This is an opinion column.

Every week a panel of AL.com sports staffers do our best to pick college football games against the spread.

To say it’s been a slog this year is far too generous but this isn’t about our collective failures. One wise guy in the bunch saw this week’s Auburn-Mississippi State showdown and cracked a joke.

Now this was a meeting between the two lowest-scoring offenses in league games this season so the door was open. This smart alec saw the low-hanging fruit and snatched it.

Predicted score: Auburn 3, Mississippi State 2.

You know why.

So one could assume that first half came as a surprise to most — especially the comedian in pick ’em panel.

And while a 27-13 Auburn win won’t look like an offensive eruption when the record books yellow, context matters.

More importantly, the Tigers won their first SEC game in five tries, ending any thought of a repeat of 2012′s winless league slate.

An Auburn offense, one that’s looked as bad as any since the 5-point night 15 years ago in Starkville, found life. It took the form of something akin to what a reasonable viewer could’ve envisioned when Hugh Freeze left exile and returned to the SEC.

They could pass.

There was pace.

Seriously, Auburn passed the ball successfully.

This was a Tiger offense that averaged exactly 105.0 yards through the air in four league games by a margin of 25.5 yards. No SEC team has finished a season within five yards of that crevice since Vanderbilt in 2010.

So any reasonable viewer would be surprised to see this Auburn offense get half of its average passing output on the opening drive.

Payton Thorne completed 10 of his first 11 passes for 134 yards to nine different Tigers.

The Michigan State transfer entered Saturday with five touchdown passes in 130 throws had two among his first nine Saturday and three total. His 20-for-26 performance with 230 yards was easily Thorne’s most complete in an Auburn uniform.

A full 60-minute performance is the next goal as the Tigers hit cruise control and coasted probably more than that reasonable viewer would’ve wanted.

But gaining 301 of the 416 before halftime was notable for a few reasons. First, it bettered the total output from this offense in four of the five games against Power 5 competition and came just six yards short of the fifth.

In terms of passing yards, the 230 total easily eclipsed all outings against everyone but FCS-level Samford (340).

Again, context is important, and it cuts both ways.

This was a Mississippi State defense that ranked 89th nationally against the pass. The Bulldogs allowed 297 through the air to Western Michigan on Oct. 7 before last week’s statistical anomaly. It held Arkansas to 97 passing yards in a 7-3 win that would strengthen the argument for two single-digit scoring totals Saturday in Jordan-Hare.

It’s also worth noting Mississippi State was playing without decade-long starting QB Will Rodgers and starting running back Jo’Quavious “Woody” Marks. Backup Mike Wright was a grab-bag of the quarterback experience by completing 16 of 32 passes for 161 yards, one incredible score and an arm punt of an interception. He also ran it for 63 yards for a Bulldog offense that put up 345 yards but didn’t put enough heat on Auburn after halftime to make things interesting.

Ultimately, it was a good day for Auburn to catch a few breaks and a tailwind. The Tigers’ next two SEC opponents — Vanderbilt and Arkansas — are a combined 0-9 in league play before New Mexico State visits Nov. 18. That leaves three solid opportunities for this Auburn offense to mature into the team observers — reasonable and otherwise — thought possible before the weekend everyone’s eyeballing.

Iron Bowls in Jordan-Hare are almost always fascinating and should Auburn ride this momentum and nail the timing of Freeze’s fast-paced plan, who knows?

It’s all about learning from mistakes and that goes for quarterbacks and sports writers who think they’re super clever.

Maybe I’ll grow up by then.

Michael Casagrande is a reporter for the Alabama Media Group. Follow him on Twitter @ByCasagrande or on Facebook.