AU 34 Ole Miss 48 Postgame Thread

[aubiefifty 16,778]

guys...................GUYS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! i am on the phone with steve spurrier. should i invite him down?

[AUApostle 7,651]

JHead’s segment at 5:41:38 mark…few tidbits about new names emerging for AD…

 

[TeamZero77 1,784]

2 hours ago, aubiefifty said:

if you take away the gimme mizzou gave us we have not won a single sec game. that got chiz fired. i doubt hars makes it to the end of the year.

When you go back to our last 5 games of last season, which were all 5 losses, and count in this year Harsin is 3-9 his last 12 games. Chizik got fired after he was 3-9 in 2012 and he had just won a Natty 2 years earlier. Harsin has got to be canned ASAP. When you figure in his 9-11 record, a 5 game losing streak last year and now a 3 game losing streak this year that's about to get worse, his pathetic recruiting and use of the transfer portal, terrible clock management and many more things he is bad at, that tells me he is the worst football coach in Auburn history. There may be a coach that had a worse record but it had to be 100 or more years ago. Harsin is the worst I can think of. Even worse than Barfield.

[icanthearyou 4,462]

20 minutes ago, augolf1716 said:

Only thing i can find don't see Caddy

 

Looking at the body language, I would say he knows that this time next year, he will be coaching high school football in Idaho.

[aubiefifty 16,778]

1 minute ago, TeamZero77 said:

When you go back to our last 5 games of last season, which were all 5 losses, and count in this year Harsin is 3-9 his last 12 games. Chizik got fired after he was 3-9 in 2012 and he had just won a Natty 2 years earlier. Harsin has got to be canned ASAP. When you figure in his 9-11 record, a 5 game losing streak last year and now a 3 game losing streak this year that's about to get worse, his pathetic recruiting and use of the transfer portal, terrible clock management and many more things he is bad at, that tells me he is the worst football coach in Auburn history. There may be a coach that had a worse record but it had to be 100 or more years ago. Harsin is the worst I can think of. Even worse than Barfield.

wait until he is gone and you hear the whole story.........

[aubiefifty 16,778]

Instant Analysis: Auburn loses 48-34 at No. 9 Ole Miss

Updated: Oct. 15, 2022, 4:15 p.m.|Published: Oct. 15, 2022, 3:44 p.m.

4-5 minutes

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By

• Nubyjas Wilborn | nwilborn@al.com

Auburn (3-4, 1-3) is on a three-game losing streak after failing to overcome a 21-0 deficit during Saturday’s 48-34 loss against No. 9 Ole Miss at Vaught-Hemingway Stadium.

Quinshon Judkins was one of three Rebels to run for over 100 yards. Judkins’ 41-yard score in the fourth quarter was his third touchdown and put Ole Miss ahead 48-34 with 6:26 left in the game.

Auburn settled for an Anders Carlson field goal on the drive before Judkins went for the touchdown to ice the game. Robby Ashford lost four yards on 1st and goal from the two with a little over 10 minutes left in the game and the Tigers trailing by 10 points. The drive stalled at the 10 with Carlson nailing the 28-yard field goal. A rare miscue by Tank Bigsby on third down drew a five-yard penalty pushing to 3rd and 11.

Ole Miss outscored Auburn 14-0 in the first quarter. Dayton Wade caught a 35-yard touchdown from Rebel quarterback Jaxon Dart at the 6:42 mark in the first. Running back Zach Evans corraled the second score for 23 yards. Evans scored his second touchdown of the game on a 2-yard rush on second down.

Dart, Evans, and Judkins each rushed for over 100 yards on a night that saw Auburn allow 448 rushing yards. It was the first time Auburn allowed over 400 yards on the ground since 2015 against LSU.

Auburn falls to 9-11 under second-year coach Bryan Harsin heading into the bye week. The Tigers are 3-9 since last season’s victory over No. 10 Ole Miss at Jordan Hare. Auburn was 6-2 after beating the Rebels last Halloween weekend and hasn’t beaten a ranked opponent since that win. The Tigers are 1-7 in their last eight SEC games since beating Ole Miss last season.

Here are AL.com’s key takeaways from Saturday’s game at Ole Miss.

Turnovers and bad breaks

Ole Miss scored its first touchdown on a short field after Ashford threw an interception with Wade’s catch. T.J. Finley made his return to the lineup since getting benched during the Penn State loss. Finley’s stay was short and ended with a fumble that led to the second Ole Miss touchdown.

Rebels’ coach Lane Kiffin went into his trick bag in the third quarter with an onsides kick after a 23-yard field goal that put Ole Miss ahead 31-24 with 9:50 left in the quarter. There’s no analytics book that will a coach to make that call. If it fails the Rebels give up great field position to Auburn. The gamble paid off with a Judkins touchdown and the Rebels led 38-24 with less than seven minutes left in the third quarter.

Redemption for Ashford.

Ashford regained the reins of the offense on the drive after Finley’s fumble that led to the third touchdown by Ole Miss. He drove the Tigers down the field for a nine-play 75-yard drive that he finished with a two-yard touchdown on a quarterback keeper. Ashford threw two interceptions, including one with 2:15 left in the fourth quarter. He also battled through a tough game and finished with 140 passing yards and 35 rushing yards with two touchdowns.

Big day for Bigsby

Ole Miss had nearly 500 yards on the ground, however, the Tigers had the leading rusher. Tank Bigsby had 179 rushing yards on 20 carries. His 50-yard running score brought the Tigers within four points of Ole Miss. Auburn trailed 28-24 early in the third quarter.

The Tigers had 301 running yards. Jarquez Hunter ran 80 yards on 10 carries. Auburn had success running the ball for the first time in several games. Perhaps Auburn can build on it going forward.

Nubyjas WIlborn covers Auburn for Alabama Media Group.

If you purchase a product or register for an account through one of the links on our site, we may receive compensation.

[aubiefifty 16,778]

Ole Miss’ surprise onside kick looms large for Auburn in loss

Published: Oct. 15, 2022, 6:24 p.m.

4-5 minutes

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Lane Kiffin sensed his team needed a boost — something to reenergize Ole Miss after Auburn scrapped away at a lead that was at one point 21 points in the first half.

The Rebels just kicked a short field goal, after weighing a fourth-down attempt from the Tigers’ 5-yard line, to push their lead back to seven early in the second half. Ole Miss led, 31-24, with 9:50 to go in the third quarter, but Auburn was on a role offensively. The Tigers scored on four of their last five drives and were thriving on the ground.

Read more Auburn football: Auburn’s run defense decimated by Ole Miss in worst performance in 20 years

Rewinding Auburn’s 48-34 loss to Ole Miss

What Bryan Harsin said about Auburn’s third straight loss

So Kiffin wanted to make sure Auburn’s offense didn’t have a chance to answer. The Ole Miss coach surprised Auburn with an onside kick after the field goal, and the Rebels recovered to gain an extra possession. Nine plays and 54 yards later, Ole Miss was in the end zone, and its lead was back to two touchdowns.

“That one sucked,” Auburn linebacker Owen Pappoe said. “…That one kind of hurt.”

The onside kick took everyone in Vaught-Hemingway Stadium by surprise during Ole Miss’ eventual 48-34 win. It didn’t seem like the time of game or the situation to attempt one, but Kiffin believed the gamble could pay off.

Auburn was lined up in its typical deep kick return formation, and Ole Miss didn’t tip its hand. It wasn’t until Rebels kicker Jonathan Cruz’s measured approach and sly kick that anyone on the Tigers’ side of the field realized what was happening.

The ball bounced 10 yards downfield, with the four closest players to it when it crossed the 45-yard line all wearing powder blue. Ole Miss pounced on the ball, taking over at its own 46-yard line with 9:45 to go in the third.

“It was a huge play for the players to make the play,” Kiffin said. “Looks awesome on film…. We were struggling at that point in the game, so we got the ball back in the game, so I don’t think that’s what people were anticipating in the game in a high-scoring kind of game. We got to that drive, so let’s do it…. Obviously, it helped us in the game a lot.”

Ole Miss made the most of its shocking deployment of an onside kick at that juncture. It forced Auburn’s defense to quickly return to the field — after it had just been on for a 13-play Ole Miss possession. It was a quick turnaround for the Tigers’ defense, and one that was only made more difficult by the Rebels’ use of up-tempo offense.

Ole Miss marched 54 yards over its next nine plays, all runs, with Alabama native Quinshon Judkins capping the bonus possession with a 5-yard touchdown run to make it a two-score game. Auburn was able to get back within a touchdown on Robby Ashford’s second touchdown run of the game with 2:30 to go in the period, but the extra possession — and ensuing score — allowed Ole Miss to keep Auburn at arm’s length for the remainder of the game.

Simply put: Kiffin’s gambit paid off, delivering one of the most consequential plays of the day.

“Flat out, I mean, they got us on that,” Auburn coach Bryan Harsin said. “That was a good call by them…. Plays like that — there’s O and D plays and stuff like that, but on special teams, there’s only small opportunities for plays like that. And that was a good call by them. They got it. Created momentum for them, and obviously we didn’t play it well enough. We’re gonna go back and look at it.

“There’s answers for it, there’s things you work on, but in that moment right there, you’ve got to do it. And they did it better than we did it in that moment right there. And so what you do is you take that, you learn from it, and, moving forward, you’ve got to expect those things at all times, which you talk about it, you prepare for it, but it happened in the game and it was a momentum-changer.”

Tom Green is an Auburn beat reporter for Alabama Media Group. Follow him on Twitter @Tomas_Verde.

If you purchase a product or register for an account through one of the links on our site, we may receive compensation.

[aubiefifty 16,778]

Robby Ashford shows resilience in loss against No. 9 Ole Miss

Published: Oct. 15, 2022, 6:37 p.m.

4-5 minutes

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10/15/22; Oxford, MS, USA; Robby Ashford (9) throw during Auburn vs Ole Miss Todd Van Emst/AU AthleticsTodd Van Emst//AU Athletics

By

• Nubyjas Wilborn | nwilborn@al.com

Auburn quarterback Robby Ashford bounced back from an inauspicious first quarter that saw him get temporarily benched to nearly helping his team overcome a 21-0 deficit in Saturday’s 48-34 loss against Ole Miss at Vaught-Hemmingway Stadium.

Ashford, in his fourth college start and second on the road, threw an interception to Rebels’ free safety A.J Finley on 1st and ten from the Auburn 46 with the score tied 0-0 at the 6:46 mark in the first quarter. Ashford intended the pass for running back Tank Bigsby, and Finley made a diving catch.

Ole Miss took the lead two plays later on Jaxon Dart 35 yard touchdown pass to Dayton Wade. Ashford lost nine yards recovering a fumbled snap on 1st and 10 during the ensuing drive. He got seven yards back scrambling on the next play, but an errant pass sailed away on third down. Ole Miss took advantage of good field position, scored on the drive after the setbacks, and had a 14-0 lead against Auburn.

Read More Auburn Football: ‘That one sucked’: Ole Miss’ surprise onside kick looms large for Auburn in loss

Instant Analysis: Auburn loses 48-34 at No. 9 Ole Miss

What Lane Kiffin said about No. 9 Ole Miss beating Auburn 48-34

Auburn head coach Bryan Harsin benched Ashford for the following series. T.J. Finley saw his first action since exiting the Penn State 29-point loss with a shoulder injury on Auburn’s next series. Finley fumbled on a third-down sack, and Ole Miss converted the turnover into another touchdown and had a 21-0 lead.

Harsin went back to Ashford, who at that point was 1-6 passing for five yards with the Tigers down 21-0 against a hot Ole Miss team. Ashford rewarded Harsin’s faith with a 46-yard pass to Koy Moore on 3rd and 15 from the Tigers’ 32-yard line. The Oregon transfer capped a nine-play 75-yard drive with a two-yard touchdown run with 10:46 left in the half.

“To me, as a quarterback, that’s how you should handle it,” Harsin said about Ashford’s response. “You should get in there, and you have a responsibility to go out there and lead the team and execute your assignment. You have a responsibility to go out there and do that. He’s going to touch the ball every single play.”

Ashford’s second rushing touchdown pulled the Tigers to a 38-31 deficit with 2:30 left in the third quarter. Despite being down by three touchdowns, there was an opportunity for Auburn to escape with its seventh consecutive win against the Rebels’.

“I know he had put a ball on the ground and thrown a pick,” Auburn linebacker Owen Pappoe said. “But he didn’t quit. He kept playing hard. He kept walking up to us every time we got off the field, saying, ‘I got y’all. Y’all just go out there and get the stop.’ I love the energy that he brought to us, especially when we came into the locker room at the half.”

Ashford threw an interception on Auburn’s final offensive play. The Tigers were trailing by two touchdowns with less than three minutes in the game, but Ashford went down fighting until the end.

“He did a good job extending some plays, too. He scrambled; we had some big throws down the field and also taking off and running,” Harsin said. “He had that one at the end there where had the first down -- that was a big play on fourth down. We’re in a position where we have to go -- we have to put two touchdowns on the board there -- and he got the first down for us. He utilized his legs well; he competed; made some good decisions down the field; found some open guys.”

Nubyjas Wilborn covers Auburn for Alabama Media Group.

If you purchase a product or register for an account through one of the links on our site, we may receive compensation.

[aubiefifty 16,778]

Instant Impressions: Ole Miss 48, Auburn 34

Nathan King

7-9 minutes

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OXFORD, Mississippi — Auburn found itself in one of the biggest run-game track meets in recent SEC history — and the Tigers kept up. 

But some early mistakes that led to a 21-0 second-quarter deficit were ultimately too much to overcome, as Auburn fell at No. 9 Ole Miss on Saturday afternoon, 48-34. The teams combined for 751 rushing yards in what was easily Auburn's best offensive performance of the season.

Here are Auburn Undercover's immediate takeaways from Vaught-Hemingway Stadium.

Turnover kick-starts big deficit

Just like last week’s Georgia matchup, a strong defensive start kept things even in the early going against Ole Miss. The Tigers got two stops on their first two defensive series — a fourth-and-1 stop and a fumbled snap by the Rebels on third down.

But also mirrored to last week’s Georgia loss was the fact that a short field gave the opposition a chance for an easier first scoring drive. Auburn committed its ninth turnover of the season when Robby Ashford sailed a pass over Tank Bigsby’s head on an attempted screen, and Rebels defensive back A.J. Finley dove for an interception to put Ole Miss in business at the Tigers’ 46-yard line.

A 35-yard touchdown pass from Jaxson Dart to Dayton Wade came two plays later. 

Ashford then presented two more turnover-worthy plays on the next drive, when he fumbled for a 9-yard loss on first down, then threw into coverage for what was nearly an interception on third-and-long. Ole Miss mounted a 65-yard touchdown drive and went up 14-0.

Ashford’s shaky start prompted Bryan Harsin to make a change and sub in T.J. Finley, who hadn’t played since he sustained a shoulder injury in Week 3 against Penn State. Things only got worse, though, when Finley was strip-sacked on third down, and Jared Ivey recovered at the Auburn 22-yard line.

Ole Miss scored five plays later to go up 21-0 at the start of the second quarter, following the 12th fumble of the season by an Auburn quarterback.

Second-quarter bounce-back

Auburn could have folded, but with Ashford back in following the failed Finley try at quarterback, the Tigers went 75 yards for a touchdown, helped in large part by a 46-yard completion from Ashford to Koy Moore on third down. 

Auburn’s defense generated a swift three-and-out, and the Tigers found the end zone again, this time with a 48-yard run by Jarquez Hunter getting them down inside the 5. Bigsby scored for the first time since the Missouri game two plays later to make it 21-14.

The Tigers nearly had another fourth-down stop on the Rebels’ next drive, but Zion Puckett was called for pass interference, plus an unsportsmanlike conduct on Auburn’s sideline was called, setting up Ole Miss for Zach Evans’ second touchdown of the game — this time through the air on a swing pass from Dart.

Auburn had just under 3 minutes to get points before halftime, but Ashford went backwards 10 yards, tripping in the backfield on third down as he tried to change direction. It seemed Ole Miss could have added to its lead until Keionte Scott intercepted a tipped pass inside the Rebels’ 30-yard line. 

Anders Carlson added a 42-yard field goal as time expired to make for a 28-17 game at the break.

Tigers’ best run-blocking this season

Following Auburn’s second touchdown of the day on a short score from Bigsby, it had 124 rushing yards a few minutes into the second quarter.

And that’s more than it had in any previous game against a Power Five opponent this year.

With a shuffled offensive line due to injuries — Kameron Stutts moved over to right guard; Jeremiah Wright made his first career start at left guard; and Brenden Coffey in for the injured Austin Troxell at right tackle — the Tigers were able to buck their recent run-blocking struggles. 

With more holes at the line of scrimmage than their running backs are used to — and less yards after contact — Auburn totaled 301 rushing yards Saturday afternoon, its most against a Power Five opponent since it had 345 at Arkansas in 2017.

Bigbsy's 179 yards are now the second-most of his career.

Auburn’s tailbacks had 11 rushing plays that gained double-digit yardage, which more than doubled their total from the previous four Power Five games this season combined (five). On the third play out of halftime, Bigsby had a 50-yard gallop to clip the lead further, 28-24.

Before Auburn had to pick up the pace, down 10 in the latter stages of the fourth quarter, Ashford had only attempted nine passes — though he was particularly effective on third downs. He was sacked twice, but when he put the ball in the air, he was 3-of-4 for 97 yards. On Auburn's last drive, though, he missed all three of his third-down throws.

Kiffin rolls the dice, re-assigns the pressure

The Rebels went 13 plays after Bigsby’s long touchdown run, but were still held out of the end zone and had to settle for a short field goal. 

But Lane Kiffin could sense momentum wafting over the Tigers’ sideline and rolled the dice. Ole Miss’ kickoff squad executed a surprise onside kick to perfection, and the Rebels ran their way 54 yards down the field in nine plays to retake a two-touchdown lead, 38-24.

Auburn offense doesn't flinch

The pressure had been re-assigned to Auburn, in danger of being down a couple scores heading into the fourth quarter. But Ashford and company continued to execute, this time buoyed by a 32-yard hookup from Ashford to tight end Luke Deal downfield to move the sticks on third down. Ashford found the end zone with an 11-yard scramble.

The Rebels went down and added a field goal to push the lead to 10, then Bigsby instantly flipped the field with another 50-yard pickup. A false start on Bigsby made for an 11-yard third-and-goal, though, and the Tigers had settle for a chip-shot field goal.

Ole Miss run game wins the day

The Rebels entered the game with the No. 8 rushing offense in college football, so Auburn's defense had a difficult task ahead of it. Still, the Tigers' struggles defending the run continued from last week, when Georgia dictated the pace of the second half with 295 yards on the ground.

Ole Miss ultimately won the day with a highly efficient ground game, pounding away to finish with 450 yards — the most allowed by Auburn in a game in more than 20 years. Sports Reference's game-by-game statistical data doesn't go past the 2000 season, and Ole Miss had the most against Auburn during that span.

Dart only put the ball in the air 19 times, as the Rebels were ultimately able to put the game out of reach with their rushing attack. After Auburn kicked a field goal to make it 41-34 with under 11:10 left in the game, Ole Miss tacked on 75 more rushing yards, capped by a 41-yard touchdown run from Quinshon Judkins to go up 48-34.

The Rebels' 450 rushing yards are their second-most against a current Power Five team in program history. The most? When they had 515 yards against Auburn in 1951.

7COMMENTS

A lightning delay went into effect immediately following Judkins' touchdown, lasting approximately 45 minutes. The Tigers converted a pair of fourth downs on their side of the field but couldn't get the third, with Ashford getting intercepted by Deantre Prince.

Auburn Undercover will update this story. Check back for additional information.

[Shady Hollow AU 64]

24 minutes ago, aubiefifty said:

my memory is bad but i remember an older clip with harsin and caddy looking at each other but i paid no attention. i wish the guy that saw it will tell us what you say. it is already public knowledge.

The cameras in the 2nd half did catch a quick exchange, Harsin turned his head to Caddy and clearly said Bullsh—.

[aubiefifty 16,778]

Just now, Shady Hollow AU said:

The cameras in the 2nd half did catch a quick exchange, Harsin turned his head to Caddy and clearly said Bullsh—.

i am pretty sure i saw that but i did not know it was them acting crazy. and supposedly a lot of stuff happened also and we are supposed to judge for ourselves. i would love to but hell i am partying and i do not want to spend all that time finding it.

[NWALA Tiger 3,535]

53 minutes ago, TigerTennis80 said:

I didn't notice anything regarding Caddy & Harsin. I'm curious what you saw.

Harsin wanders around aimlessly.  Caddy is hollering giving a bro hug to an ole miss staffer. Just kinda awkward to me , but I'm easily amused 

[3rdgeneration 6,469]

Boy, that clip was awkward.  Harsin’s family looked VERY uptight and uncomfortable.  They were looking around like they expected him to be fired in the spot!

[autiger88 3,777]

2 minutes ago, 3rdgeneration said:

Boy, that clip was awkward.  Harsin’s family looked VERY uptight and uncomfortable.  They were looking around like they expected him to be fired in the spot!

Well good maybe it will happen tomorrow. 

[NWALA Tiger 3,535]

43 minutes ago, augolf1716 said:

Nope

What day is the new football facility opening?      ( See what I did there)

[JDUBB4AU 5,121]

That’s for posting all the articles guys. Rough day, but brighter days ahead. War Eagle Boys . 

[Tigger1985 806]

Wouldn’t you love it if. It was back when the coaches came on after the game and took questions or comments on the radio? I saw the Auburn review the other day and not one mention of the stupid fake punt

[Never2Yield 1,005]

2 minutes ago, JDUBB4AU said:

That’s for posting all the articles guys. Rough day, but brighter days ahead. War Eagle Boys . 

Not guaranteed, but certainly hope so.

War Eagle.

[Tiger Refuge 6,662]

Yeah, I’m really thinking he’s gonna be here until the end of the season. 
 

No permanent AD yet, plus it seems that a “search” is already happening, plus getting new fb commits due to effective “structuring” outside of the the head coach….

[Hank2020 3,199]

43 minutes ago, aubiefifty said:

guys...................GUYS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! i am on the phone with steve spurrier. should i invite him down?

No, he’s probably drunk!!

[sevenlee36 1,654]

It is what it is

[TeamZero77 1,784]

1 hour ago, aubiefifty said:

i wish. i did go jam with some guys and i can still bring it.........for two songs. i did well but i am so old and fat my legs were wobbling so i went and sat down. but some young cats doubted me so i stoke a blow for geezers everywhere.

What instrument do you play Fitty? I've played guitar since age 3. Dad taught me. He was a guitarist in southern rock bands in north Alabama from 1974-1988. I started my first band at 14 yrs old. In my 40's now and still jam regularly. Les Paul's, a Gibson 335 and a Marshall amp.

[maryland tiger 616]

I know the season sucks but I am so glad that Brenden Coffey got a chance to start at right tackle; which is what I have been wanting all year. Troxell should only play in mop up duty. Jeremiah Wright did himself well today and I hope he sticks too. 

[AcUmen 242]

2 hours ago, TeamZero77 said:

Even worse than Barfield.

Yep.  People forget that Barfield actually put guys into the NFL, so he was definitely a better recruiter.  Also, his record was better.  His last 3 years, he went 6-4-1, 8-3, and 5-6.  Not great, but certainly not terrible.

Also, AU got a much better deal out of Barfield.  He was paid about $35k a year. 

[AUwent 3,748]

2 hours ago, aubiefifty said:

wait until he is gone and you hear the whole story.........

I've heard oblique references such as this on here and other (public) forums that some juicy details will come out when the deed is done. I'm extremely interested in knowing what they are.

Edited October 16, 2022 by AUwent