11/13/22 Auburn Articles

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'These people love Coach Lac, and Coach Lac loves Auburn:' A surreal night for Williams

Nathan King

5-6 minutes

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AUBURN, Alabama — The players knew when the buses turned the corner.

An uninformed passerby on the Plains on Saturday — someone who knew nothing of Auburn’s season, or Texas A&M’s for that matter, to this point in the season — would have assumed the football game in Jordan-Hare Stadium had massive implications.

In reality, of course, it was a matchup of two 3-6 teams — one of which fired its head coach last week.

And still, the town was flooded. Tailgating was on par, if not better than the Penn State game in Week 3. The buzz was that of an Iron Bowl.

Something was different — new, excited, hopeful. And the players felt it when they saw the fans lined on Donahue Drive.

“When we got off the bus, man, we saw that Tiger Walk, man — we instantly said, when we got in the locker room, 'Bro, it's back,’” running back Tank Bigsby said postgame. “This is the feeling we’ve been looking for.”

And with interim coach Cadillac Williams leading the charge — quite literally, when, like his Auburn teams in the mid-2000s did, came out of the tunnel locked arm-in-arm — the Tigers got a cathartic win Saturday night in one of their best atmospheres of the best several seasons. A deafening crowd backdropped a dominating defensive performance, as Auburn held Texas A&M to just 85 yards in the second half en route to a 13-10 win — which kept Auburn from its first six-game losing streak since 1950.

For Williams, who picks up his first career head-coaching win after being named Auburn’s interim last week, the emotions remain indescribable. He celebrated on Pat Dye Field with several of his former teammates, who made the trip back to town to support their star running back in his unexpected role. He fought back tears on the field with his team and in the postgame press conference.

“Who would have ever thought that I’d be standing here?” Williams said. “Lord knows I didn’t.”

Auburn players know it’s because of Williams — the crowd, the emotion, the energy, all stemmed from their support of one of the most beloved figures in program history.

It was tough to find a tailgate without a No. 24 Auburn jersey. When he instructed Auburn fans to “go crazy” in the pregame hype video, they lost their minds.

“The way all of Auburn came out?” defensive tackle Colby Wooden said postgame. “The stadium was electric. How his former teammates came back and was, like, with us. Like, they were ready to play with us. Like, they brought back the true meaning of what it means to be an Auburn Tiger, and I'm happy for everybody.”

From the jump, Jordan-Hare Stadium was positively electric, adding to a defensive gem of game in which Texas A&M had just four first downs in the second half and didn’t reach the red zone until the final two minutes of the game, and quarterback Connor Weigman completed a paltry 39 percent of his passes (14-of-36). The Aggies’ 215 yards are the fewest allowed by Auburn in an SEC game since 211 yards against Florida in 2011.

Auburn hadn’t won a game in 50 days — since a miraculous finish in overtime in Week 4 against Missouri. Bryan Harsin’s tenure was clearly in the drain midway through the year; it was just a matter of when.

But Auburn’s attitude since Halloween, when Harsin was let go just before noon, has not been that of a team with its season completely wiped.

“When (Williams) got the job, the building changed,” Bigsby said. “The energy has started feeling more Auburn — it was missing that a little bit, and I'm really happy that that feeling came back, because Auburn football is special. This place doesn’t deserve nothing but the best.”

Williams admits he’s had more than a few sleepless nights since taking over the interim role. Then came the overtime loss in Starkville — which felt more like a positive stepping down than a defeat.

All the while, Williams has leaned on his players. He was transparent from the start; he said after the game that he confided his fears in his position group, the running backs, shortly after he took the job, and they had his back. He said from his first day that he can’t guarantee a win as the interim coach, only a team that plays its heart out. The Tigers have done so for two straight games now.

Saturday night, he got to lean on the fanbase that’s supported him for nearly two decades.

“These people love Coach Lac, and Coach Lac loves Auburn,” edge rusher Derick Hall said. “One thing I’ve heard a million times over: If you love Auburn, Auburn will love you back. That’s 100 percent true. Like I said, just the work Coach Lac put in, we knew coming in tonight that this environment would be nothing short of amazing, and the Auburn family showed up and showed out, so we couldn’t thank them any more. They helped us get this victory tonight.”

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Statistics, scoring plays, notes, quotes and links from Auburn's win over Texas A&M

Phillip Marshall

5-6 minutes

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Statistics, scoring plays, notes, quotes and links from Auburn’s 13-10 victory over Texas A&M at Jordan-Hare Stadium on Saturday.

KEY STATISTICS

First downs: Auburn 18, Texas A&M 12

Rushing yards: Auburn 55-270, Texas A&M 24-94

Passing yards: Auburn 60, Texas A&M 121

Passes: Auburn 6-13-2, Texas A&M 14-36-0

Total offense: Auburn 68-330, Texas A&M 60-215

CLICK HERE FOR COMPLETE STATISTICS

HOW THEY SCORED

FIRST QUARTER

1:33: Johnson 16-yard pass from Ashford (McPherson kick), 4 plays, 62 yards, 2:03. Auburn 7, Texas A&M 0.

THIRD QUARTER

0:39: McPherson 34-yard field goal, 4 plays, 9 yards, 2:01. Auburn 10, Texas A&M 0.

FOURTH QUARTER

10:48: Bond 48-yard field goal, 4 plays, 8 yards, 1:52. Auburn 10, Texas A&M 3,

3:02: McPherson 26-yard field goal, 6 plays, 23 yards, 2:32. Auburn 13, Texas A&M 3.

1:33: Preston 17-yard pass from Weigman (Bond kick), 7 plays, 80 yards, 1:24. Auburn 13, Texas A&M 10.

NOTEWORTHY

Auburn breaks trend against Aggies

In 11 meetings since Texas A&M joined the SEC in 2012, Auburn is 6-5 against the Aggies. The Tigers broke a trend by winning at home. They are 2-4 against the Aggies at home and 4-1 in College Station.

Auburn’s losing streak is over

Auburn ended its five-game losing streak with Saturday’s victory. The Tigers moved into sixth place in the SEC West standings, dropping Texas A&M into seventh place. The Aggies have lost six straight, a skid likely to end next Saturday against UMass.

McPherson’s successful debut

With Anders Carlson out with a shoulder injury, heralded freshman Alex McPherson handled Auburn’s kicking duties. After his first field goal try from 54 yards. He made kicks of 34 and 26 yards and kicked an extra point.

Two 100-yard rushers

For the first time since last seasons game against Alabama State, Auburn had two 100-yard rusher. Tank Bigsby carried 23 times for 121 yards. Jarquez Hunter carried 13 times, also for 121 yards. Auburn finished with 270 yards rushing.

Jackson saves turnover

With Auburn leading 10-3 early in the fourth quarter, running back Jarquez Hunter fumbled at the Texas A&M 44. It seemed A&M had recovered, but before the recover, Auburn receiver Shedrick Jackson, with one hand on the ball reached out to touch his hand down out of bounds. Once the ball is touched by an offensive player when the players is out of bounds, it is dead. Auburn retained possession.

Wooden call his strip sack

With Texas A&M facing second-and-10 at its own 42 in the fourth quarter, defensive tackle Colby Wooden told his teammates in the defensive huddle he was going to sack quarterback Conor Weigman, and it was probably going to be a strip sack.

Sure enough, Wooden hit Weigman hard, knocking the ball loose. Auburn’s Morris Joseph recovered, setting up a 26-yard field goal that gave Auburn a 13-3 lead with 3:02 left in the game.

QUOTES OF NOTE

“I want to thank these players. How awesome are they? I challenged these guys to be vulnerable, open your heart, and let us in. I told them you have people who care for you, and want to see you do well. A lot of times it felt like they didn't always feel that way. I told my staff when I took this job that we have failed these kids, and I'm part of it. It's our job to elevate them, to inspire them, to empower them, and to get them going. We hadn’t done a good enough job.” —HC Cadillac Williams

“This place is special. To see the support from the fans, they put a battery in my back. They energized me.” –HC Cadillac Williams

“That means the most because we can tell just how much love he has for us and how much support he has for us, even before he was the head coach. To get him in that position and then help him win this game, that was amazing. He really brought the energy tonight.” –DT Marcus Harris on winning for William

“I told a couple of people ‘Watch this I am going to go get it.’ Then I just went and got it.” –DL Colby Wooden on his strip sack

“When you play in conditions like that, it is hard to throw the ball. I had a ball that just slipped out and got caught in the wind. When you got wind blowing like that, it's kind of difficult to throw because sometimes you have to put more on it just to try and get it to a shorter path. Just simple things. But for me, I just tried to do whatever I could to help the team win.” –QB Robby Ashford on 25-mph wind gusts

LINKS

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Notes & Quotes: A&M's Fisher says Auburn won the battles up front

ByGuy Rhodes 7 hours ago

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AUBURN, Alabama–Texas A&M’s head football coach, Jimbo Fisher, said Auburn’s strong play on the defensive front was the key factor in his team’s 13-10 loss to the Tigers on Saturday night at Jordan-Hare Stadium.

“It  was a very physical football game,” Fisher said.  “We knew both lines of scrimmages would be tested. They (Auburn) did a good job, defensive line wise. We couldn’t get in a rhythm on offense. We had some plays where we had a couple of penalties. Had some self-inflicted wounds.

“We couldn’t get things going, but we knew it would be a low-scoring game,”?Fisher said.

“In the run gam, we couldn’t get it going,” Fisher added. “We had a couple late. They ran the football and had a lot of yards, but we still did a great job of getting stops at critical times and creating turnovers. They made a couple of more plays than we did. We have to do a better job the next game.”

Fisher said the big guys up front were the key to victory for the Tigers. “It was really big. The line of scrimmage–they did a really good job. It doesn’t matter what you got, it’s hard when you don’t win the line of scrimmage. We couldn’t establish run protection. We tried to find a way to chip. We gapped protected. We slid protected. We man protected. We chipped out and did different things. As a coach, you have to keep searching for ways to help them.”

 

Carnell Williams (left) is congratulated after the game by Coach Jimbo Fisher. (Photo: Greg McWilliams, Inside the Auburn Tigers, 247Sports)

 

In other news and notes:

* The 215 yards in total offense by Texas A&M was the lowest allowed by the Tigers this season. The previous low was 270 yards against LSU. The Tigers had allowed more than 500 yards in three of the previous four games. The 14 first downs for A&M were also a season low for the Auburn defense.

*At one point Texas A&M’s quarterback  Connor Weigman missed on 15 straight passes. He finished with 14 completions in 36 attempts for 121 yards.

* This was the first time Auburn held the opponent scoreless in the first half since the 2021 Alabama game.

 * John Samuel Shenker has set an Auburn record for most career games played with 60, breaking the previous Auburn record set by T.D. Moultry (59 games from 2017-21).

 * Ja’Varrius Johnson’s 16-yard touchdown catch from Robby Ashford was Johnson’s second score of the season and third of his career.

 *Ashford has thrown six touchdown passes this season, tied for 4th with Jeff Klein (1999) and Jeremy Johnson (2013) for most touchdown passes thrown by an Auburn freshman.

*Ashford ranks third among all-time Auburn freshman passers with 1,429 passing yards. Second is Stan White (2,242 in 1990). Ashford is third in freshman pass attempts (208), passing Gabe Gross (197 in 1998). Next is Stan White (338 in 1990). Ashford is 3rd in pass completions (104). Next is Stan White (180 in 1990).

 *Ashford ranks 10th among Auburn freshman rushers with 552 yards, passing Onterio McCalebb (547 in 2009), Next is Jarquez Hunter (593 in 2021).

 * Hunter had his third career 100-yard rushing game (121 yards).  Hunter is the 50th Auburn player to pass the 1,000-yard career rushing mark. He now has 1,026 career rushing yards.

 * Tank Bigsby now has 2,735 career rushing yards, to rank ninth all-time at Auburn, passing Ronnie Brown (2,707 from 2000-04), Next is Brent Fullwood (2,789 from 1983-86). Bigsby’s 121 rushing yards were the 12th 100-yard rushing game of his career.

  *It was Auburn’s first game with two 100-yard rushers since Hunter and Bigsby versus Alabama State in 2021.

 * Owen Pappoe recorded his second sack of the season and the eighth of his career.

 * Colby Wooden now has six sacks and 11 tackles for lost yardage this season and 15 sacks and 29.5 TFL in his career. He forced his third fumble of the season and his career.

 * Morris Joseph recovered his first fumble at Auburn. Nehemiah Pritchett had his first career forced fumble.

* Texas A&M leads the series with Auburn 7-6.

*Approximately 30 former teammates of interim head coach Carnell Williams were in the dressing room for pre-game talk to the players and joined them when they took the field. Williams starred on Auburn’s undefeated 2004 team.

* Auburn celebrated Military Appreciation Day Saturday. In addition, the 2022 Auburn gymnastics team that made the Final Four for the first time in school history and orthopedic surgeon Dr. James Andrews, winner of the Jack Meagher Award,  were recognized.

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* Former U.S. Marine and walk-on junior linebacker, 28-year-old Johnathan LeGrand, served as a team captain along with permanent captains Owen Pappoe, John Shenker and Derick Hall.

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Carnell Williams gets emotional after first win: Auburn ‘ain’t dead. We comin’

• Updated: Nov. 12, 2022, 11:10 p.m.|
• Published: Nov. 12, 2022, 10:33 p.m.

GO CRAZY CADILLAC! Carnell Williams celebrates 1st win as Auburn interim head coach

 

 

 

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• Mark Heim | mheim@al.com

Carnell Williams didn’t let the magnitude of the moment pass him by.

 

Auburn’s 13-10 win over Texas A&M snapped the Tigers’ five-game losing stream and gave Cadillac his first win as the Auburn interim coach.

 

The emotion of the moment - and the win - was not lost on the former Auburn running back.

 

“My former teammates, my family, these players,” Williams said in the post-game interview on the field at Jordan-Hare Stadium with former Auburn teammates Jason Campbell and Marcus McNeil looking on. “Look at this. Who don’t’ want to come to Auburn. Auburn football going to be OK. It ain’t dead. It ain’t dead. We comin’.”

How did he do it? How did he create a level of excitement around a program which just improved to 4-6?

He used words like serve, discipline, belief. He pointed to the players and staff as well as the people around the building. “The Auburn family,” he called it.

“These kids just need a little love,” Williams said. “They need to be loved on with the discipline. They need to know that it’s OK to make mistakes. The going to fall, but coaches will be there to pick them back up. Regardless, we got their back. They have to open their heart, and that’s what they did, to be honest with you.”

Williams made it a point to deflect the credit for the win.

I’m so appreciative of this Auburn family,” he said. “These fans showed up and showed out. The energy. The atmosphere here. I’m just appreciative for this institution. I’m forever indebted to it. I love serving these young men. This coaching staff is bigger than me. It’s just not my show. We are together. We family. So, I’m excited.”

Jarquez Hunter and Tank Bigsby each rushed for 121 yards and Auburn held on for the win.

 

 

 

Mark Heim is a sports reporter for The Alabama Media Group. Follow him on Twitter @Mark_Heim.

 

Edited November 13, 2022 by aubiefifty

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247sports.com

 

#PMARSHONAU: Joy at Jordan-Hare as Auburn, Cadillac take down Texas A&M

Phillip Marshall

4 minutes

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It was truly unlike anything I have seen in more than half a century of covering college football. As a game between two teams that came in with five-game losing streaks ended, the sellout crowd at Jordan-Hare Stadium erupted with pure joy. Auburn players jumped and hugged each other. Interim head coach Cadillac Williams, soaked by the ice water bath he’d just received, fought back tears.

When Williams ran to the student section, waving a towel, the noise was what you would expect if a championship had just been won. It was a remarkable scene. It was like no one wanted to leave. The atmosphere was really like an Iron Bowl or a game with championship implications.

The Tigers had virtually no passing game in the whipping wind. They turned the ball over three times. They stalled in the red zone a couple of times. Quarterback Robby Ashford overthrew running back Jarquez Hunter on a wheel route that would have been a certain touchdown. Those things didn’t matter. Not on this night. Auburn beat Texas A&M 13-10 and gave Williams his first victory as interim head coach. That was all that mattered.

Williams said it wasn’t about him, but really it was. Williams’ energy, love, compassion and passion for all things Auburn have quickly won over so many. He was the reason Auburn fans packed Jordan-Hare Stadium, why it was the biggest Tiger Walk of the season, why the noise started early and did not go away.

Twelve days ago, Auburn fired former head coach Bryan Harsin. Williams was caught by surprise when he was named interim head coach. Today, if you took a vote of Auburn fans, there would probably be overwhelming sentiment to make him the permanent head coach.

When it was over and the game had been won Williams talked about “pouring into these players,” making them understand it was OK if they made a mistake. That is a significant change from the previous head coach. He talked emotionally about their effort and the effort of the coaching staff. Williams injected energy back into a program that had little of it in Harsin’s unfortunate tenure.

Dozens of Williams’ former teammates returned to support him in his first game on the field where he was an All-American and became an Auburn icon.

“I will be forever grateful for this moment,” Williams said.

Auburn’s defense was dominant. Texas A&M had negative yardage in the second half before an 80-yard drive on its final possession that really meant nothing. Auburn easily could have won by a bigger score. Quarterback Robby Ashford overthrew running back Jarquez Hunter, was all alone for what would have been a touchdown. Thee turnovers were costly.

What Auburn’s offense did was run the heck of the ball, going for 270 yards. Hunter ran 13 times for 121 yards. Tank Bigsby had 23 carries, also for 121 yards

True freshman A&M quarterback Connor Weigman, like many freshman quarterbacks before him, struggled in the roar of the Jordan-Hare Stadium crowd, In one stretch, he threw 11 consecutive incompletions. He finished 14-of-36 for 121 yards.

Yes, the Tigers are 4-6. Yes, it would take something close to a miracle to get to a bowl game. But Saturday night was one to celebrate.

6COMMENTS

Linebacker Cam Riley might have put it best.

“We are,” he said, “back to being Auburn.”

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Colby Wooden called his shot on decisive strip-sack against Texas A&M

Updated: Nov. 13, 2022, 3:37 a.m.|Published: Nov. 13, 2022, 12:18 a.m.

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Colby Wooden called his shot.

Before the versatile defensive lineman delivered one of the signature moments of Auburn’s 13-10 win against Texas A&M on Saturday night — a strip-sack of Aggies quarterback Conner Weigman late in the fourth quarter of a one-possession game — Wooden paraded around the Tigers’ sideline and told anyone who would listen exactly what was about to unfold during a stoppage in play moments earlier.

Read more Auburn football: Instant analysis: Auburn beats Texas A&M, delivers Cadillac Williams his first win

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What Jimbo Fisher, Texas A&M players said after losing to Auburn

“Watch this,” Wooden told teammates and coaches, including Derick Hall and Cam Riley, in the defensive huddle. “I’m gonna go stab-club, and I’m gonna go get it.”

According to Riley, no one in the huddle was really listening to Wooden’s premonition. Hall dismissed Wooden’s braggadocio as well. That didn’t stop the 6-foot-5, 284-pounder from following through on his confident prediction.

On the next snap, a second-and-10 from Texas A&M’s 42-yard line, Wooden came barreling off the edge of the line and blindsided Weigman. Just as he said he would, Wooden reached his right arm around the Aggies’ quarterback and clubbed the ball loose for a strip-sack that was recovered by teammate Morris Joseph Jr. at the 32-yard line with 5:34 to play and Auburn clinging to a 10-3 lead.

“I was shook about it,” Riley said. “I’m still shook right now that he actually did that.”

Wooden’s strip-sack was arguably the defensive play of the game on a night that Auburn turned in a vintage performance on that side of the ball. After the unit took a noticeable step back this season, it stepped up in a major way Saturday night to help Auburn snap its five-game losing streak and deliver interim coach Cadillac Williams his first win.

“Big-time play by Colby,” Williams said. “I mean, wow. Tempers were flaring, you know, guys, you could tell, guys started barking at the offense. Them defensive guys, they’ve always been that way. They’re always barking at the offense. We kind of stalled there in the third quarter, but to have that young man make that play, in my four years being here with him and seeing him grow as a young man to what he has done (and) the leader that he is, I’m so happy for him.

“So happy that he got the opportunity to make that play and give us life and kind of put a stamp on it there, because they had some momentum there, and to get that strip fumble was big time.”

The Tigers’ defense held the Aggies to just 215 total yards of offense and 3.6 yards per play — the unit’s best performance against an SEC opponent in 11 years. Auburn’s defense was particularly dominant in the second half, when it came out of the locker room and forced five consecutive three-and-outs by Texas A&M. The Aggies had just 5 yards of total offense in the second half until their final drive of the game, when they put together an 80-yard scoring drive to cut the final deficit to three points.

That touchdown was essentially meaningless, thanks in large part to Wooden’s strip-sack, which allowed Auburn to tack on a chip-shot field goal from Alex McPherson for a two-score advantage with 3:02 remaining.

“Bro, like, that’s crazy,” Hall said of the play. “Colby is an amazing player. He’s very versatile. He can line up inside, line up outside, and just being able to have a counterpart across from me to fill in that gap when ‘Ku went down, it’s amazing. The dude can play all over the field.”

Wooden, who has stepped up to provide depth off the edge since Eku Leota sustained a pectoral injury earlier in the season, knew he had an advantage against Texas A&M left tackle Trey Zuhn III but couldn’t quite seem to break through.

Texas A&M was light-setting him, and the Aggies tried to send a guard to help chip-block and push him to the outside. Eventually, Wooden decided he needed to beat Zuhn to the point; he attempted two-hand strikes, but those weren’t working.

So, when there was a stoppage in play, Wooden went to the sideline and thought through it. Then he called his shot.

He jumped the snap—and thought at first he was going to be called offside—and beat Zuhn off the edge, delivering the decisive defensive blow in the process.

“It was electric,” Wooden said. “Like, I don’t have the words to describe it. But when you get there and you know you’ve got it, it’s like a breath of relief. Then, on top of that, you’ve got the crowd — it’s just crazy. It’s really crazy.”

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

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