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Auburn quarterback Nick Marshall throws a pass during the A-Day game on April 19, 2014, in Jordan-Hare Stadium in Auburn, Alabama. (Julie Bennett/jbennett@al.com)

Save your breath, and hold your tongue. I k

now already. Auburn and Alabama don't play today. They don't play for 222 days, which is plenty of time for stars to rise and fall, injuries to mount and heal and fortunes to change for better or worse.

With that disclaimer out of the way, with spring practice concluded at both programs, it's time to offer one prediction that simply can't be proven wrong.

If they played today, Auburn would beat Alabama for the second year in a row, probably to win the SEC West and earn a spot in the SEC Championship Game, possibly to move within a game of the first College Football Playoff.

It would be a close game. The days of 42-14 and 49-0 appear to be over as long as Nick Saban stays in Tuscaloosa and Gus Malzahn remains in Auburn.

It would be a game that could go either way in the fourth quarter just like their last meeting last November when they started the last 15 minutes dead even and produced these fireworks: a 99-yard Alabama touchdown pass, a 39-yard Auburn touchdown pass and a 109-yard Auburn return of a missed field goal for a touchdown.

That game was headed to overtime until Malzahn and his staff outsmarted Saban and company by dropping Chris Davis deep on that final, fateful field-goal try, maybe the best just-in-case decision in college football history.

That game was that close, and there's no reason to think the sequel will be any less of a struggle.

There is one good reason to think Auburn would win again if they played today, and it comes down to who's better at what they do best.

Alabama may have the best defense in the nation, but only if a young and unproven secondary grows up and steps up in a hurry. Auburn may have the best offense in the country, no asterisk required, and it looks like the Tigers may have a passing game as dangerous as their running game.

It's dangerous to draw conclusions or make predictions based on a spring game, but it is possible to see talent at work. By that measure, it's clear that Auburn has upgraded its receiving corps with the addition of juco standout D'haquille (call him Duke) Williams.

With Sammie Coates on one side and Williams on the other, coupled with a combo of Ricardo Louis, Quan Bray and Marcus Davis in the slots, defenses are going to have a hard time choosing which guy to double-team. Play nickel or dime, and they play right into the hands of the read-option running game with Cameron Artis-Payne and Corey Grant.

Then there's quarterback Nick Marshall, who may have been the SEC's real MVP last season. He's older, wiser and sharper throwing the ball. If there's a legit Heisman candidate in the state going into the season, he's it.

At the moment, Marshall and a proven offensive line are the biggest differences between the Tigers and the Tide.

Remember this: Defense doesn't always win games, let alone championships. Auburn proved that in 2010 when it won the BCS title and again last season when it won the SEC with a superior offense. T

hat offense has a chance to be better this season.

The Alabama defense should be improved itself, with a downright nasty front seven featuring A'Shawn Robinson up front and Trey DePriest and Reggie Ragland in the middle, but it remains to be seen how good the secondary will be. The young but talented defensive backs should get better with game experience.

Another reason the Crimson Tide should be glad it doesn't face the Tigers until November: Jacob Coker is still a Florida State student today.

Alabama is going to have to score points to beat Auburn. Last year 28 points behind a fifth-year senior quarterback with two national championship rings wasn't enough. It remains to be seen whether Coker can throw and the offensive line can block well enough for the playmakers at running back, wide receiver and tight end to do their thing.

Throw in the X-factor of new coordinator Lane Kiffin calling plays, and it's naturally going to take time for the Alabama offense to find its groove.

For all those reasons, if they played today, Auburn would beat Alabama in another game for the ages.

As for what's going to happen Nov. 29 in Bryant-Denny Stadium, check back a little later - preferably after they've each played at least one real game.