For the first time since 2017 and just the second time since Missouri football joined the Southeastern Conference, Auburn will visit Columbia this season.

The season is getting close. Mizzou will send three players to SEC Media Days in Dallas, with quarterback Brady Cook, wide receiver Luther Burden III and defensive tackle Kristian Williams set to join coach Eli Drinkwitz on Tuesday at the unofficial beginning of the college football calendar. In seven weeks, Missouri will open its season on Aug. 29 against Murray State on Faurot Field.

MU’s game against Auburn will be its seventh of the season and is part of the Week 8 slate on Oct. 19, falling the week after the Tigers visit UMass for their final nonconference matchup of the season.

The SEC has already announced that the Missouri-Auburn matchup, which will be MU’s homecoming game, will kick off in the early window, meaning it will begin between 11 a.m. and noon on Oct. 19.

Can Missouri make sure the unusually early parade remains unspoiled?

Here’s what to know about Auburn in 2024, including key offseason additions, a coaching change and potential playmakers to keep an eye on in Columbia:

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Who are the opposing names to know when Missouri football hosts Auburn?

Quarterback: Payton Thorne will quarterback the Auburn Tigers this season after an up-and-down first season on the job. Thorne, who previously spent three years at Michigan State, threw for 1,755 yards, 16 touchdowns and 10 interceptions in 13 games last season. Auburn’s average of 162.2 passing yards per game last year was the lowest in the conference.

Offensive playmakers: Good news for Thorne: He’ll have a new pair of promising playmakers working with him in 2024. Wide receiver KeAndre Lambert-Smith transferred in from Penn State as a top-100-ranked transfer, and Auburn also signed five-star wideout Cam Coleman, who is the No. 5 player in the Class of 2024. Rivaldo Fairweather also provides an option in the air as one of the better pass-catching tight ends in the league.

Auburn’s offense can also turn to one of the top returning running backs in the SEC, Jarquez Hunter, who will likely earn a preseason All-SEC nod.

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Defensive playmakers: Appalachian State transfer Jalen McLeod, who will play a hybrid linebacker/defensive end role for Auburn, tallied 10.5 sacks for the Mountaineers last season and looks like he’ll feature heavily in Auburn’s pass-rushing core.

Indiana defensive end Philip Blidi and Kansas defensive tackle Gage Keys were the highlight portal grabs on defense for Auburn. Blidi had four tackles for loss as part of 30 total stops for the Hoosiers last season, and Keys registered 21 tackles and four QB hurries for the Jayhawks in 2023.

What did the offseason look like for Auburn?

Key additions: Lambert-Smith (WR); Coleman (WR); Blidi (DE); Jerrin Thomas (S)

Key losses: Nehemiah Pritchett (CB); Jaylin Simpson (S); DJ James (CB)

Key coaching changes: Derrick Nix (OC, Ole Miss)

Auburn’s defensive depth looks to have taken a bit of a knock between an outgoing group to both the NFL Draft and the transfer portal. Seven of AU’s defensive players were either drafted, signed UDFAs or received minicamp invites, and 13 more, mostly depth pieces, found new college programs for the upcoming season.

Auburn looks a little light at cornerback, with both of its starters from last season — like Mizzou — off to the NFL. Freeze’s Tigers replenished in the secondary with Texas transfer safety Jerrin Thomas, but they will be turning to some in-house talents for bigger roles in the new season.

On the other side of the ball, Auburn looks to be in a better place than it was a year ago, at least in terms of quality options in the passing game.

The Tigers fired offensive coordinator Phillip Montgomery in the offseason and replaced him with Ole Miss wide receivers coach Derrick Nix. Between Nix and the offensive-minded Freeze, they’ll need to get that working quickly. Patience has seldom been an abundant resource on the Plains.

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How will Mizzou and Auburn match up?

Auburn, after a 6-7 season in Year 1 of the Freeze era, has a lot of questions to answer.

Is AU’s offense going to take a step forward from the uninspiring product last season under new direction? While roster turnover has created some preseason questions, Missouri should know what it has on its defense by Week 8 and Auburn’s visit. If Auburn is still middling, that could provide a good opportunity to throw some punches.

With a lot of turnover, is Auburn’s defense deep enough to compete against strong SEC opposition? Last year, it ranked just outside the top half of the league in total defense. Meanwhile, Mizzou is expected to field one of the more promising offenses in the country, which should provide a test for even the most battle-tested defenses.

Missouri, at least in the preseason, sets up to be favored entering this game. But MU has to follow through, as it almost certainly cannot drop this contest if a berth to the expanded, 12-team College Football Playoff is to remain on the cards.

Between home games against Auburn and Oklahoma and road contests at Alabama and Texas A&M, Mizzou needs to win at least two of those to stay in the running for a CFP berth.

This article originally appeared on Columbia Daily Tribune: Here's what Missouri football can expect from Auburn in 2024 season