On Saturday night with an excited crowd at Jordan-Hare Stadium, the Tigers were looking for a big upset over 13th-ranked Ole Miss. Despite the energy, Auburn was not enough versus Ole Miss. Auburn stayed in the game until late when Quinshon Judkins put the Rebels up by two scores. The passing game was a problem as it has been all season for the Tigers. They finished with 122 yards through the air, but at one point in the fourth only had 26. The quarterback musical chairs between Payton Thorne and Robby Ashford continued with neither being able to get into rhythm. Jarquez Hunter was the star for Auburn with 91 rushing yards and two touchdowns. For Ole Miss, Judkins lead their rush attack going for 124 yards and one touchdown. Quarterback Jaxson Dart passed for 202 yards with one touchdown. Dart also rushed for 44 yards and one score. With the loss, Auburn drops to 3-4 and 0-4 in the SEC.
Auburn Not Enough Versus Ole Miss
Fun First Quarter
With Ashford getting the start, the Tigers were able to move down the field but were stopped at midfield on a fourth-and-one attempt. Ole Miss started their first possession at the Auburn 48 and overcame multiple penalties. The Rebels also overcame a third and 22 play that saw Judkins pick up 21 yards. As Lane Kiffin is known to do, he went for it on fourth down and one. Judkins took the ball again this time going for 17 yards. A few plays later Dart connected with Zakhari Franklin for an 11-yard touchdown. The Tigers had chances to get off the field, but instead, Ole Miss took an early 7-0 lead with 4:55 left in the first quarter.
Thorne took the reigns on the next Auburn possession, but the quarterback was not the story here. After four plays the Tigers faced a third and six at their own 47. Thorne gave the handoff to Hunter, and he busted through for a 53-yard touchdown run to tie the game at 7. That was the kind of explosive play the offense needed and it was the longest run for Hunter this season. Previously it was a 19-yard run in the 14-10 win over Cal in week two. The Rebels answered with a big run of their own. Facing another fourth and one, Dart faked a toss and ran for a 30-yard touchdown. That put Ole Miss back up 14-7 with 24 seconds left in an action-packed first quarter.
Auburn Ties It
Auburn would have to punt to open the second period, and the Rebels looked to add to the score. The Auburn defense had other ideas and got their first stop of the night. Dart looked to go down the field, but the ball was tipped and picked off by Donovan Kaufman. He gave the offense great field position with a return of 41 yards to put Auburn to the Rebels 24. Ole Miss got more of the Auburn run game. Ashford got the Tigers to the one-yard line off a 15-yard run, and then Hunter took a direct snap for a short touchdown. Before the Ashford run Hunter rushed for eight yards on two carries. The game was now tied at 14 with 11:44 until halftime.
The two teams then exchanged punts, and the Ole Miss run game got rolling again. This time it was the combined efforts of Judkins and Ulysses Bentley IV. The two rushed for 52 yards, but the drive stalled. The Rebels had a third and goal after an intentional grounding call on Dart. The field goal attempt was disastrous when the snap could not be secured, and Zion Puckett intercepted a pass. Neither team would score any more points, and they went into the locker room tied at 14.
Kicking Contest
For most of the third quarter, it was a punting contest between the two teams. That was until towards the end of the quarter when the passing game of the Rebels took off. Ole Miss went on an eight-play, 89-yard that ended with a Dart one-yard rushing touchdown as the period ended. On third and three at their own 17 Dart connected with Tre Harris for a 29-yard play to jump-start the drive. The two connected again on the next play for 24 yards to get the Rebels to the Auburn 29. A facemask then put Ole Miss in the red zone.
Ole Miss Pulls Away
The Auburn offense opened the final quarter with the ball and the issue that has plagued them all season did once again. The lack of the passing game did them in on a third and six play. Instead of even attempting a pass, they went with a run play with Hunter that only gained three yards. That would follow with another Oscar Chapman punt, and at this point in the game, the Tigers had just 26 passing yards. The Auburn defense was once again asked to bail them out, but this time they were unable to do so. The Tigers had a chance to put Ole Miss way behind the chains, but Dart made a play.
It was second and 15 when Dart went back to pass, and Auburn’s Austin Riley had a chance at a sack. He missed and Dart rushed for an 18-yard gain. He followed that up with a 36-yard completion to Harris to get Ole Miss to the Tigers eight. Four plays later Judkins would score a four-yard touchdown. That score put them up 28-14 with 7:51 remaining.
That touchdown took a lot of the air and excitement out of Jordan-Hare Stadium when Ole Miss went up by two touchdowns. The Tigers would put another score on the board when Thorne found Rivaldo Fairweather with 56 seconds left to play. That made the score 28-21, and the Tigers attempted an onside kick that was unsuccessful. The Rebels then ran out the clock for the victory. Auburn was not enough versus Ole Miss on Saturday night.
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