Here's how today's Auburn-South Carolina game advance starts:

AUBURN, Ala. — Early-season statement games can be misleading.

Case in point: Two years ago, after LSU squeaked by Auburn in a September battle between top-10 teams. LSU ended up with a 3-5 league record, while Auburn parted ways with its head coach.

So proclamations about the outcome of tonight’s matchup at Jordan-Hare Stadium between No. 12 South Carolina and No. 17 Auburn shouldn’t be blown out of proportion.

Nevertheless, both teams think a lot is riding on this September game between teams trying to establish themselves as SEC contenders.

“It’s a lot to prove,” Auburn right guard Byron Isom said. “When you get this type of attention for this type of game, it’s really a statement game.”

Read the full thing here. And follow the blog on Twitter and Facebook.