Auburn's OL found its groove. Now it must handle a major loss — and an unusual LSU matchup

A new-look front five overcame an early storm at UGA to produce solid results. Doing that without Brandon Council will be critical, starting this week.

LG Tashawn Manning (Todd Van Emst/Auburn Athletics)

After a nightmare performance for virtually everyone involved with Auburn’s offense at Georgia in Week 2, the Tigers’ offensive line started to establish a rhythm in Week 3 at Arkansas.

That line paved the way for a strong ground game, as Auburn rushed for more than 250 yards against an SEC opponent for only the third time in the last three seasons. The pass protection problems from the visit to Georgia were a lot less noticeable.

A week later, Auburn didn’t come up with the victory at South Carolina — largely because of three interceptions inside its own territory — but the offense once again rushed for more than 200 yards and cut down the sacks and pressures allowed.

Then came the win at Ole Miss, where quarterback Bo Nix looked the most comfortable he’s been in a game away from Jordan-Hare Stadium and the Tigers rushed for 200-plus yards for a third straight week.

“I think it really speaks volumes to our offensive line,” Nix said afte…