AUBURN — A slow start from both teams that carried on throughout the game led to Auburn’s sixth loss of the season in a 17-7 loss to Vanderbilt on Saturday in Jordan-Hare Stadium.
It marked the first time Vanderbilt has ever beat Auburn in Jordan-Hare.
With the loss, the Tigers fall to 3-6 on the season (2-9 in their last 11 FBS games) and must win out to keep their hopes at a bowl appearance alive.
Here are the biggest takeaways from the game:
Defense contains Pavia, continues to play winning football
Auburn’s defense held the dynamic quarterback in Diego Pavia in check all game and didn’t allow a completion for two quarters - second and third. The Tigers allowed just 227 yards, with 181 of those coming in the first and fourth quarters.
However, when Pavia did connect on plays through the air, they went for chunk plays. Of Pavia’s nine completions, five of them went for 15 yards or more - 21, 31, 16, 28 and 22 yards.
Vanderbilt’s offense averaged just 2.7 yards on the ground and finished with only 84 yards on the ground. They came into the game averaging 156.1 yards rushing. If you’re DJ Durkin, you couldn’t ask for much more from your squad.
It’s the first time Auburn has held an opponent to under 250 yards in a game they lost since 2015.
Auburn still cannot get out of its own way with opportunities to win
Auburn is nine games into its 2024 campaign and still continues to show a lack of discipline in critical situations and cannot get out of its own way with the game on the line.
The Tigers committed just one penalty in the first half. In the second half, they had five—three of them coming on what would have been third-down stops and one resulting in a fresh set of downs for Vanderbilt inside the Auburn five-yard line, which resulted in a touchdown two plays later.
The Tigers' defense forced eight punts in this game, and they outgained Vanderbilt by 100 yards.
Yet they still found a way to lose.
Jarquez Hunter
In case you missed it, Jarquez Hunter rushed for 278 yards last week against Kentucky and had the fourth-best rushing performance in Auburn history.
Hunter had 12 carries in Saturday’s loss to Vandy. He finished with 50 yards and only had two carries in the second half. Auburn finished with just 88 yards on 29 rushing attempts.
Freeze said he would lean on the run game and Hunter on Saturday, but the production from the Tigers’ leading rusher left a lot to be desired.
Third down offense
Auburn’s offense went 2-13 on third down. At one point in the game, the Tigers were 0-7 on third down offensively, yet they were averaging 6.1 yards per play.
On the flip side of things, Auburn held the Vanderbilt offense to 4-16 on third down. The Commodores entered Saturday’s game ranked ninth nationally, and led the SEC, in third down percentage at 49.1%
The Tigers’ offense must find ways to convert on third-and-short opportunities — especially when the defense performs exceptionally well — and they didn’t do that on Saturday.
The Tigers are off next week before hosting Louisiana Monroe on November 16.
To connect with the author of this story or to comment, email logan.fowler@1819News.com.
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