NASHVILLE, Tenn. — It only took eight minutes for Auburn to start breaking records.
JaTarvious "Boobee" Whitlow scored on the game's third play by way of a 66-yard touchdown pass from Jarrett Stidham. He scored again on his second touch — a 2-yard touchdown out of the Wildcat — then again on a 1-yard run after Javaris Davis' interception set the Tigers up in the red zone.
Those three touchdowns, all of which came in the first eight minutes of game time, set the Auburn bowl record for combined receiving and rushing touchdowns for a Tiger.
After spotting the Boilermakers a 21-0 hole in a game it was favored by just 3.5 points, Auburn wouldn't let up. It scored again, and again, and again, and again, and again and again.
The Tigers dropped an SEC bowl record in points as they improved to 2-4 in bowl games under Gus Malzahn with a win in Nissan Stadium, 63-14 over Purdue on Friday afternoon.
Auburn did most of its dirty work in the first half. A 28-7 first-quarter lead marked the most points Auburn had scored in an opening period since 1998 (vs. Kansas). And with 56 points at halftime, the Tigers broke the Music City Bowl record for points in a game, the Auburn record for points in a half in any game and the record for most points in a half in any bowl game, ever.
"You could just sense it," said Auburn head coach Gus Malzahn. "It was completely different. They were focused in practice. They were really demanding of themselves. It doesn't surprise me at all that we played well."
After Whitlow's trio of scores, junior receiver Darius Slayton found the end zone on back-to-back drives after Stidham overthrew him early in the game.
On his latter score, Slayton turned a simple tunnel screen into a 52-yard scamper, using a hop-step in the secondary to outrun the Purdue safeties. It was the longest reception of Slayton's Auburn tenure his third career 100-yard outing (three catches, 160 yards, three touchdowns).
"It was pretty exciting," Slayton said. "I just wanted to come out here and help my team get a bowl win. Like Coach Malzahn said, we were looking to play our best game today. Also for me on an individual front, it was my best day."
Slayton was the leading receiver for Stidham, but the redshirt junior spread the wealth in his final game in an Auburn uniform. His 373 passing yards are an Auburn-high for the quarterback, while his five touchdowns are a career-high.
"I mean, it's nice personally to have a great day," Stidham said. "For me, at the end of the day, it was all about the team. Obviously last year, bowl game, we didn't finish well. This year, a lot of ups and downs. Deshaun and I, the other leaders on the team, Darius and Ryan with the receivers... everybody came together throughout the entire year. We decided we were going to stick it out.
"It was really great to get a win like this and do it the right way."
Auburn's 63 points today were the most Purdue has ever allowed in a bowl game. The Boilermakers finish with a losing record after the program's second straight trip to a bowl.
"As you could tell, it was a bad day at the office," said Purdue head coach Jeff Brohm.
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Nathan King, senior in journalism with a minor in business, is The Plainsman's sports editor.
