OXFORD, Miss. - The Auburn Tigers remain undefeated and will likely retain the top spot in the BCS rankings after defeating Ole Miss 51-31 Saturday night at Vaught-Hemingway Stadium in Oxford, Miss.
Auburn's running attack went for 343 yards against the Ole Miss defense.
True freshman runningback Michael Dyer rushed for a career-best 180 yards on 21 carries with one touchdown. Sophomore running back Onterio McCalebb added 99 yards on 9 carries, including a 68 yard touchdown run in the first quarter.
But it was Dyer's 30 yard scamper around right end early in the third quarter that put the game out of reach at 44-17.
Auburn quarterback Cameron Newton, who was leading the SEC in rushing with 134.6 yards per game, was held to 45 yards rushing on 11 carries.
"They had an excellent game plan with the scheme that we had," Newton said, "but with what they were giving us, it makes me go to other options I had, which is handing the ball off every single time, which is what I had to do."
Other options included wide receivers Darvin Adams and Terrell Zachery, who caught one touchdown apiece and had 75 and 54 yards receiving, respectively. Sophomore wide receiver Emory Blake also added 60 yards receiving on 5 receptions.
Newton passed for 209 yards and two touchdowns, but the Heisman moment might have been his touchdown reception on senior wide receiver Kodi Burns' 20-yard pass in the first quarter.
"That was all Cameron right there," said Blake when asked if he gave Newton any pointers. "They practice that every week. He's 6'6, so he better come down with the ball."
Auburn also got a boost from its special teams, which consistently pinned Ole Miss inside its own 30-yard line on kickoffs.
The special teams' highlight of the game came at the end of the second quarter, when senior cornerback and kick returner Demond Washington returned an Ole Miss kickoff 95 yards for the touchdown, giving Auburn a 31-17 lead.
"I'm not worried about the way they respond being the No. 1 team in the country," Chizik said. "I don't think that really plays a part in what we are trying to accomplish every week. They hear it and they see it, but it does not play a part in how we proceed day-to-day."
Auburn racked up 28 first downs and 572 yards of total offense, while holding Ole Miss to 407 yards for the game.
The 51 points scored by Auburn are the most the Tigers have scored in a game in its 35-game series against Ole Miss.
Placekicker Wes Byrum kicked three field goals for the night.
The defense was led by junior cornerback Neiko Thorpe, who had seven total tackles, and Washington, who had 6 tackles, one interception and one pass broken up.
Ole Miss senior quarterback Jeremiah Masoli finished the game with 189 yards passing, while freshman runningback Jeff Scott ran for 140 yards on nine carries, including an 83 yard dash up the sideline on Ole Miss' first possession of the game.
Auburn improved its record to 9-0 for the first time since 2004. Ole Miss' record is now 3-5.
Auburn returns home to face Tennessee-Chattanooga in Jordan-Hare Stadium Saturday at noon. The game will be available on pay-per-view television.
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