in the team’s 28-21 win against Texas A&M last week. The stingy Missouri defense ranks 14th in FBS with 19.4 points per game allowed, yielding 3.6 yards per carry and 6.4 yards per passing attempt. The Tigers need to do a better job of forcing mistakes though, tallying just one takeaway in each of the past three games. But that's easier said than done against an Auburn team that does a great job protecting the football with just six giveaways in the past seven games.

Auburn’s offense rushes the ball for an astounding 318.3 YPG (fifth-most in nation), and puts up 38.6 PPG, which ranks 18th nationally. Dual-threat junior QB Nick Marshall leads that effort with both his arm and legs. He has thrown for 1,627 yards (8.1 YPG) with 11 TD and 5 INT, but he has run for 922 yards on 6.6 YPC with 10 rushing scores. He runs the option with RB Tre Mason, who has 1,317 rushing yards (5.6 YPC) and 18 TD. Mason rumbled for 164 yards (5.7 YPC) against Alabama's fierce defense, giving him four straight games of at least 115 yards on the ground. Also don’t forget about Corey Grant who averages an amazing 9.8 yards per carry, gaining 585 yards and five scores. Junior Cameron Artis-Payne (573 rush yards, 6.5 YPC, 5 TD) is also effective, but has a mere 14 carries since the start of November. Marshall’s No. 1 target in the passing game this year has been sophomore WR Sammie Coates (747 rec. yards, 6 TD) who averages a hefty 23.3 yards per reception, including two catches for 60 yards last week. Auburn’s defense gives up only 22.5 PPG (31st in FBS) despite allowing 414 total YPG, 4.4 yards per carry and 7.3 yards per pass attempt. These Tigers also need to force more turnovers, tallying just two takeaways over the past three contests combined.