AUBURN - After four consecutive losses, Auburn is back in the win column following a 24-10 win over Kentucky on Saturday night in Lexington.
The Tigers (3-5) avoided their worst start in conference play since 2012.
Here are the biggest takeaways from the game:
Slow start
You couldn’t have drawn up a worse start to the game for Auburn, both offensively and defensively. The Tigers’ defense gave up 10 points and 100 total yards on Kentucky’s first two drives and had no answer for Dane Key, who caught two passes for 55 yards.
A special teams penalty – yes, another special team penalty on Auburn’s kickoff return team – set the Tigers back inside their own 10-yard line for their first offensive drive, which ended in a three-and-out. On the ensuing drive, Payton Thorne threw an interception over the middle of the field, followed by a punt, and it seemed things were setting up for disaster early on.
On the season, Auburn’s defense has given up points on the first drive to every Power-Four opponent except Arkansas – which scored on its second drive. Offensively, the Tigers opening drives against Power-Four opponents, apart from the Cal game, has resulted in either a punt or an interception.
Defense responds
After giving up 100 yards on the first two drives, Auburn’s defense gave up just 45 yards the remainder of the first half and finished the night by holding the Wildcats to just 224 yards.
Auburn held Kentucky to just six yards in the third quarter, partly because the Tigers' offense held the ball for 11:31. A huge goal line stand in the fourth quarter, where Kayin Lee picked off Kentucky quarterback Gavin Wimsatt, ensured the Wildcats would remain scoreless after their first two drives.
Dorian Mausi – 10 tackles – led the Tigers defense which forced five punts and two turnovers
No answer for Jarquez Hunter
Good things happen when Jarquez Hunter has the ball in his hands.
Hunter received just five carries in the first half – only one in the first quarter – and rushed for 64 yards, with each carry resulting in at least 10 yards. He received nine carries on the opening drive of the second half, which resulted in a touchdown and broke off a 50-yard run on the ensuing drive. He had a 45-yard touchdown run in the fourth quarter, and thinking his night may be over he capped it off with another 46-yard run on Auburn’s final drive.
Kentucky came into the game with one of the best defenses against the run, allowing 104.7 yards on the season.
Hunter averaged 12.1 yards per carry, and his career-high 278 yards rushing was the fourth-best single-game performance in program history.
Situational Awareness lacking for Thorne
Though Auburn won the game, Payton Thorne had a few head-scratching plays for a fifth-year starting quarterback in the SEC.
With under 18 seconds left in the first half and Auburn in scoring position, Thorne took a sack in a situation where the Tigers had no timeouts remaining and they were unable to get the field goal unit on the field in time before the clock ran out. Again, in the second half, Thorne backed the Auburn offense up on a drive that was moving at will when he was called for an intentional grounding for throwing the ball away on a play in which he did not receive the initial snap.
If you are Hugh Freeze, you would like to see your veteran quarterback have better situational awareness on plays like those.
The Tigers will be back in Jordan-Hare Stadium next week as they host Vanderbilt in another SEC showdown. Kickoff will either be at 11 a.m. CT or 11:45 CT and will be aired on either ABC, ESPN or SECN.
To connect with the author of this story or to comment, email logan.fowler@1819News.com.
Don't miss out! Subscribe to our newsletter and get our top stories every weekday morning.
