Oxford, Miss.— Auburn had one of its worst showings ever when it comes to defending the run. The Tigers gave up 448 yards total and allowed three different rushers to pick up more than 100 yards.
"They played hard, a good football team and we knew that. Credit to Ole Miss, those guys, they ran the ball well today and they were physical. We knew they played with tempo and their quarterback was effective as well with his legs," said Auburn head coach Bryan Harsin. "Overall, we fought today, and I saw some really positive things from a lot of our players, just their effort."
The Auburn Tigers (3-4, 1-3 SEC) took a 48-34 loss today at the hands of the No. 9 Ole Miss Rebels (7-0, 3-0 SEC).
Auburn was looking to rebound after taking a 42-10 loss to the Georgia Bulldogs in Athens, GA last week.
Ole Miss was looking to keep their undefeated season alive.
The Rebels got off to a hot start, building a quick 21-0 lead.
However, Auburn did not give up. After only picking up 23 yards in the first quarter, the Tigers turned things around by scoring touchdowns on back-to-back possessions in the second quarter.
The Rebels scored another touchdown as the first half came to a close. The scoring drive was helped along by some untimely penalties committed by Auburn, one being a pass interference call that put Ole Miss on the four-yard line.
Anders Carlson was able to put through a 42-yard field goal as time expired in the first half to make the score 28-17.
Auburn picked up 200 yards in the first half, 124 on the ground and 76 through the air. They also had four penalties for 41 yards and turned the ball over twice.
Ole Miss had 273 yards in the first half, 164 passing and 109 rushing. They also turned the ball over once.
Auburn got the ball to start the second half and it wasted no time. The Tigers scored in just three plays as Tank Bigsby broke off a 50-yard touchdown run for his second of the day. This made it a one-score game.
Ole Miss was able to quickly take control of the momentum again. The Rebels' opening drive of the second half covered 73 yards in 13 plays and ended with a field goal. They successfully recovered a surprise onside kick which let to a touchdown, putting them up 38-24.
"They got us on that. I think we had guys in position, I don’t know exactly but my guess is that we hesitated to make a play," Harsin said. "They saw something, but that was a good play by them. We’ll go back and we’ll have a reason why it didn’t go our way, but it doesn’t matter in the game”
Auburn answered back with an eight-play, 75-yard drive that was capped off with Robby Ashford's second rushing touchdown of the day. This once again made it a one-score game.
The Rebels added on another field goal early in the fourth quarter to increase their lead to 10.
Auburn's next drive was a contributing factor as to why they did not come out on top today. They were able to drive all the way up to the Ole Miss two-yard line, but had to settle for a field goal.
Ole Miss responded with an eight-play, 75-yard drive that ended in a 41-yard touchdown run by Quinshon Judkins.
A weather delay stopped the game with about six minutes left to play. When play resumed, Robby Ashford threw an interception that allowed the Rebels to run out the clock.
Robby Ashford ended up going 8-17 passing for 140 yards and throwing two interceptions. Tank Bigsby ran for 179 yards and two touchdowns off of 20 carries, and Jarquez Hunter ran for 80 yards off of 10 carries. Koy Moore was Auburn's leading receiver in yards with 46 off of one catch, and Ja'Varrius Johnson led them in catches with two good for 10 yards.
Jaxson Dart went 9-19 passing for 130 yards and three touchdowns as well as throwing one interception. Quinshon Judkins rushed for 139 yards and two touchdowns off of 25 carries and Zach Evans rushed for 136 yards and one touchdown off of 21 carries. Jordan Watkins was the leading receiver for Ole Miss with 43 yards off of four catches.
Auburn will be back in action in two weeks against the Arkansas Razorbacks at home in Jordan-Hare Stadium.
