AUBURN – The Auburn Tigers football team changed things up with a 90-minute special teams practice on Thursday morning as preparations for the 2011 Chick-fil-A Bowl continued.

“Practice was great,” special teams coach Jay Boulware said. “Coach Chizik likes to run our program here at Auburn like an NFL team. Basically, we had an NFL special teams practice today. It allowed us to hone in on some things game plan wise and we were able to go back and refine some things we haven’t touched on in a while since our last ball game.

“It was crisp. It was sharp. It was kind of touch up in some areas and put some guys in that may have been out before that are healthy now and getting ready to go for the game against Virginia.”

It’s essential for Auburn to dedicate time to special teams as it continues to solidify the program’s spot as one of the top special teams units in the SEC.

“The continued development in that area is important to us,” Boulware said. “As good as we played this year, I’m able to say that now, now that it’s over. Finishing up number one in the conference in kick-off coverage, number one in the conference in kick-off return, number three in punt. If you add those four categories up, we are number one in the SEC in special teams by all four of the categories. Our continued development in that area, to work to get better, is essential to the development of this program.”

The Tigers will take on the Virginia Cavaliers Dec. 31 at 6:30 p.m. It will be the third meeting between the two teams and the first since 1998. Auburn defeated Virginia 28-17 in Charlottesville in 1997, but lost 19-0 in Auburn in 1998.

Auburn is making its fifth appearance in the Chick-fil-A Bowl. The Tigers are 3-1 in four previous games with the last coming in 2007.

Courtesy Auburn Athletic Media Relations