Arkansas State will arrive at Jordan-Hare Stadium today having won three of its last four season openers, including a 61-0 home win against Mississippi Valley State to open up its 2009 campaign.

But there’s one major factor looming over the Red Wolves’ heads leading into their matchup against Auburn. Arkansas State holds a 1-46-3 all-time mark against SEC opponents, and lost to the Tigers, 27-0, in the teams’ only meeting back in 2006.

Although Arkansas State limped to a 4-8 record last season, it nearly beat Iowa and Troy early in the year and the program has plenty of experience against traditionally top-tier teams.

So don’t expect there to be a youth movement today against Auburn. Arkansas State coach Roberts will be playing with a group used to the scene Jordan-Hare will provide tonight.

“We won’t put a lot of the players out on the field that haven’t been in that situation before,” Roberts said.

“There’s always a wrinkle in each gameplan that you haven’t seen before,” he added of Auburn. “There’ll be some things they do that’ll try to catch us by surprise. They’ll change the tempo.”

Hugh Freeze will make his debut Saturday as the offensive coordinator for the Red Wolves.

Freeze was Michael Oher’s high school coach at Briarcrest Christian School in Memphis, Tenn., a sideline stint that was brought out in Hollywood by the movie, “The Blind Side.” He later became an assistant coach at Mississippi and then led Lambuth University on the sidelines until the end of last season.

Redshirt sophomore quarterback Ryan Aplin will have a lot of weight on his shoulders, as the Red Wolves lost most of the key components to their offense after last year. The Red Wolves are now without quarterback Corey Leonard, three-time 1,000-yard rusher Reggie Arnold and wide receivers Brandon Thompkins and Taylor Clements.

Aplin stepped in to start three games last season, throwing for 899 yards and three touchdowns, and rushing for 253 yards and four scores.

But Aplin and the Red Wolves are the ones coming into tonight’s game with nothing to lose and a chance to double their win total against SEC schools.

“Arkansas State has done some really good things in the past when it comes to playing the Iowas of the world like they did last year,” Auburn head coach Gene Chizik said. “They took Texas down to the wire a couple of years ago. This head coach, Coach Roberts, has been there nine years.

“Defensively, they’re always one or two in the league, probably the last three or four years in their conference. They’ve got a new offense that is fast-tempo.”

Defensive end Bryan Hall, the Sun Belt Conference Preseason Defensive Player of the Year, will anchor a unit that hopes to shut down Cameron Newton in his debut at quarterback for the Tigers. But with four starters returning on Auburn’s offensive line, Hall’s crew will open the season with perhaps its toughest challenge right off the bat.

If anything, Arkansas State will receive $1 million to just show up and play at Auburn.

“Obviously, we’re all playing these games to assist our athletic department budget,” Roberts said. “They’re good for our program. We’re a Division-I school. We need to be playing some quality Division-I opponents. I think the thing in the Sun Belt that makes it very difficult is when you play three or four of them every year, and they’re games that are very, very difficult to walk away with the check and the win.”

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