BY BRANDON HUGHES
FOR THE OBSERVER
COLUMBIA, Missouri — Stop me if you’ve heard this one before: Auburn enters the fourth quarter with a two-score lead… and loses. If it sounds familiar, it’s because it is. For the second time in three games, the Tigers were seemingly in control of a football game, only to falter late and see an opportunity for victory slip through its fingers.
When Missouri running back Jamal Roberts fell over the goal line with 43 seconds remaining in the game, the host Tigers of Missouri (6-1, 2-1) capped a 14-point second-half comeback to defeat the visiting Auburn Tigers (2-5, 0-4) 21-17. This marked the first time Auburn lost to Missouri since Mizzou joined the SEC in 2012. Auburn had previously been involved in 106 games in which it led by at least 14 points in the second half. In those 106 games, Auburn had only lost once. After Saturday, their record in such games fell to 105-2.
“Obviously, another disappointing day,” said Auburn head coach Hugh Freeze to open his postgame press conference, “and bitter to know we’re not able to get across the finish line against another top 20 team. Give Missouri credit for not folding and continuing to battle. Our kids fought hard. We’re not making enough plays. We’re not making enough right calls at times to win these close games right now, obviously, and it’s disappointing for the Auburn family. … It’s a difficult year where it seems nothing is going quite our way when you need it to.”
Missouri opened the game with a time-consuming 12-play drive culminating in a 51-yard field goal, giving them an early 3-0 lead. However, the drive proved costly for Mizzou, as their starting quarterback, Brady Cook, suffered a lower leg injury and would sit out until late in the third quarter.
Auburn’s first offensive possession got off to a sluggish start and punted without gaining a first down. The teams traded punts on the following three drives, and it wasn’t until Auburn’s third possession of the game that the offense found its footing. Auburn’s Towns McGough would knot the score at 3-3 with a 32-yard field goal capping an 11-play, 64-yard drive. That is where the score would remain at the end of the first half.
Auburn opened the third quarter with a bang. On the sixth play of the drive, Payton Thorne connected with Cam Coleman on a 47-yard bomb to give the visiting Tigers their first lead of the game, 10-3.
The Auburn defense forced a three-and-out on Mizzou’s first drive of the second half, and then Mizzou’s defense returned the favor. When Auburn punted, however, Missouri’s Luther Burden mishandled the punt, sending the ball into the end zone, where Auburn’s Antonio Kite fell on the loose ball for a touchdown. The special teams score gave Auburn a 17-3 advantage.
Missouri immediately answered with a 9-play, 44-yard drive that ended in a 38-yard field goal, closing the gap to 17-6.
Auburn looked as if it were ready with an answer of its own as the offense used nine plays to get the ball to a 1st and goal at the Mizzou 10-yard line. On first down, Thorne floated a perfect pass to Robert Lewis in the corner of the end zone, but the Georgia State transfer allowed the ball to fall through his hands and harmlessly to the turf. So, instead of a touchdown that would have given the Tigers a commanding lead heading into the final quarter, Auburn would settle for a field goal try after a sack on second down and a swing pass to Jarquez Hunter failed to find the endzone. McGough’s struggles continued as his 30-yard attempt sailed wide left, missing his fourth field goal in his last seven attempts, dropping him to 5-10 for FGs for the season. Instead of Auburn extending its lead, they got nothing from a 1st and goal situation, and then the fourth quarter happened.
Coming into the Missouri game, against power conference opponents, the Auburn defense allowed an average of 4.9 points per quarter in the first three quarters of the game. That number more than doubles to an average of 11 points given up in the fourth quarter. Against Missouri, the defense allowed only six points in the first three quarters, only to see the home team explode for 15 points in the final frame.
Mizzou scored on the opening play of the fourth quarter on a 2-yard plunge by Marcus Carroll. The Tigers then converted the two-point conversion to cut the Auburn lead to 17-14.
The Auburn offense would fail to do anything the rest of the way with drives of three plays, five plays, three plays, and three plays. With the game on the line and the ball at their own 5-yard line, the Missouri offense would go on a methodical 17-play, 95-yard march to the end zone for the game-winning score.
By the Numbers:
- Entering the game Saturday, Auburn led the nation in snaps played on defense by true freshmen. The Tigers lead the SEC in snaps played by true freshmen for offense and defense combined.
- The Auburn offense had the ball in Missouri territory six times and only scored 10 points.
- Auburn has lost 14 consecutive games to ranked opponents—the longest streak in 88 years.
Up Next: AU plays away versus Kentucky at 6:45 on the SEC Network.
