It was a movie that Auburn has starred in too many times now. Last week, Auburn jumped out to a 14-0 lead over Missouri after its first two drives of the game. This week, Auburn scored on three of its first five drives against LSU to grab a 17-0 lead.
In both games, Auburn failed to score in the second half. Auburn forced nine punts from LSU, and the defense only allowed a pair of scores, but it wasn't enough.
Against LSU, Auburn punted twice, threw two interceptions and turned the ball over on downs after halftime. The Tigers also muffed a punt.
The turnover on downs came in the third quarter with Auburn still leading. LSU stopped Auburn and gained its best field position of the game to that point at its own 37-yard line. John Emery JR. put LSU ahead with a 20-yard house call shortly after.
“That was field position. We weren't in field-goal range at that point,” Harsin said. “We had our marks of where we wanted to be... We've been aggressive on that, so I still think that was the right call."
Later, Auburn had the ball at the LSU 5-yard line, but mistakes bit Auburn again. An Ashford fumble pushed Auburn back, and then LSU transfer Koy Moore threw an INT on a trick play from the LSU 10.
Harsin said that if intended receiver Camden Brown was not open, Moore was supposed to throw it away.
"I don't know exactly what happened," Harsin said. “We were trying to get our playmakers a chance to go out there and make plays, and that one didn't work.”
The defense stood tall by forcing LSU into two consecutive punts, and even forced a fumble after the muffed punt from Keionte Scott, but nothing came of it for Auburn.
Auburn took over with just under five minutes to play, eyeing the go-ahead TD, but one more mistake sealed its fate -- Ashford’s pass was ripped away by LSU safety Greg Brooks Jr. and returned past midfield.
The interception marked Auburn's seventh turnover of the season while in enemy territory.
In total, Auburn turned the ball over four times, turned it over on downs once, missed a field goal and committed eight penalties at home.
In a game where Auburn significantly outgained LSU (438-270 total yards) and played steadily on both lines of scrimmage, it takes those kinds of mistakes to lose the game.
“It’s pretty matter of fact. When you look at it, it comes down to turnovers,” Harsin said.
Auburn is now -9 in turnover differential through five games.
The second half lull is a trend that goes back to last year. Dating back to the 2021 matchup against Texas A&M, Auburn has been shoutout in the second half of regulation three times (Texas A&M, Missouri and LSU).
Excluding the Mercer and San Jose State games, the highest number of second-half points scored by Auburn since that Texas A&M game was 10 against Houston in the Birmingham Bowl. Auburn is 3-7 since that matchup against the Aggies where second-half struggles came alive.
"Second half is an area we know we have to improve, and that kind of showed up against tonight," Harsin said.
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Jacob is a sophomore from Leeds, Alabama. This is his second year with The Auburn Plainsman.
Twitter: @JacobWaters_
