Auburn’s rally wasn’t enough to stop Florida from walking out of Jordan-Hare Stadium with a 44-39 win in the SEC opener Saturday.
The Tigers dug out of an early double-digit hole and kept punching until the final seconds, but Jaden Baugh’s three-touchdown night powered the Gators through a wild finish in front of a sold-out crowd in Auburn, Ala. Florida led 20-17 at halftime, then opened the third quarter with a quick burst that stretched the margin and forced Auburn into chase mode for the rest of the afternoon.
Florida wasted little time after the break. The Gators needed just three plays to push the lead to 10, starting with a 37-yard completion before Baugh finished the drive with a 33-yard touchdown run, his second score of the game. Aaron Philo then hit Dallas Wilson for a 20-yard touchdown midway through the third quarter to make it 34-17.
Auburn answered with a long drive of its own, going 15 plays and 75 yards before Byrum Brown found De’Shawn Spencer for a 10-yard touchdown with 1:24 left in the third quarter. But Florida slammed the door back open on fourth-and-1 from midfield, when Baugh broke loose for a 53-yard touchdown to make it 41-24. He finished with 162 yards and three touchdowns on 26 carries.
Brown kept Auburn alive with back-to-back scoring pushes in the fourth quarter. First, he led a 90-yard drive in 2 minutes and 35 seconds, rushing three times for 60 yards and scoring on a 21-yard run. He then hit Arliss Boardingham on the two-point try to pull Auburn within 41-32 with 6:10 left.
Florida responded by recovering Auburn’s onside kick, then converting its third fourth-down attempt of the game with a 9-yard completion that set up a 40-yard field goal and a 12-point cushion with 2:53 remaining.
Even then, Auburn still had one more burst. With no timeouts left, Brown marched the Tigers 75 yards in eight plays and threw a 35-yard touchdown to Chas Nimrod to make it a five-point game with 24 seconds to go. Florida recovered the ensuing onside kick and closed it out.
The game turned early after Auburn’s third-play turnover gave Florida a short field and a 7-0 lead on Baugh’s 2-yard touchdown run. Auburn answered right back when Da’Shawn Womack picked off a deflected pass and returned it 8 yards to Florida’s 8, setting up Alex McPherson’s 40-yard field goal.
Florida added to its lead early in the second quarter on Duke Clark’s 20-yard touchdown run, finishing a 16-play, 75-yard drive to go up 14-3. Auburn’s offense then found its rhythm and strung together consecutive 75-yard touchdown drives to climb back into it.
Brown completed three straight passes for 53 yards to set up Jeremiah Cobb’s 2-yard touchdown run, trimming the deficit to 14-10 with 12:38 left in the half. After Florida answered with a field goal to move ahead 17-10, Auburn tied it on Brown’s 48-yard pass to Keshaun Singleton, the Tigers’ longest play of the night. Brown then hit Singleton again on third-and-goal from the Florida 4 for the game-tying score with 5:21 remaining in the half.
Singleton finished with 99 receiving yards on seven catches. Florida still had the last word before halftime, driving 65 yards in 11 plays and taking a 20-17 lead on Patrick Durkin’s 28-yard field goal with nine seconds left.
On defense, linebackers Elijah Melendez and Xavier Atkins combined for 20 tackles, five tackles for loss and a pair of sacks.
Auburn fell to 2-1 overall and 0-1 in SEC play. The Tigers wrap up their three-game homestand next Saturday against Vanderbilt at Jordan-Hare Stadium on Homecoming at 3:15 p.m. CT on SEC Network and the Auburn Sports Network.
In Other News...
Auburns Supposed Strength Suddenly Looks Like A Serious SEC Concern
Auburns defense took a jolt in the loss to Florida, and it was the kind of performance that can change the conversation around a team quickly. The Tigers gave up 44 points and 243 rushing yards, and the breakdowns were broad enough to raise questions about a unit that was supposed to be a calling card. Under DJ Durkin, the game also came with several ugly defensive markers that Auburn would rather not see attached to its name this early in the season.
Coach Alex Golesh pointed to missed tackles and misalignments, while linebacker Elijah Melendez framed it as a lesson the Tigers have to learn from in a hurry. At 2-1, Auburn still has time to steady itself, but the margin for error in the SEC does not leave much room for a defense that looked out of sync for long stretches against a Florida team that moved to 3-0. [Read more 🡒]
Auburn Fans Wont Love The Postgame Twist To This Coach Feud
The postgame chatter around Auburns loss to Florida did not end with the final whistle, because the coaches own exchange carried well into the aftermath. Auburn head coach Alex Golesh had made it clear during game prep that he and Florida coach Jon Sumrall were not friends, and Sumrall answered on social media after the Gators 44-39 win, adding another layer to a meeting that already had enough edge on the field.
Florida had plenty to feel good about beyond the back-and-forth, especially with Jadan Baugh powering the offense for 162 rushing yards and three touchdowns. For Auburn, the frustration is not just the result but the way the rivalry tone spilled over afterward, while Florida now turns its attention to a home date with Ole Miss and a chance to keep the momentum rolling. [Read more 🡒]
Hugh Freeze Zeroed In On Auburns Biggest Problem After Florida
Auburns SEC opener against Florida turned into a frustrating night at Jordan-Hare Stadium, where the Tigers came out on the wrong end of a 44-39 shootout and slipped to 2-1 overall. Hugh Freeze didnt try to soften it afterward. The Auburn coach said his team simply did not play well enough to win, and pointed to the kind of details that tend to decide conference games: sluggish offensive starts, missed tackles and a general lack of composure.
Freeze also acknowledged mistakes on both sides of the ball, which made the loss sting even more because Auburn had chances to keep pace in a game that stayed within reach. Still, he pushed back on any notion that the defeat would split the group, saying there was no division in the locker room. For a team trying to get its footing in league play, the bigger question now is how quickly those early issues can be cleaned up before they follow Auburn deeper into the SEC schedule. [Read more 🡒]