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FACTS & STATS: Site: Neyland Stadium (104,000) -- Knoxville, Tennessee. Television: ESPN. Home Record: Auburn 4-0, Tennessee 2-1. Away Record: Auburn 0-0, Tennessee 0-1. Neutral Record: Auburn 0-0, Tennessee 0-0. Conference Record: Auburn 1-0, Tennessee 0-1. Series Record: Auburn leads, 26-21-3.

GAME NOTES: The undefeated Auburn Tigers continue to be impressive under the guidance of first-year head coach Gene Chizik, and they will battle SEC rival Tennessee in Knoxville on Saturday night.

In all four of their victories this season, the Tigers have come from behind, but the team has played at an extremely high level after shaky starts. Last weekend, they cruised to a 54-30 decision over Ball State in a game that wasn't nearly as close as the final score suggests. The lone SEC contest so far for Auburn came against Mississippi State two weeks ago and resulted in a 49-24 triumph.

As for Tennessee, it halted a two-game skid with a 34-23 victory over Ohio University last week. The Vols, who lost to top-ranked Florida two weeks again in a game that was much closer than most expected, will attempt to avoid a potentially crippling 0-2 start to SEC play. Like Auburn, Tennessee has a new leader in the fold, as Lane Kiffin is in his first season as head coach of the program.

Auburn owns a 26-21-3 edge over Tennessee in the all-time series between the two teams, which includes a 14-12 triumph over the Vols a year ago.

Chizik was formerly the defensive coordinator at Auburn, so many thought that a great emphasis would be placed on the defense upon his hiring as the program's head coach. Surprisingly, however, the Tigers have made headlines with an explosive offense that has led to 45.2 ppg and 526.2 total ypg. Chris Todd has been sensational, passing for 1,012 yards and 11 touchdowns with only one interception. He has a favorite receiver in Darvin Adams, who has made 20 grabs for 334 yards and five scores. As for the ground attack, Ben Tate leads the way with 412 yards, while Onterio McCalebb is close behind with 365 yards and three scores. In last weekend's beating of Ball State, Auburn finished with 560 total yards en route to seven offensive touchdowns. Todd tossed five scores with no picks, including a pair of touchdown strikes to Terrell Zachery. McCalebb posted 83 yards and a touchdown on only eight rushing attempts in a game that Auburn seemingly could do no wrong offensively.

Opponents are scoring 24.2 ppg against Auburn, which is allowing 327.8 ppg. Many of the points scored by the opposition have come after the outcome of games has been long decided, so the defense hasn't played quite as poorly as the scoring output indicates. The Tigers are permitting less than four rushing yards per carry and only 9.8 yards per pass completion. They have already intercepted eight passes and have four fumble recoveries to their credit, good for an average of three takeaways per contest. Josh Bynes leads Auburn with 34 total tackles, and Antonio Coleman has 4.5 TFLs to date. Of the 30 points scored by Ball State against the Tigers last weekend, 13 came in the fourth quarter of what was a blowout. Sure, the Cardinals kept possession of the ball for nearly 36 minutes in the clash, but they still managed only 260 total yards.

Tennessee is averaging 31.2 ppg this season and 368.5 total ypg, solid numbers for a team with some talented performers. Montario Hardesty has been the top performer for the offense, as the tailback has rushed for 485 yards and four touchdowns while averaging 5.8 yards per rushing attempt. Bryce Brown, a highly regarded freshman, has 215 rushing yards to his credit and figures to see an increased role in the offense as the season continues. As for the quarterback, Jonathan Crompton, he has completed 57.9 percent of his passes for 641 yards and seven touchdowns. While those numbers appear to be solid, the fact that he has thrown eight interceptions suggests that Crompton needs to play much better to hold on to his job and keep the Vols in contention for a bowl game. Against Ohio University last weekend, Crompton connected on half of his 34 passes for 222 yards and two touchdowns with one interception. Hardesty was impressive as usual with 140 rushing yards on 20 carries, and he scored a touchdown on an 11-yard run in the first quarter.

Sure, Tennessee hoped for better than a 2-2 start to this campaign, but the defense has played well to date. Opponents are scoring a lackluster 18.0 ppg against the Vols, who are yielding 233.0 total ypg. They have been particularly strong against the run, limiting foes to 2.7 yards per carry. As for the pass defense, opposing quarterbacks are gaining 9.1 yards per completion, so Kiffin and his staff can feel good about that figure as well. Tennessee has generated eight turnovers and held foes to 34 percent success on third down conversion attempts. Add 10 sacks to the mix and the Vols are a dangerous group. Eric Berry leads the club with 31 total tackles, and the safety is one of the nation's truly elite defenders. Ohio University posted 340 total yards against Tennessee last weekend en route to 23 points, and the Vols can certainly play better than they did in that tilt. Only 21 of those yards came on the ground, meaning that the Bobcats threw for 319 yards. It did, however, take them 52 passes to get to that total.

Sure, Tennessee has the advantage of playing at home this weekend, but the Tigers are simply a better team and will prove it. Todd will take care of the ball and lead a balanced attack to victory.

Sports Network Predicted Outcome: Auburn 27, Tennessee 20