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(11/16/13 4:55am)
Despite having a 14-point second half lead, the Tigers' defense fell apart and Auburn ended up losing to Northwestern State 111-92.
Auburn led the Northwestern State Demons 48-39 at halftime, following Chris Denson's lead with 20 points in the half.
Then Auburn came out stronger in the first four minutes of the second half and increased its lead to 14 points.
But Northwestern State's fast-paced offense took advantage of Auburn's defensive struggles.
"Instead of stepping on the gas and putting them away it's almost like we relaxed. And at that point on our defense just was nonexistent," Auburn Head Coach Tony Barbee said.
After falling behind 63-49 with 16:30 remaining in the game, the Demons took control and went on a 22-7 run to take a 75-73 lead midway through the second half.
Once Northwestern State got its initial lead they did not look back.
The Demons' offense shot 67.6 percent in the second half, including seven three-pointers.
"To have a team shoot 67 percent and score 72 points in a half and score 111 in our building, after holding them to 34 percent in the first half. Unacceptable," Barbee said.
In Northwestern State's first game of the season they went 0-for-17 from three-point range but against Auburn they shot 14-of-27 from beyond the arch.
Northwestern State led the country in points per game and made the NCAA Tournament after winning the Southland Conference last season.
"The mindset is you're not supposed to win and my approach is you are supposed to win," Northwestern State Head Coach Mike McConathy said regarding his team getting a road win over an SEC school.
The Northwestern State Demons improve to 2-0, while Auburn goes to 1-1 on the year.
"It's not disappointing. It's a long season," Auburn Head Coach Tony Barbee said. "It's a learning experience. We have to get back in the gym and learn from it."
(11/09/13 6:00am)
Although Auburn has the fewest passing attempts in the SEC, that does not mean quarterbacks Jeremy Johnson and Nick Marshall are incapable of throwing the football.
Against Arkansas Nov. 2, Marshall was 7-of-8 passing with 118 yards and one touchdown, and Johnson only threw the ball once.
Offensive coordinator Rhett Lashlee said Marshall executed the game plan.
"To only attempt nine passes is not normal for anybody," Lashlee said. "It's just kind of weird the way it unfolded. We've got plenty of plays that we can throw the football and make plays other than bubble screens. Each game is different, the way they unfold."
Later in the game when Arkansas was making a comeback, Lashlee said the offense was getting to the point where if it was a tight game, they were going to have to throw the football.
But since the running backs were continuing to have success pounding the ball running through Arkansas' defense, it was not necessary for Auburn to throw the ball, simply because of the way the game played out.
Auburn held a lead throughout the game, so the offense kept calling running plays not only because they were having success, but because they were taking time off the clock and keeping Arkansas' offense off of the field.
Tre Mason had the most success with executing those running plays as he had 32 carries for 168 rushing yards and four touchdowns.
There were concerns leading up to the Arkansas game because of Marshall's throwing shoulder he hurt in the Florida Atlantic game.
However, according to Marshall, his shoulder feels well and was not a problem in last week's game against Arkansas.
"If it came down to it and I had to throw it more, I knew I'd be able to make those throws. But we ran the ball a lot and were able to execute off of that," Marshall said.
Auburn is still first in the SEC in rushing and sixth in the country in rushing yards per game.
But Lashlee is still confident in their passing game and confident in the many receivers who are capable of executing the many passing plays in their high-tempo spread offense.
"I'll make it very clear, we have no problem throwing it," Lashlee said. "We have belief in both our guys and recievers to throw it."
Lashlee also knows how important their passing game will have to be in the final upcoming games.
"We know it's going to happen where we're going to have to win a game throwing the football, like we did with Mississippi State," Lashlee said. "And when that happens I feel confident that our guys will be able to do it."
(11/06/13 8:30pm)
The Auburn soccer team came up short in the quarterfinals when going for their fifth consecutive win after losing 1-0 to No. 21 ranked Texas A&M, the No. 2 seed in the SEC Tournament.
Although Auburn's season ended this afternoon, the Tigers ended their season on a high note with a seven game conference undefeated streak (4-0-3) before losing to the Aggies.
This was also the third consecutive year Auburn made it to at least the quarterfinals of the SEC tournament.
Texas A&M controlled the tempo of the first half, getting 14 shots off while Auburn only had one shot on goal in the opening half.
Despite the Aggies controlling the game offensively, they only scored one goal in the game due to Alicen Wright's performance in net for Auburn.
The lone goal came with 28 minutes remaining in the first half, when Allie Bailey scored from 10 yards out off of a deflection to give the Aggies the lead.
Auburn came out stronger in the second half ready to attack the net with plenty of shots on goal.
The Tigers' best opportunity came with three minutes left in the game when Casie Ramsier's near miss resulted in a free kick. But the Tigers could not score off of the free kick and Aggie yellow card.
Before the Tigers had another chance to try to tie it up again, time ran out in the match when Texas A&M was on offense on the other side of the field.
Texas A&M will now advance to the semifinals Friday night and will face the winner of today's match between South Carolina and Georgia.
(11/05/13 2:00am)
Auburn was able to earn its fourth consecutive win to keep its conference winning streak alive with its 1-0 overtime win Monday night Nov. 4 in a win or go home match against the seven-seed LSU in the first round of the SEC Tournament.
After winning three consecutive times in conference play to close out the regular season, Auburn was able to grab the 10-seed, the last spot in the SEC Tournament.
The Auburn soccer team continues to win games when it matters most.
Auburn will advance next to play the second-seed Texas A&M in a second round match Wednesday Nov. 6 at noon in Orange Beach, Ala.
The lone goal in the game came with three minutes remaining in the first overtime after LSU committed a foul inside of its own box. Senior defender Bianca Sierra shot the penalty kick and scored the game winner for Auburn.
In the first half LSU had five shots while Auburn only had four. Each team had two saves in the opening half.
But in the second half there was more offense from both teams. LSU had eight shots in the second half but Auburn's goalkeeper Alicen Wright was able to make two more saves to have four total saves on the night.
Auburn picked up their offensive production in the second half with 11 shots but LSU's goalkeeper Megan Kinneman continued to make four saves and had seven total saves.
After regulation ended, Auburn kept its offensive production high in overtime with four more shots.
They then were able to find the back of the net and win the game with Sierra's penalty kick goal.
(11/01/13 12:47am)
The Auburn soccer team continued its hot streak and kept its playoff hopes alive with a third consecutive SEC victory Thursday night Oct. 31 while earning a win at Tuscaloosa over Alabama in the Iron Bowl of Soccer.
With Auburn's 1-0 victory against Alabama they are able to keep the Iron Bowl trophy at home in Auburn and they also have won six out of the last seven matches against Alabama.
Going into the game Auburn needed to win and not come out with a tie in order to stay alive for the last spot in the SEC Tournament.
Auburn did their job and got the win.
Now they have to play the waiting game and see how Arkansas and Tennessee finish out their regular seasons in order to potentially jump up to get that last spot in the SEC Tournament. A four-way tie is even possible which would have to be sorted out with tiebreakers.
After an evenly played first half, Auburn got on the board in the final minute of the first half with a goal from 10 yards out by forward Chelsea Gandy-Cromer assisted by Jordan Miller.
Midway through the second half Auburn attacked with two consecutive shots on goal, but both attempts were blocked. Alabama and Auburn were even at eight shots each.
Then at the end of the second half Alabama kept getting goal opportunities.
With 11 minutes remaining Alabama had a clear shot on goal from five yards out but the kick went wide right. A few minutes later Alabama's offense continued to attack with two shots in a row, but one was blocked and the other hit the cross bar.
With only a minute left, Alabama got its final shot off and it hit the cross bar again.
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UPDATE (10 p.m.): The Tigers have qualified for the SEC Tournament as the No. 10 seed after Thursday night's late conference results. They will face No. 7 seed LSU at 4 p.m. Monday, Nov. 4 in Orange Beach.
(10/27/13 11:30pm)
Following their first SEC win Friday night Oct. 25, the Auburn soccer team completed the weekend still alive with a chance to clinch the last spot of the SEC Tournament, after a 2-1 victory Oct. 27 over Vanderbilt.
(10/26/13 4:13am)
Coming off of three straight double-overtime ties to SEC opponents, Auburn earned its first conference win at home Friday night Oct. 25, defeating Arkansas 3-1.
(10/06/13 4:11am)
Auburn upset Ole Miss 30-22 in front of a crowd of 86,504 people at Jordan-Hare Stadium Saturday night Oct. 5.
"Obviously it was a very big win against a good team on our home field, and I'm very proud of our defense especially in the fourth quarter," said head coach Gus Malzahn. "Also the crowd was unbelievable and really helped us win the game."
Nick Marshall's 140-yard rushing performance made him the fourth 100-yard rusher for Auburn this season, which is the most in school history. Cameron Artis-Payne, Corey Grant, and Tre Mason all have had a 100-yard rushing game this season.
"I was just taking what the defense gave me, and I really knew what was coming the majority of the time, so I was prepared for what they had coming," Marshall said.
Auburn scored first with a quick drive up the field that ended with a two-yard Tre Mason touchdown run. Malzahn called for a two-point conversion but Ryan White threw an incompletion to keep the score at 6-0.
Auburn got the momentum back after Robenson Therezie got an interception and returned it for a 78-yard touchdown to make the score 13-3.
Despite Ole Miss having the possession of the ball more than Auburn in the first half, Auburn led 20-6 at halftime.
Nick Marshall ran for his first career rushing touchdown in the second quarter and added another rushing touchdown in the third quarter to complete a nine-play 70-yard drive.
Bo Wallace responded for Ole Miss with a 49-yard touchdown pass to Donte Moncrief to make it 27-16 and that score stayed the same until 8:29 was remaining in the fourth quarter.
Wallace once again connected with Moncrief with a 13-yard touchdown pass to bring Ole Miss closer, making the score 27-22. Ole Miss then failed to convert the two-point conversion.
It then looked like Auburn had the game in hand, but Ole Miss forced a Artis-Payne fumble with 8:21 to go in the fourth.
But on the following offensive drive Wallace threw an interception to Ryan Smith.
Cody Parkey kicked a 23-yard field goal with three minutes left to increase Auburn's lead to eight points.
Auburn's defense came up big once again with two consecutive sacks to force a turnover on downs. Marshall then took a knee to seal the Auburn victory and remain perfect at home this season.
The victory was the first against a ranked opponent since defeating South Carolina in 2011.
"We talked about getting better each week. We knew we were going to have to play better than we did against LSU to have a chance to beat them, and we did," Malzahn said. "There were some mistakes that we can still improve, a few turnovers we have to correct, but our defense picked us up right there, and we beat a good team."
(09/23/13 3:23am)
Although Auburn lost 35-21 at LSU Saturday Sept. 21, the defense showed improvements after falling behind early.
Auburn went down 21-0 early in the second quarter after running back Jeremy Hill's third touchdown on the night. Then the defense had to make adjustments in order to outplay LSU in the second half.
"LSU is a very good football team, probably a lot better up front than we anticipated," defensive coordinator Ellis Johnson said. "Our kids deserve a lot of credit for fighting back."
One of the biggest adjustments Johnson had to make was switch the defensive line package since LSU's offensive line was controlling the game.
"We were playing five defensive linemen in our short yardage package trying to get bigger people out there. It looked good all week in practice, but frankly their offensive line out executed us," Johnson said. "We had some issues with it and didn't feel comfortable, so we got out of it in the second half and just went back to some other things we'd been doing in short yardage."
On the rainy night, Auburn's secondary contained one of the top quarterbacks in college football, Zach Mettenberger, to 229 passing yards and Jermaine Whitehead had an interception.
"I thought the corners played extremely well. Each one of them had one bad play that really hurt us. I thought they held up in coverage extremely well for the most part, especially in man," Johnson said.
Although the defense looked solid in the second half, the team must limit the explosive plays that create the long yardage touchdowns.
"You make somebody punt six times, get a fourth-down stop and you get two takeaways, you say that's a pretty good day," Johnson said. "But (LSU) got five touchdowns because of the explosive plays. We still continue to have these five or six plays that are just ugly. Not to take anything away from the opponent, but it's more self-inflicted. We just have to clean it up."
Moving on with SEC play, the defense must limit their missed assignments and mistakes, which really hurt them in the LSU game.
(09/16/14 9:31pm)
After an impressive 38-9 victory over Arkansas State start, Auburn is ready to go 3-0 in their SEC opener at home against the Mississippi State Bulldogs.
In order to win Saturday, Sept. 14, Auburn must jump out to an early lead. Why? Since head coach Dan Mullen arrived in Starkville in 2009, Mississippi State has been 25-2 when leading at halftime under Mullen, and a perfect 28-0 when ahead of their opponent after three quarters.
A main factor in determining which team jumps out to an early lead will be which team's running game will have a bigger impact. Both Auburn and Mississippi State have deep running back depth. The running back unit that ends the game with more yards should be the team that ends up winning.
Between Cameron Artis-Payne, Corey Grant and Tre Mason, Auburn's running back trio has totaled 512 rushing yards in the first two games. In Auburn's season opener Aug. 31 against Washington State, Auburn rushed for 295 yards and Grant shined while rushing for 146 yards, punctuated with a 75-yard touchdown run.
Auburn's running game looked even stronger Saturday, Sept. 7, against Arkansas State. The team ran for 301 yards, led by Artis-Payne, who rushed for 102 yards and a touchdown. Mason added 99 total rushing yards with another touchdown.
It's hard to find a better running back unit than Auburn's in college football right now, but Mississippi State has showcased a solid running game through their first two games. Oregon, BYU, Arkansas State? Auburn is 11th in team rushing. Mississppi State is 43rd.
In their opening 21-3 loss to No. 13 Oklahoma State, preseason All-SEC second team running back LaDarius Perkins rushed for 50 yards with a long carry of 22 yards. But Perkins suffered a sprained ankle during the game and sat out against Alcorn State.
Although the Bulldogs were without their star running back Saturday, Sept. 7, they had no problems rushing through the Alcorn State defense on their way to a 51-7 victory.
Mississippi State rushed for 277 total rushing yards and freshman running back Ashton Shumpert delivered with 98 rushing yards and two touchdowns. Perkins is expected to play this Saturday, Sept. 14, at Auburn and will need to bring his best running game in order to give the Bulldogs a win.
Special teams will also play a major role in deciding the outcome of this game. Both teams' kick returners have already had early success this season.
Jameon Lewis had a 65-yard kickoff return against Oklahoma State and Brandon Holloway had a 95-yard kickoff return against Alcorn State.
Tre Mason had 141 total return yards against Washington State, including a 100-yard touchdown return. Quan Bray had a 33-yard return against Arkansas State.
Look for at least one of these teams to have a big kickoff return in this game.
Whether Mississippi State fifth year senior starting quarterback Tyler Russell is cleared to play after his concussion against Oklahoma State, or sophomore quarterback Dak Prescott gets his second consecutive start, Mississippi State's receivers will need to be successful against Auburn's young defense and secondary, no matter who is receiving the snaps for the Bulldogs.
Although Mullen's spread option offense struggled to put up points against Oklahoma State, their receivers had 17 total receptions with seven different receivers recording at least one catch. Junior wide receiver Jameon Lewis led the Bulldogs receiving core with five receptions for 55 yards.
The Mississippi State receivers had 20 receptions for 283 total receiving yards.
Since the Bulldogs have a lot of receiving depth, this game will be a major test for Auburn's secondary.
Auburn's secondary showed promise in their season opener against one of the nation's stronger passing offenses. Robenson Therezie had the biggest impact with two interceptions and safety Josh Holsey had one.
Auburn's defense also held Arkansas State's high-powered offense to only nine points and kept the Red Wolves out of the end zone.
Auburn's safeties need to continue to contain the receivers and not get burned on the deep ball. Expect to see the cornerbacks and safeties getting plenty of action against Mullen's offense.
If Auburn's defensive tackles continue to put pressure on the quarterback, and if the secondary is able to contain Mississippi State's stable of receivers, then Auburn should be able to get the victory.
(08/28/13 3:32am)
Six Auburn football players landed spots on the All-SEC preseason teams. The players honored were senior Steven Clark, junior Reese Dismukes, senior Dee Ford, junior Tre Mason, senior Cody Parkey and junior C.J. Uzomah.
The SEC football coaches voted for the preseason All-SEC teams and were not allowed to vote for any of their own players.
Of the six, four were named to the second team and two were named to the third team.
Clark, Dismukes, Mason and Parkey made the second team and Ford and Uzomah made the third team.
After Mason's breakout 1,002-yard sophomore season last year, he was the first non-quarterback to lead Auburn in total offense since Bo Jackson in 1985. Mason is expected to lead Auburn tailbacks in carries this season, with Cameron Artis-Payne and Corey Grant also getting touches in the backfield. Mason was also named to the Doak Walker Award preseason watch list, which is given to the best running back in college football at the end of the season.
Dismukes, going into his third season as a starter at center, is expected to guide this year's offensive line. He has been commended on his leadership throughout preseason practices by coaches and teammates. Dismukes was also named to the Rimington Trophy preseason watch list, which is awarded to the best center in college football.
"(Dismukes) is like a coach on the field," offensive lineman Shon Coleman said.
Parkey is going into his third year as starting placekicker. Last year, he was a perfect 27 for 27 for PATs and 11-14 on field goals, with a career-long 46-yard in the Clemson game. Parkey was named to the preseason Lou Groza award watch list for the second consecutive year, which is given to the best placekicker in college football.
Clark has already had a successful career as starting punter for Auburn and has one more season to potentially win the Ray Guy award for the best punter in college football. In 2011, Clark was the first Auburn punter in school history to be a finalist for the Ray Guy award and also earned first team All-SEC honors. Last season Clark was one of 10 punters in the country to be a semifinalist for the Ray Guy award and only five of his 70 punts were returned.
"We feel like we have the best kicker and punter in the country," coach Gus Malzahn said.
Uzomah has played tight end, wide receiver, on special teams and even threw a touchdown to Philip Lutzenkirchen against Georgia in 2011. Since Uzomah's role is likely to increase, this could be Uzomah's breakout season now that he is the clear starting tight end and was named to the John Mackey award preseason watch list, which is given to the best tight end in college football.
"He came back this fall and has been a good surprise for me," tight ends coach Scott Fountain said. "He's a better hand down blocking tight end, he's a better h-back for us in the backfield and we all know he can split out and do that type stuff. He's more of a complete guy that can do all of the things we ask to do in this offense and that's hard to find."
Although Ford will not start the season at defensive end because of a knee injury, he is expected to come back as one of Auburn's best pass rushers. Last season, he had 34 tackles and six sacks. Ford was named to the Chuck Bednarik Award preseason watch list, which is given to the best defensive player in college football.