Defensive Struggles Early Hurt Ole Miss Late In Auburn Loss
Blame Matt Corral's injury, or blame the defense. How about both?
No. 10 Ole Miss leaves Jordan-Hare with a sour taste in its mouth, knowing a chance for the SEC West titles hangs in the hands of No. 18 Auburn. The Rebels (6-2, 3-2 SEC) had moments to seize control, but they allowed the Tigers (6-2, 3-1 SEC) to hold on for 60 minutes of action in a 31-20 win.
And it started from the get-go.
"Hats off to Auburn," Rebels coach Lane Kiffin said. "They played really tough. It's a very tough environment to play in. The crowd was great. Bo [Nix] made a lot of plays for them, especially early on. I think our defense after struggling early played exceptionally well."
Auburn QB Bo Nix led an 11-play drive to begin the game that culminated an 11-yard touchdown put the Tigers up 7-0. One drive later, the near same result. Thanks to a pass interference call against defensive back Jake Springer tacked on an extra 15 yards. The result? A 1-yard touchdown run from Tank Bigsby to put Auburn up 14-3.
Nix finished the game going 22-of-30 passing for 278 yards and a touchdown. He averaged 9.3 yards per throw and tacked on an extra yards rushing along with the score.
Auburn's weak point this season has been its receiving set. You could have guessed otherwise when they matched up against DJ Durkin's boys. Three different pass-catchers tallied at least 30 yards of action, including Kobe Hudson, who led the way with 77 yards. Running back Jarquez Hunter also was active in the passing game, recording a 9-yard touchdown reception in the closing minutes of the first half.
Ole Miss woke up enough in the second half. They allowed a late field goal from Anders Carlson to extend Auburn's lead by 11. Cornerback Deantre Prince forced a fumble from Hudson to give the Rebels back the ball at Auburn's 43.
Six plays later, Corral couldn't find his target, leading to a turnover and sealing the game.
"I thought we played well by tackling," Kiffin said. "Bo keeps drives alive, as you've seen like the LSU game. You can play good defense and be right there, but you can't tackle the guy."
Stopping Auburn third down (4-of-11) wasn't a problem. It was fourth down that raised eyebrows. The Tigers went 2-of-2 trying to convert, both times leading to points. The Rebels allowed 483 yards of offense and let Auburn with the time of possession.
This is Ole Miss football. Kiffin elects to try the carefree demeanor with his offense, putting his defense's back against the wall and asking them to make a play. A slow start ensues, and by the time the Rebels figure it out, it's too late.
The only thing consistent with the Rebels are their inconsistencies defensively. It showed on Saturday, and perhaps cost Ole Miss a chance of making a bigger bowl game than expected entering the weekend.
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