Byrum Brown gave Auburn a spark, but LSU had too much firepower and too many answers.
No. 18 LSU rolled into sold-out Jordan-Hare Stadium and left with a 38-17 win Saturday after Sam Leavitt put together a huge first half, the Bengal Tigers piled up points early, and Auburn could never fully recover. Leavitt accounted for four first-half touchdowns as LSU built a 31-10 halftime cushion, then added another score on the ground to finish with 387 passing yards, three passing touchdowns, 54 rushing yards and a rushing score.
Auburn’s first real punch came after LSU opened the game by forcing a three-and-out and turning the short field into a 30-yard Scott Starzyk field goal for a 3-0 lead. The Tigers answered with a long 12-play, 69-yard march, converting two third-and-long situations before Alex McPherson tied it at 3-3 with a 23-yard kick.
That was about as close as it stayed for long.
Leavitt was sharp from the start, completing his first six passes and capping LSU’s next possession with a 10-yard touchdown throw to Jackson Harris for a 10-3 edge late in the first quarter. After forcing two more Auburn punts, LSU’s defense set the stage for another scoring drive, and though Hudson Kaak boomed a career-long 69-yard punt that pinned LSU at its own 5 early in the second quarter, the Bengal Tigers still found a way to extend the lead.
Auburn thought it had a break when Eric Winters appeared to intercept Leavitt’s pass, but replay wiped it out. LSU then converted a fourth-and-2 from its own 31 and marched 95 yards in 14 plays, finishing with a 15-yard touchdown pass from Leavitt to Trey’Dez Green for a 17-3 lead.
Auburn responded with its best offensive series of the half, going 75 yards in 11 plays. Byrum Brown connected with Keshaun Singleton for 15 yards on third-and-8, then on third-and-12 Brown escaped pressure, cut right and sprinted 34 yards to LSU’s 1-yard line before punching in his sixth rushing touchdown of the season.
But LSU slammed the door on any momentum Auburn might have built. On third-and-5, Leavitt hit Harris over the middle and Harris turned it into a 70-yard touchdown, pushing the lead to 24-10 with 4:29 left in the first half. Harris finished with nine catches for 178 yards and two touchdowns.
Before halftime, LSU forced another three-and-out, drove 74 yards in 10 plays and made it 31-10 on Leavitt’s 4-yard run with 17 seconds remaining. The Bengal Tigers also brought relentless pressure all night, registering seven sacks and 12 tackles for loss.
LSU slowed things down to start the second half, keeping the ball for half of the third quarter on an 11-play drive that produced 28 yards and no points. Still, the margin was already large enough that Auburn never threatened a full comeback.
The Bengal Tigers stretched the lead to 38-10 early in the fourth quarter on Dilin Jones’ 12-yard touchdown run.
Auburn got one more score late when backup quarterback Tristan Ti’a found the end zone for the first time in his career on a 7-yard run with 24 seconds left.
Brown finished 15 of 24 for 160 yards in his second straight turnover-free outing, while Singleton led Auburn with four receptions for 64 yards. Kaleb Harris paced the defense with nine tackles, including seven solo stops, and Cody Sigler accounted for two of Auburn’s four tackles for loss.
Auburn fell to 4-3, 2-3 and heads to Oxford, Mississippi, next Saturday to face No. 7 Ole Miss on SEC Network and the Auburn Sports Network. LSU improved to 6-2, 3-2.
In Other News...
Former Auburn Assistant Back In Spotlight After NCAA Tampering Findings
Wes Flanigan, a familiar name to Auburn fans from his time on the Tigers staff, is back in the spotlight after NCAA findings tied to his stint at Ole Miss. Now on Georgia Techs basketball staff, Flanigan was cited for violating tampering rules after impermissibly contacting a players advisor when that player was not in the transfer portal, a reminder of how closely the NCAA is still watching the gray areas around roster movement.
The case also brought penalties for Ole Miss, which was hit for failing to disassociate a booster connected to an earlier football infractions matter, leading to probation and a fine. Flanigans punishment included a two-game suspension, recruiting restrictions and a one-year show cause order, and he served that during the 2024-25 season. [Read more 🡒]
Auburn Fans Need To Prepare For A Very Different LSU Gameday
Auburn is asking fans to brace for a noticeably different game-day feel when LSU comes to Jordan-Hare Stadium, with construction around the venue forcing the athletic department to rethink how people move in and out. Auburn Athletics has rolled out a set of operational changes aimed at improving pedestrian flow and easing congestion, including encouraging fans to use all available entry gates and follow specific routes around the stadium.
The biggest change for many longtime regulars is Tiger Walk, which has been moved to roughly 2.5 hours before kickoff as part of the adjusted pregame routine. The broader backdrop is the Jordan-Hare North Project, a major capital development that started in 2026 and is slated to run through spring 2029, so this is not a one-off inconvenience but the start of a longer stretch of temporary gameday tweaks. [Read more 🡒]
Auburn's Georgia Momentum Just Ran Into A Bigger SEC Concern
Auburn came out of its upset over Georgia looking like a team that had finally found some traction, but the mood shifted quickly at Jordan-Hare Stadium. LSU rolled to a 38-17 win and handed the Tigers their largest defeat since earlier in the 2023 season, a jarring setback after a stretch that had begun to suggest Auburn might be turning a corner in SEC play.
The biggest issue was the way LSU moved the ball, especially through the air, as quarterback Sam Leavitt threw for 387 yards and three touchdowns. Auburn had problems on both sides of the ball, struggling to slow the Tigers offense while also finding little rhythm in the run game, and the loss dropped Auburn to 4-3 overall and 2-3 in the SEC with more questions than answers than they had after the Georgia win. [Read more 🡒]