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247sports.com Despite hiccups Thorne feels on the same page in Auburn passing game Nathan King 12–16 minutes Thorne had his best road performance of the season against Vandy NASHVILLE, Tennessee — For many offenses, Saturday’s passing performance at Vanderbilt wouldn’t have been worth noting. Payton Thorne completed just over 60 percent of his passes, with under 200 yards, two touchdowns and an interception. But for Thorne, it was his best showing away from home all season, as the Tigers looked to build upon some long-awaited playmaking through the air. Despite a case of the drops for receivers and tight ends alike, Thorne looked comfortable on the road for the first time all year in a 31-15 at Vanderbilt. Entering the matchup, Thorne was just 17-of-49 passing in three road games, and he hadn’t accounted for a touchdown away from Jordan-Hare Stadium since the win at Cal in Week 2. It was by no means a perfect performance — a pick-six from Thorne’s own 4-yard line is an unsightly blemish — but the Michigan State transfer QB felt there were strides made for what was, just a couple weeks ago, the SEC’s most inefficient passing attack. “I feel like we touched a lot of different areas of the passing game today,” Thorne said postgame. “Got a couple RPOs in there, got a couple movement throws, just with spacing stuff, and then I took a couple shots. We still left some out there. So that's a little bit frustrating, but it's good to be a little bit frustrated after a win.” Thorne hit a lull along with the rest of the offense in the first half, when the Tigers punted four times, and threw the pick-six that chipped the early 14-0 lead generated by two long Jarquez Hunter touchdowns. The interception was on Thorne’s third progression, he said, on a third-and-7 from his own 4-yard line. Hugh Freeze doesn’t like throwing the football from deep in his own territory, and Thorne’s poor decision showed why. It was obviously a throw Thorne wishes he could have back, as he explained he didn’t see the defender behind Fairweather when he let the ball go. “Then I saw Rivaldo out there and I thought he was wide-open,” Thorne said. “I didn’t rifle it in there because I thought he was wide-open. So I looked out there and thought he’s going to catch it and get a first down. And until the ball got to him, I was great, and then the dude came out of nowhere and it caught me off guard. I think it was a D-end that dropped (into coverage), but I don’t know for 100 percent. That’s what I was told on the sideline. That was a tough one.” Auburn was tagged with five drops in the game, including what would have been a 59-yard touchdown in the second quarter to Omari Kelly, who was streaking behind the defense. There were a couple other close calls, too, when Thorne looked deep for Camden Brown, who looked to have an opportunity to rise up for the catch, and when Tyler Fromm was well covered on a short pass but still got both hands on the ball. Freeze wasn’t overly pleased with the protection for Thorne, either, as the quarterback was sacked twice. Some of that fell on Thorne’s shoulders, though, as the pre-snap identification of pressure at the line of scrimmage was lacking in the first half. “We didn’t protect extremely well, but some of that was Payton and (running) backs,” Freeze said. “We went the whole first half and never redirected the protection to the boundary. … We should’ve got that, and we fixed that at halftime. The back totally blew a protection one time, so it’s not always the O-line. But starting the third quarter, we protected very well because we ripped off two touchdowns pretty quick, so they played solid.” Freeze and Thorne both said they felt those issues were remedied at halftime, after which Thorne went 7-of-10 for 122 yards and two touchdowns. All three of his incompletions after halftime were drops. Thorne began getting into a rhythm right before the half when he went 3-of-4 for 34 yards to lead Auburn on a field-goal drive — though the incompletion was a dropped interception by De’Rickey Wright in the end zone on third and goal. Out of halftime, Thorne moved the chains on a third-and-4 by drawing a pass-interference call on Rivaldo Fairweather. The next play, he hooked up with his tight end for a 53-yard touchdown. Thorne also had a couple other explosive throws — a 23-yard completion to Fair on that field-goal drive before halftime, and a 39-yard catch-and-run in the third to Ja'Varrius Johnson to set up Thorne’s second touchdown pass in the third quarter — a toss sweep to Jeremiah Cobb from 5 yards out. “It gives our quarterback confidence in our receivers and just the whole offense,” Fairweather said of being able to push the ball down the field. “It shows us we have the ability to take shots down the field and make plays. It just starts in practice. We've been practicing all week, just saying that we've gotta take shots and we've gotta make big plays for our team. We just showed up big today.” Thanks to Fairweather’s touchdown, Saturday was only the second game in the last 20 years in which Auburn had three scores cover at least 50 yards apiece. “You want to get explosives on the ground and through the air,” Thorne said. “To do it both ways and be two-dimensional on offense is great. … It's good, and we've got to continue to build on that.” For Thorne, it was the first game of the entire season where backup QB Robby Ashford was never subbed in. The Tigers’ previously frequent quarterback rotation screeched to a halt last week in the win over Mississippi State, then was eliminated from the game plan completely on Saturday. “I feel like we’re on the same page right now,” Thorne said when asked how he feels about the discontinuation of the quarterback shuffle. “It helps with rhythm and being able to just know that you’re going to be out there I guess is the biggest thing. Just keep rolling, and I’m going to keep trying to put my best foot forward no matter what.” So what to make of Thorne’s outing? With a few less drops, he would have had another crisp and efficient performance. But Vanderbilt also dropped a point-blank interception in the end zone. All Thorne and the Tigers know is that the QB is growing in confidence within the offense. They hope that’s the No. 1 thing that matters. “We just started kind of slow (this season),” Fariweather said. “But, now, our quarterback, Payton, he's very confident out there. He trusts us to make the plays out there. Now we've got it going.” *** Subscribe to Auburn Undercover for the latest news and intel, podcasts, recruiting coverage and more ***

si.com Auburn's defensive PFF grades against Vanderbilt Zac Blackerby ~2 minutes Here's how Auburn's 22 defenders graded out via PFF in the win against Vanderbilt. The Auburn defense only allowed one score against the Vanderbilt offense. Auburn's defensive front held its own and the Tigers were able to limit any substantial passing threat from the Commodores. The Tigers played 22 players on defense in Saturday's win against Vanderbilt. Nehemiah Pritchett played in 61 of Auburn's 64 defensive snaps according to PFF. Fellow defensive backs Keionte Scott (59 snaps) and Jaylin Simpson (56 snaps) were the other defenders to play over 50 snaps on defense. Let's take a look at Auburn's defensive PFF grades from the win against Vanderbilt. 1. LB Austin Keys - 90.5 2. CB DJ James - 87.8 3. DL Jayson Jones - 80.7 4. DL Zykeivous Walker - 77.4 5. CB Nehemiah Pritchett - 76.7 6. DL Lawrence Johnson - 76.0 7. JACK Jalen McLeod - 73.6 7. DL Marcus Harris - 73.6 9. JACK Elijah McAllister - 71.4 10. LBEugene Asante - 70.2 11. DE Keldric Faulk - 68.6 12. DB Kayin Lee - 66.3 13. DB Jaylin Simpson - 65.4 14. DB Caleb Wooden - 63.8 15. DB Keionte Scott - 63.0 16. DB Champ Anthony - 62.3 17. DB Colton Hood - 62.0 18. LB Cam Riley - 61.9 19. DL Justin Rogers - 61.6 20. DB Zion Puckett - 57.6 21. LB Larry Nixon - 56.0 22. DB Donovan Kaufman - 47.9

saturdaydownsouth.com Hugh Freeze says he ‘didn’t sleep at all’ ahead of tough Vanderbilt game Mark Kern | 1 day ago 3–4 minutes Auburn picked up its first SEC win under Hugh Freeze last week, and the Tigers built off that and beat Vanderbilt on Saturday, 31-15. The ground game was huge for the Tigers, as Jarquez Hunter rushed the ball 19 times for 183 yards and 2 touchdowns. With the win, the Tigers are now 5-4, and only one game away from being bowl eligible. After the game, coach Huge Freeze talked about his running back’s performance, while also talking about how penalties and mistakes made the game closer than it should have been. Auburn HC Hugh Freeze on the defense: "Marcus Harris and Keionte Scott and those guys, it's personal to them that they play well and they hold each other to that standard." Freeze said Harris told him after Vanderbilt's touchdown drive "that won't happen again" it didn't — Justin Ferguson (@JFergusonAU) November 4, 2023 Hugh Freeze says he didn't sleep at all last night because of this matchup: "All I see is them playing Georgia and Missouri here, and those games were dogfights all the way into the third quarter. (Vanderbilt) had my full attention, I promise you." — Nathan King (@NathanKing247) November 4, 2023 Hugh Freeze loved Jarquez Hunter's patience today, saying, "I said, 'Cadillac, that's as patient as I've seen him on that inside zone." — Justin Hokanson (@_JHokanson) November 4, 2023 Hugh Freeze says "without the penalties and the drops, the game is out of hand." He's right. Auburn's self-inflicted wounds made this game closer than it should have been. — Justin Hokanson (@_JHokanson) November 4, 2023 It has been an up and down year for the Tigers in Freeze’s first year, but making a bowl game would be a step in the right direction. Auburn won its first 3 games of the year, but lost 4 consecutive games to start SEC play. The Tigers were very competitive against No. 2 Georgia and No. 10 Ole Miss, losing both games by one touchdown. Up next for Auburn is a game against an Arkansas team that ended a 6-game losing streak as the Razorbacks beat Florida 39-36. Last year when these teams played, Arkansas won 41-27 at Auburn. Kickoff is scheduled for 4 p.m. ET and the game will be aired on the SEC Network.

theplainsman.com ‘It almost felt like a home game:’ team praises fans after crucial road victory over Vanderbilt 5–6 minutes The stands of FirstBank Stadium, sat in the middle of Vanderbilt University, were filled with orange and blue Saturday afternoon as Auburn fans took over the Commodores’ stadium to witness Auburn’s 31-15 defeat over Vanderbilt. Players and coaches of Auburn’s football team did not let the effort of the Auburn faithful go unnoticed – praising them after the game. “I just think our fans are incredible,” said head coach Hugh Freeze. “When we got off the bus, the Tiger Walk was packed, and then you run out and I literally thought the stands behind us was pretty much all Auburn and there was quite a few orange on the other side… I’m certainly not the one to decide what percentage was Auburn, but it did not feel like we were in a typical road game.” In front of thousands of Auburn fans, the Tigers earned their second straight SEC win after starting the season 0-4. The wins marked the first time Auburn has won back-to-back SEC games since defeating Arkansas and Ole Miss in October 2021. Freeze wasn’t the only one who acknowledged that plenty of Auburn fans were in attendance. Safety Jaylin Simpson, who has plenty of experience playing on the road as he’s in his fifth season on the Plains, backed up Freeze’s praise. “It felt kind of like a home game or like a bowl game atmosphere anyway, but it was real big,” Simpson said. “We had to come get this one. I mean, we already know Vandy wasn’t the best team, but it’s still an SEC opponent. So, you gotta go out there and play four quarters.” After totaling six tackles, Simpson now sits at 28 tackles on the season with four interceptions and one fumble recovery. Running back Jarquez Hunter had statistically the best game of his career Saturday night, setting a career-high 183 yards rushing while also scoring two touchdowns. Both of his touchdowns came in the first quarter and were runs of 56 yards or more. Now in his third season on the Plains, Hunter wasn’t surprised by the support he and his teammates received. “That was great support,” Hunter said. “I mean, we had more fans than them. Auburn fans always gonna show up and support, and I love it.” Hunter has now recorded back-to-back games of 100 yards rushing or more. After rushing for just 218 yards over Auburn’s first six games of the season, the Mississippi native now sits at 636 yards rushing and seven touchdowns with an additional 94 yards receiving. Now sitting at 5-4 overall with Arkansas, New Mexico State and Alabama left on the schedule, Auburn needs just one more win to become bowl eligible. For Freeze, preseason goals are never something he’s implemented, but he made an exception before he started his first season at Auburn. “The first logical step in our rebuild here is gaining bowl eligibility, which we’ve done every year I’ve taken over a program in the first year whether it was Arkansas State, Ole Miss or Liberty,” Freeze said. Auburn failed to make a bowl game last season – going 5-7 under former head coach Bryan Harsin and interim head coach Carnell “Cadillac” Williams” – but has a shot to return to a bowl game for the first time since 2021 and win a bowl game since 2018. “We’ve got to learn from [mistakes], but man, thrilled to win a second consecutive SEC game, particularly on the road and get us one step closer to being bowl eligible,” Freeze said. Enjoy what you're reading? Get content from The Auburn Plainsman delivered to your inbox Do you like this story? The Plainsman doesn't accept money from tuition or student fees, and we don't charge a subscription fee. But you can donate to support The Plainsman. Jacob Waters | Sports Editor Jacob Waters is a senior majoring in journalism. From Leeds, Alabama, he started with The Plainsman in August, 2021. Twitter: @JacobWaters_ Share and discuss “‘It almost felt like a home game:’ team praises fans after crucial road victory over Vanderbilt” on social media.

al.com Auburn's defense 'survived the script' vs. Vanderbilt. What's that mean? Published: Nov. 05, 2023, 9:08 a.m. 5–7 minutes It’s no secret most teams open a game with a script of offensive plays. And more times than not, that script means throwing everything but the kitchen sink at an opposing defense. “The stuff you’ve been studying? They not going to run that,” said Auburn veteran defensive back Jaylin Simpson. “They going to run something completely different.” And Auburn’s defensive coaching staff emphasizes the script – or better yet, surviving the script. Vanderbilt’s offense – still without starting quarterback AJ Swann – came out swinging Saturday afternoon in Nashville as backup quarterback Ken Seals helped pilot a quick, 40-yard drive on nine plays that put the Auburn defense on its heels. Seals completed four straight passes in the opening drive, while the Commodores dialed up three run plays and averaged 6.6 yards per carry. The Vanderbilt offense was moving quick, and it was making it look easy against Auburn’s defense. But the Tigers’ defense did what it does best – it bent, but never broke. Or, as head coach Hugh Freeze puts it, they “bowed their neck.” The Commodores went on to settle for a 43-yard field goal try, only for it to sail wide right to keep the game scoreless with just over 10 minutes to play in the first quarter. The Auburn defense had survived the script. “Once we get through the script, we’ve pretty much got what we’re doing,” said Auburn defensive back DJ James. “And we’ll just adjust on the sideline.” And whatever adjustments that needed to be made against the Commodores’ offense, the Tigers made them. Following Vanderbilt’s field goal attempt to end its first drive, the Commodores were forced to punt on their next eight drives in a row. And of those eight drives, six of them were three-and-outs. When asked the success of Auburn’s defense on third down, Simpson couldn’t believe he and the Tigers kept the ‘Dores from converting a third down for as long as they did. But he was awfully impressed with himself and his teammates when he found out. “That’s elite,” Simpson said. “That’s elite.” Through the course of those eight consecutive drives, Auburn allowed Vanderbilt to tally just 50 yards of offense, meaning the Commodores were held to an average of just 6.25 yards per possession after their first drive and up until their third drive of the third quarter. Vanderbilt finally found a bit of offensive success later in the third quarter on a four-play, 44-yard drive that was bolstered by a pair of big pass plays from Seals – one for 24 yards and another for a 30-yard touchdown to Junior Sherrill. “We kind of looked like we were asleep at the wheel a little bit on that drive,” Freeze said. “But other than that, I mean, I tell you, Marcus Harris and Keionte (Scott) and those guys, they take it – it’s personal to them that they play well and that they hold each other to that standard.” Auburn was successful in getting to the backfield Saturday afternoon. With Zykeivous Walker leading the way with a pair of tackles for a loss, the Tigers’ defense tallied nine tackles behind the line of scrimmage, five sacks and a pair of quarterback hurries. “They was in their bag tonight. But that’s what we always want. That’s what they can do,” Simpson said of the guys along the defensive front. “They just need to show up and do it from here on out, really.” Meanwhile, Auburn’s secondary held up on its end of the bargain on Saturday. James led the Tigers’ tackling efforts against the Commodores with seven tackles – of which one came behind the line of scrimmage. “Seven tackles for D.J. is pretty impressive cause he’s not one… he’s not a tackling machine, typically,” Freeze said. With the help of senior defensive back Nehemiah Pritchett, Auburn was able to even Saturday’s turnover battle as Pritchett intercepted Seals late in the game, giving Pritchett his first pick of the season. And with Pritchett’s interception, all that’s left is to help Keionte Scott get an interception of his own, Simpson says. “We got one more. Keionte gotta get a pick and then that’s the whole starting backend right there,” Simpson said. “We got an incredible backend, man. I feel like we’re the best in the world, best in the SEC.” With Saturday’s 31-15 win over Vanderbilt, the Auburn defense has held all but one of its SEC opponents below their current scoring average, with the exception being LSU. Heading into Saturday, the Commodores were averaging 25.4 points per game and the Tigers’ defense held them to just eight points – a touchdown and a two-point conversion. Vanderbilt’s first score of the day came via a pick-six thrown by Auburn quarterback Payton Thorne. And like any game, Saturday’s success started with step one: surviving the script. “We survived that, man,” Simpson said. “We haven’t been starting off too hot almost every game, but we survive that script and I feel like nobody can mess with us. That plays a big role.” If you purchase a product or register for an account through a link on our site, we may receive compensation. 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247sports.com Pass rush steps up in win over Vanderbilt Jason Caldwell ~3 minutes One of the biggest issues for the Auburn Tigers throughout the 2023 season has been a lack of playmaking ability from the front four on defense, forcing Ron Roberts and his staff to dial up more and more blitzes and put the secondary in one-on-one situations. In Saturday’s win over the Vanderbilt Commodores, coach Jeremy Garrett’s group played perhaps its best game of the season in the 31-15 victory. Playing perhaps the best game of his career with a sack and two tackles for a loss, veteran Zykeivous Walker said it was the type of game he and his teammates have been looking for this season. “It was very fun,” Walker said. “Just seeing different guys going out there and doing their job, flying around the football and attacking the football — it was great. We were very successful tonight. Whenever one person went out, the next person went in. The level didn't drop at all. I think we did what we needed to do.” Entering the game with just 16 sacks in eight games, Auburn got after Vanderbilt’s quarterbacks with five sacks and numerous other pressures. That played a big part in the Tigers completely shutting down the Commodores for much of Saturday’s game. Senior safety Jaylin Simpson said it was the type of performance this defense has been waiting for from the big guys up front. “Yeah, that was crazy,” Simpson said. “They were in their bag tonight. But that’s what we always want. That’s what they can do. They just need to show up and do it from here on out, really. But that was reall good to see those guys go out there and play.” It wasn’t just the front that made plays in the Vanderbilt backfield as linebackers Eugene Asante, Austin Keys and Cam Riley combined for two and a half sacks on the night. Riley said it came down to just executing the plan and being relentless. “Just a lot of stunts up front,” he said. “Just confusing the o-line and sending different blitzes. It’s hard for the o-line to pick up different things up front. Just getting to the quarterback and making plays.” Picking up a huge win and one step closer to bowl eligibility, Walker said the defensive line knew it was going to be on them to rush the passer because of Vanderbilt’s talented wide receivers outside and their ability to make plays down the field. That was the plan and they executed it to help the defense to perhaps its best game of the season. “Yeah, just get after it,” Walker said. “Don't play around with them. Just attack them. Go ahead and get a win and get up out of here.”

247sports.com Auburn opens as slight underdog in road finale at Arkansas Nathan King ~2 minutes Auburn's run of being an SEC favorite ends at two consecutive games. Looking to continue a mini winning streak in the conference after defeating Mississippi State and Vanderbilt, Auburn will head to Arkansas for its final road game of the season as a slight underdog. For next Saturday's SEC West clash, the Razorbacks opened as 2.5-point favorites at FanDuel and 3-point favorites at DraftKings on Sunday afternoon. After being an underdog in its four straight SEC losses, Auburn (5-4, 2-4 SEC) has been favored in each of its last two games and covered the spread in both — beating Mississippi State 27-13 (-6.5) and Vanderbilt 31-15 (-12.5). Despite a 1-5 record in conference play, Arkansas is 4-2 against the spread against SEC opponents this season. Its six losses this year have come by 7 points, 3 points, 12 points, 7 points, 3 points and 4 points. In danger of losing seven straight games, the Hogs won a thrilling overtime contest at Florida on Saturday afternoon to snap its losing streak. KJ Jefferson threw the game-winning touchdown pass to Tyrone Broden to give Sam Pittman's team (3-6, 1-5 SEC) a 36-33 win in OT — and some much-needed life in what looked to be a lost season for the program. Before last year's 41-27 defeat in Jordan-Hare Stadium — which saw Bryan Harsin fired two days later — Auburn had won six straight over Arkansas, the longest streak for either team in the series' history. Arkansas plays its final three games at home and will be looking to make a late run at bowl eligibility, hosting Auburn, FIU and Missouri to close the year. The Tigers finish the regular season with New Mexico State and Alabama both in Jordan-Hare Stadium. Kickoff in Fayetteville is set for 3 p.m. CST on SEC Network.

saturdaydownsouth.com Auburn football: Too much blame on Payton Thorne? Glenn Sattell | 21 hours ago 5–6 minutes We’ve been putting the bulk of the blame on Auburn quarterback Payton Thorne for the Tigers’ inability to move the ball through the air. They went into Saturday’s game against Vanderbilt with the worst passing game in the SEC by far, averaging just 160.9 passing yards per game, 119th in the nation. Yes, Auburn’s passing game for most of the season has been bad — really bad. Thorne, who has supplanted Robby Ashford as Auburn’s starting quarterback, has received most of the blame for it, or lack of it. Thorne entered Saturday averaging 134.4 passing yards per game, which ranked 13th in the SEC. The junior transfer from Michigan State has been having a tough time getting on the same page with his receivers. But whose fault is that? Who’s not doing his job? Is it Thorne’s shortcomings? It’s hard to imagine that a quarterback who threw for 3,232 yards and 27 TDs in 2021 for Michigan State, and another 2,679 with 19 TDs a year ago, would forget how to play the position. He had 5 300-yard games for the Spartans, and he threw for 4 TDs in 4 games. But we’ve seen the numbers steadily rise for Thorne since he threw for only 44 yards in the SEC opener against Texas A&M. Since then, the number has gone to 82 against Georgia, 102 against LSU and 100 vs. Ole Miss. We caught a glimpse of that guy from Michigan State the following week, when he completed 20 of 26 passes for 230 yards and a season-high 3 TD passes in Auburn’s 27-13 victory over Mississippi State. He recorded a season-high 189.3 QB rating as the Tigers snapped a 4-game skid. He seemed much more relaxed knowing he had the reins of the offense and wasn’t going to share time with Ashford. He was able to relax and play his game. The game plan looked more geared toward his game. Rolling him out and moving in the pocket seemed to work more toward his abilities and comfort zone as well. Thorne didn’t top that in a 31-15 triumph at Vanderbilt — mainly because of the dropped passes (much more on that in a moment) — but he did finish with 194 yards and 2 TDs on 17-of-27 passing (with 1 pick). So pointing the finger at Thorne for Auburn’s inability to move the football through the air may have been a bit misguided. It seems to be a more systemic problem than any individual. The offensive line hasn’t been the greatest. After the first 8 games, Auburn had allowed 20 sacks. Among SEC teams, only 4 offensive lines had allowed more (Florida with 23, Arkansas with 31, South Carolina with 34 and Alabama with 35). But even more egregious are the drops by the wide receivers, not to mention their inability to separate from defenders. That was certainly the culprit against a bad Vanderbilt pass defense. The Commodores entered the game ranked 13th in the SEC against the pass, allowing 262.3 yards per game. Thorne put the ball on the hands of his receivers on several occasions, only to have it slip through their fingertips. In addition, he was visibly upset on other occasions when it appeared the receivers ran the wrong or a bad route. You won’t find any Auburn receivers among the top 20 in the SEC. The Tigers’ top 2 receivers, Jay Fair and Rivaldo Fairweather, entered the game ranked tied for 24th in the conference in receptions (25 each), and neither was among the top 30 in the league in receiving yards. Both dropped passes Saturday. Easy ones. Against teams at the bottom rung of the SEC like Mississippi State and Vanderbilt, that’s not a big problem. But if Auburn is going to improve on its 5-4 record (2-4 in the SEC), finish strong against Arkansas and Alabama and build for the future, this certainly needs to be cleaned up. Do so — and combine that with a running game that is picking up with the explosive play of Jarquez Hunter, who had a career day (183 yards and 2 TDs on 19 carries) — and the Tigers could very well close the 2023 season with quite an impressive win streak. Glenn Sattell Glenn Sattell is an award-winning freelance writer for Saturday Down South.

al.com 3 takeaways from Auburn’s 31-15 win against Vanderbilt Updated: Nov. 04, 2023, 8:23 p.m.|Published: Nov. 04, 2023, 6:06 p.m. 5–6 minutes Auburn has won two SEC games in a row, beating Vanderbilt 31-15 on Saturday in Nashville, Tennessee. It was a weird first half in Vanderbilt’s odd stadium setup amid a major renovation project in both endzones. But Auburn pulled away for good early in the third quarter. And for a second straight week, it found some success on offense. At least mostly. Let’s breakdown three keys from the game: Jarquez Hunter is finally the player Auburn expected him to be Jarquez Hunter’s situation leading into this season was murky and unclear. He missed the first couple of Auburn fall practices and the opening game against UMass. During the summer, a sex tape was released allegedly showing Hunter. Soon after, Auburn announced some unnamed players were being suspended. It didn’t state why. There’s still much that’s unknown from that saga. So for the sake of this, we’ll focus on what happened on the field, because it took a while this season for Hunter’s production to get going. If he was available to play, Hunter came into this season expected to be Auburn’s go-to guy on offense and possibly the team’s best player. But he never had more than 59 yards over his first four games of the year. Then, over the last three weeks, things have changed. Hunter at last looks like the player Auburn hoped for. He had 91 yards against Ole Miss, 144 yards against Mississippi State and 183 yards against Vanderbilt. Hunter provided virtually the entirety of Auburn’s first-half offense with a 67-yard touchdown rush and a 56-yard touchdown rush. He showed both his speed and power as a runner on the two long scores. Auburn’s offense still has flaws — namely the passing game. It’s been a strong rushing team all season even before Hunter gained some momentum. But having him at his best, and getting better as the season goes on, is huge for this offense. He could still be Auburn’s best playmaker — and that’s for an offense that needs a playmaker from anywhere. The famously big-play-reliant Auburn offense Auburn had touchdowns of 67 yards, 56 yards and 53 yards. For an Auburn offense that has struggled all season to be dynamic or explosive, it was instead a boom-or-bust offense Saturday. When it wasn’t scoring a long touchdown, Auburn was averaging closer to three yards a play. Auburn made poor decisions — namely the first-half Payton Thorne interception on a ball that should have absolutely not in any circumstances been thrown. Auburn had bad drops — namely Omari Kelly dropping a pass that could have been a wide-open touchdown. Drops were actually a serious problem for Auburn in this game. It’s already been a maligned receiver group. Outside of the interception, Thorne played a pretty good game and his receivers did not help him again. This has been a season-long issue not necessarily with drops, but more so just an overall struggling receiver group. But then that was mixed in with the big plays. Those three touchdowns are also each of Auburn’s three longest-scoring plays of the season. All in one game. Sure, why not. Now, Vanderbilt also has a bad defense. Its total defense is 115th out of 130 FBS teams in terms of yards allowed per game. So it’s easy to say Auburn took advantage of its competition here. But Auburn hasn’t always done that. Certainly was not a perfect day for the offense. But it’s a group that has seemed anemic to big plays all season. It finally got some. And if not for drops it could have had more. Auburn is moving closer to bowl eligibility This may be the most important takeaway from today. Auburn is now 5-4. It is one win away from bowl eligibility with games against Arkansas, New Mexico State and Alabama remaining. Auburn will be a heavy favorite against New Mexico State and at this point, beating the Conference USA team is all Auburn needs to go bowling. Certainly not the time to assume anything. But for that non-conference game to mean something, Auburn had to win two SEC games. After four straight losses against teams Auburn was expected to lose to, Auburn entered a lighter portion of its schedule with games against Mississippi State and Vanderbilt back-to-back. Auburn’s easiest route of getting to a bowl game required wins in those two games. Auburn got the job done. It was favored to win each of these games. It is the better team on paper. But Auburn still had to do its part and it did. Auburn is not at bowl eligibility quite yet, but it has been a much-discussed goal to get a bowl out of this season. And it’s less so about the bowl game itself. It’s more about the practices Auburn will get because it has a bowl game. This team is young. This team is developing. The coaching staff dearly needs those extra weeks of practice as they try to piece this whole thing together. Matt Cohen covers Auburn sports for AL.com. You can follow him on X at @Matt_Cohen_ or email him at mcohen@al.com

247sports.com Instant Impressions Auburn 31 Vanderbilt 15 Nathan King 7–9 minutes NASHVILLE, Tennessee — For the first time since October of 2021, Auburn has won an SEC game on the road. A pair of explosive Jarquez Hunter touchdowns put Auburn in the driver's seat before a strong defensive performance allowed the Tigers to hold a double-digit lead most of the evening in a 31-15 win — Auburn's first road victory against the Commodores since 2003. Here are Auburn Undercover's instant impressions from a win that likely locked up a bowl appearance for the Tigers. Hunter’s bursts offer early lead Consistent offense was difficult to come by for Auburn. Luckily for the Tigers, they were spotted an early two-touchdown lead thanks to a running back who’s been surging over the past few weeks. Hunter was going to get his opportunities to hit some home runs against the SEC’s worst rushing defense, and he took full advantage in the opening quarter. Hunter went 67 yards nearly untouched on Auburn’s second play from scrimmage, then had a 56-yard gallop for a touchdown two drives later. The junior’s 121 rushing yards were the most by an Auburn player in a first quarter since Tre Mason in 2012. On the day, Hunter totaled 183 yards, giving him 418 yards and four touchdowns over his past three games. The Tigers were the definition of boom-or-bust as a running game, though, as they found little-to-no success on most other rushing attempts aside from Hunter’s explosive scores. Separate from his two touchdowns, Auburn averaged 1.7 yards per carry in the first half and had zero other rushing plays of double-digit yardage. Auburn found more of a groove on the ground in the second half, with 76 rushing yards after the break. Decent day for Thorne after early mistake Auburn thought it had found a rhythm last weekend against Mississippi State, when Thorne had one of the most efficient performances of his career and threw three touchdowns. It took longer than the Tigers would have liked to get things going Saturday, though. In the second quarter, throwing on third down from his own 4-yard line, Thorne stared down tight end Rivaldo Fairweather, only to be intercepted for a pick-six by Vanderbilt’s Bryce Cowan. And when Auburn was right before halftime, Thorne nearly wiped away a chance at points, when he lofted another pass for Fairweather in the end zone. It was off target, though, and fell right into the arms of De’Rickey Wright — only to be dropped. For his poor decisions, though, Thorne had a couple nice deep balls that his receivers weren’t able to come up with. Most notably, Thorne was hit as he let the ball go in the second quarter but was still able to put the passing in the hands of Omari Kelly streaking downfield. It slipped right through Kelly’s hands, though. Thorne looked comfortable pushing the ball downfield all game, though, and it finally paid off when he hit Fairweather for a 53-yard touchdown a few plays into the third quarter. Thorne’s pick-six was a big blemish, but he ended up having a decent day: 17-of-27 for 194 yards, two touchdowns and a pick, with his second passing touchdown coming on a toss sweep to Jeremiah Cobb that put Auburn up 31-7 in the third quarter. A large chunk of those incompletions were drops, as the Tigers were tagged for five of them in the game. Despite a couple drops, Johnson had his best game of the season, as the fifth-year senior caught three passes for 62 yards. Middle eight pushes things out of reach For as inconsistent as Auburn’s offense was in Nashville, the Tigers found success in the middle eight — the final four minutes of the second quarter and the first four minutes of the third quarter — and it was ultimately what allowed Auburn to play comfortably and conservatively the rest of the way. Auburn could have had a touchdown right before the half, as Hunter carried a defender into the end zone on first-and-goal, but tight end Micah Riley was called for a block below the waist — a 15-yard penalty. Thorne then threw the near-pick to Wright, and Auburn came away with 3 points on a chip-shot Alex McPherson field goal. Then a double-digit lead turned into what felt like an insurmountable one for Vanderbilt, as Thorne found Fairweather running wide-open for a 53-yard touchdown to put the Tigers up 24-7. Auburn's defense sets tone, mostly strong Yes, Vanderbilt was playing a backup quarterback. But the Tigers still turned in a mostly stout performance on the road. After Vanderbilt’s opening drive — which picked up three first downs but ended in a 42-yard missed field goal — the Commodores had just one first down the rest of the first half. Of their six straight punts, five were three-and-outs, as Auburn settled in quickly on all three levels of its defense — pressures, pass breakups, tackles in space, all of it was there for Ron Roberts’ unit. Auburn’s defensive execution was obviously a huge key when the Tigers were in a major lull as an offense in the first half. Vanderbilt only had 10 yards of offense in the second quarter. Containing Vanderbilt receiver Will Sheppard, who entered the game No. 3 in the SEC with eight touchdowns on the season, was a big factor for Auburn’s defensive game plan, and the Tigers executed masterfully. Between stout coverage from corners D.J. James and Nehemiah Pritchett, Sheppard only had four catches in the game — two of which came on the first drive of the game. Sheppard's 28-yard catch overtop Keionte Scott on fourth-and-3 was a huge play for Vanderbilt in the fourth quarter, though. James had a big pass breakup in the end zone, though, on a third down jump ball attempt to Sheppard. Pritchett then intercepted Seals on Vanderbilt's final drive. Vanderbilt failed to convert its first 10 third downs of the game and didn't get its first until the fourth quarter. Pass-rusher Jalen McLeod felt particularly effective for Auburn, bringing pressure often from the edge. In the third quarter, he was knocked down at the line of scrimmage, crawled back up and still sacked Vanderbilt QB Ken Seals. It took until Vanderbilt had a 29-yard run set its offense up at Auburn’s 44-yard line. Seals found Junior Sherrill for a 30-yard touchdown five plays later, and Vanderbilt’s two-point conversion technically brought the game within two possessions at 31-15. Prior to that 44-yard drive, Vanderbilt had 50 yards across its previous nine possessions. But the Commodores were able to carry their momentum into another scoring drive — which was easily their most impressive of the game. Seals led Vanderbilt into the red zone, including the big fourth-down conversion to Sheppard, before a 10-yard sack by Cam Riley on first down. James' breakup kept Sheppard out of the end zone, then Vanderbilt went for it on fourth-and-15. Seals' pass floated out of the back of the end zone for a turnover on downs. And the Vanderbilt drive took 9:04 off the clock, so Vanderbilt's chances to get the ball back late with any chance of getting a meaningful score were essentially eliminated. Auburn Undercover will update this story. Check back for additional information.

auburnwire.usatoday.com Music City mash: Tigers crush Vanderbilt for first SEC road win Taylor Jones 5–6 minutes The Auburn Tigers headed to Nashville in hopes of earning their first SEC road win of the season at Vanderbilt. They managed to get the job done, doing so in a dominating fashion. The Tigers (5-4, 2-4 SEC) outgained the Commodores (2-8, 0-6 SEC), 424-266, and recorded five total sacks on defense in a 31-15 win. Auburn started fast with two quick scores in the first quarter and pulled away with a solid defensive effort and two third quarter touchdowns. The big storyline when reflecting on this game, was the quarterback rotation. After spending the first seven weeks of the season splitting time between Payton Thorne and Robby Ashford, head coach Hugh Freeze elected to give Thorne a majority of the snaps in Auburn’s win over Mississippi State last Saturday. Freeze turned it up a notch in Saturday’s game at Vanderbilt by giving Thorne 100% of the snaps. His day ended with 194 yards and two touchdowns. Auburn got off to a hot start by jumping out to a 14-0 lead in the 1st quarter. Vanderbilt put together a solid opening drive that covered 40 yards in nine plays, but it resulted in zero points as Commodores’ kicker Jacob Borcila missed a 43-yard field goal. The missed field goal proved costly as Jarquez Hunter sprinted 67 yards on the second play of Auburn’s ensuing drive to put Auburn on the board, 7-0 with 10:00 remaining in the opening quarter. Hunter’s incredible run was nearly duplicated two possessions later. Seven minutes after rushing for a 67-yard score, he ran 56 yards to push Auburn’s lead to 14-0 with 3:01 remaining in the quarter. He rushed for 144 yards in last Saturday’s win over Mississippi State, he ended the 1st quarter with 121 yards and two scores on four carries. Auburn outgained Vanderbilt, 154-83 in the first quarter, with Hunter’s two long runs being the highlights. The Tigers’ defense held both Vanderbilt quarterbacks, Ken Seals and Walter Taylor, to 26 passing yards on five completions. In a similar fashion to Auburn’s quick 1st quarter start, Vanderbilt had a hot start of their own in the 2nd quarter. On a 3rd down play inside their own five-yard line, Auburn’s Payton Thorne threw an interception to Bryce Cowan which was returned for a touchdown. The five-yard pick-six trimmed Auburn’s lead to 14-7 with 12:15 remaining in the first half. Both teams traded a few possessions throughout the second quarter before another score was added to the board. Auburn’s Alex McPherson connected on a 32-yard field goal with 0:20 remaining in the half to give the Tigers the 17-7 halftime lead. Auburn outgained Vanderbilt, 226-93 in the yards department through one half. Hunter remained Auburn’s top rusher with 131 yards on nine carries while Ja'Varrius Johnson led the team in receiving with 23 yards on two catches. Thorne completed 10-of-17 passes for 72 yards in the half, completing at least one pass to five different receivers. Defensively, DJ James led the team in tackles with six. As a unit, the defense created two quarterback hurries and two tackles for loss. After struggling offensively in the 2nd quarter, Auburn made adjustments in the locker room that were immediately felt. Auburn needed just three plays on their first drive of the 3rd quarter to extend the lead to 24-7. Thorne connected with tight end Rivaldo Fairweather for a 53-yard score with 13:36 to go in the quarter. Then, just four minutes later, Thorne flipped the football to freshman Jeremiah Cobb for a five-yard touchdown pass to bump the lead to 31-7 with 9:44 to go in the 3rd. The 3rd quarter would also see the Commodores’ first offensive touchdown. With 2:43 to go in the quarter, Seals threw a 30-yard touchdown pass to receiver Junior Sherill to trim Auburn’s lead to 31-15 following a successful two-point conversion play. The 3rd quarter was Auburn’s best quarter offensively, as they gained 167 total yards. Thorne cracked the 100-yard mark for the third straight game by passing for 167 yards in the quarter, which brought his total up to 194 to that point. Neither Auburn nor Vanderbilt posted a score in the first quarter, but a late interception by Nehemiah Pritchett sealed the Auburn win. Hunter led the team in rushing with a season-high 183 rushing yards on 19 carries while Rivaldo Fairweather and Ja’varrius Johnson each recorded 62 receiving yards. Defensively, DJ James led the team in tackles with seven while five sacks were split between Eugene Asante, Zykevious Walker, Austin Keys, Jalen McLeod, Marcus Harris, and Cam Riley. Auburn will hit the road for the second straight week next Saturday when they visit the Arkansas Razorbacks in Fayetteville for a 3 p.m. CT kickoff. The Razorbacks upset Florida on Saturday in overtime, 36-33. Contact/Follow us @TheAuburnWire on X (Twitter), and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Auburn news, notes, and opinions. You can also follow Taylor on Twitter @TaylorJones__

si.com Takeaways: Auburn beats Vanderbilt on the road Zac Blackerby 3–4 minutes Auburn is officially on a winning streak. After earning the first SEC win of the Hugh Freeze era against Mississippi State, the Tigers went on the road and beat Vanderbilt 31-15 on Saturday in Nashville. It was a lopsided contest where Auburn was able to score on their first offensive play of the game. Jarquez Hunter had two long runs and after that, it was pretty much all Auburn. Here are some takeaways from Auburn's win against Vanderbilt. Auburn's offense lived off of the big play Jarquez Hunter found the endzone from 67 yards out and 56 yards out in the first quarter. In the third quarter, Payton Thorne found Rivaldo Fairweather for a 53-yard pass for a touchdown to put the game well out of reach against the Commodores. Hunter had 183 rushing yards in Saturday's action. The Tigers scored on big plays last week against Mississippi State as well. After several games this season where Auburn couldn't create any sort of production, the Auburn offense seems to be finding a groove down the stretch. The quarterback rotation seems to be done Auburn made fans very accustomed to seeing multiple quarterbacks lead the offense so far this season. Over Auburn's last two wins, there has been much less Robby Ashford. Against Mississippi State, Ashford took two snaps. Against Vanderbilt on Saturday, Ashford did not make it into the stat sheet. Thorne seems to be playing better and much more comfortable. It could be that he's not concerned with being subbed out and it could be that he's finally understanding what Philip Montogmery and Freeze's system is supposed to look like. Seeing Hunter take a direct snap in the red zone before going to Ashford's package in the red zone could be a sign that Thorne will be the full-time quarterback moving forward. Auburn's defense continues to do what it needs to do The Auburn defense gave up several first downs on the first drive of the game and stepped up tremendously for the rest of the first half. Vanderbilt was 0-7 on third down in the first half. They finished 2-13 on third downs and 0-2 on fourth downs. The Auburn defense would not allow points until the end of the third quarter. An interception by Nehemiah Pritchett put the game on ice and extended Auburn's streak of forcing a turnover to 18 straight games. The Tigers can keep this going Auburn heads to Arkansas and will aim to extend their win streak to three. The Razorbacks won their first game in SEC play on Saturday in overtime at Florida. Despite being a road game, Auburn will certainly have a chance to help build a four-game winning streak heading into the Iron Bowl at the end of the season. Freeze's team is improving as the season goes on and the improvement is giving the Tigers a chance in every game they will play for the rest of the season.

saturdaydownsouth.com Hugh Freeze comments after Auburn snaps road losing streak, extends impressive defensive feat Keith Farner | 10 hours ago ~3 minutes Hugh Freeze credited the Auburn defense as the Tigers continue to have a strong season under defensive coordinator Ron Roberts. The win over Vanderbilt on Saturday was marked by turnovers, as the Auburn defense itself only gave up 8 points. Freeze spoke with Taylor Davis on the SEC Network after the win. It was Auburn’s first SEC road win since Oct. 16, 2021, and it snapped an 8-game losing streak. “I’ve seen a lot of people struggle here against this Vandy team,” Freeze said. “Clark’s done a great job and his kids fight. I thought our defense rose up when they had to, and we started the 2nd half awfully well offensively and then just held on. We probably could have thrown it some more, but 2-score lead and what happened in the 1st half, we threw it and gave them a score. So we’re thrilled to win 2 consecutive SEC games and one step closer to bowl eligibility and head back to Auburn.” It was the 18th straight game that the Auburn defense has forced a turnover, and that impressed Freeze. “They keep coming up big and really they only gave up 8 points today and you can win a lot of games when your defense does that,” Freeze said. About Arkansas next week in Fayetteville, Freeze said, “That trip to Arkansas’ always hard, too.”

wsfa.com Jaquez Hunter rushes for 183 and two scores, Auburn takes down Vanderbilt on the road James Hayes ~4 minutes NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WSFA) - The Auburn Tigers traveled to the Music City on Saturday for an SEC showdown with Vanderbilt. Jarquez Hunter had a career day against the Commodores, rushing for 183 yards and two touchdowns on the way to a dominating 31-15 Auburn victory. The Tigers wasted no time finding the endzone when the offense hit the field in the first quarter. Jarquez Hunter exploded for a 67-yard touchdown run to put the game’s first points. This came after a failed Vanderbilt field goal attempt on the game’s opening drive. A short while later, Hunter struck again. This time, he broke loose for 56 yards as he rumbled into the endzone for his and the team’s second touchdown of the game. The Auburn defense continued to dominate throughout the first half. They didn’t allow a single point and forced the Commodore’s offense to five three and outs. However, the Vanderbilt defense was able to put points on the board when Payton Thorne threw an interception to Bryce Cowan on the Auburn five-yard line. Cowan walked into the endzone, making it a 7-point game. Auburn added a field goal before the end of the first half, and the score was 17-7 when the teams headed into the locker room. When the second half got rolling, the Auburn offense picked up where they left off. This time, Payton Thorne connected with wide receiver Rivaldo Fairweather for a 53-yard touchdown, and the lead was now 17 points. The Tiger defense continued to smother the Commodores, forcing another quick three and out. When the offense came back out, Thorne went back to the air. He hit a 39-yard pass on 3rd and 5 to Ja’Varrius Johnson to keep the drive alive. A few plays later, he found Jeremiah Cobb in the endzone, and the Tigers took a commanding 31-7 lead. Late in the third quarter, Vanderbilt finally found success on offense. Quarterback Ken Seals took advantage of the excellent protection the line gave him and found a wide-open Junior Sherrill for a 30-yard touchdown, giving the Commodores their first offensive touchdown of the evening. The Commodores converted a two-point conversion attempt and cut the lead down to 16 points with a lot of time left in the game. Vanderbilt put together another big drive late in the fourth quarter and threatened to score again. On first and goal from the 10-yard line, the Auburn defense came up big again when Marcus Harris and Cam Riley got to Seals, sacking him for a huge 11-yard loss. The Commodores never recovered and went on to turn the ball over on downs. In the final two minutes of the game, the Auburn defense came up with a big turnover when the Commodores were driving down the field, attempting a late-game comeback. On 4th and 13, the Commodores were forced to go for it, and Seals went to the air. Nehemiah Pritchett jumped the pass, bobbled it for a split second, and came down with the interception, essentially ending the game with 1:50 left of the clock. Auburn left Music City with their second SEC win in a row after dropping their previous four straight conference games. The Tigers now will look ahead to another tough SEC road game next weekend when they head to Fayetteville to take on an Arkansas Razorback team fresh off a 39-36 overtime victory over Florida. Not reading this story on the WSFA News App? Get news alerts FASTER and FREE in the Apple App Store and the Google Play Store! Copyright 2023 WSFA. All rights reserved.

me and golf was hoping we would make the stripper bowl................

do not hold your breath until i do mikey i would hate to see you pass life is precious ..........

did you ever hear of vle? that was a fun site and they had a no ban rule and it was great. but folks went rogue and racist and the last time i checked which was a few years ago they had like five members and had changed the name to the sh*thole and i am not kidding.

i think hunter runs wild today. unless they want the reps throwing the ball most teams would mostly run against a vandy D. they might want to get thorne more polished tho and i would love this. win or lose i have faith in coach. he left liberty in great shape and they are 8 and 0.