The Auburn Tigers finally re-found the win column on Saturday, playing a mistake-free, dominant game on the road against Kentucky.
Auburn’s 24-10 victory may not have vaulted the Tigers far up most rankings lists, but it did enable them to leapfrog Kentucky in this week’s SEC Power Poll from The Tuscaloosa News. The Tigers, who had consistently been ranked as the second-worst SEC squad in columnist Chase Goodbread’s poll for most of the season, now sits at No. 14 in the Poll.
[autotag]Hugh Freeze[/autotag]’s squad was in danger of another brutal loss early, but the Tigers rallied behind a career-high night from running back [autotag]Jarquez Hunter[/autotag] to earn a huge 24-10 road win, putting them back into postseason contention as we enter the final month of the season.
The aforementioned Hunter ran for 278 yards in the win, earning himself a spot among the top 4 single-game rushers in Auburn history. His total was the highest rushing output by a Tiger since Tre Mason in 2013, and Hunter sits at the top of the SEC rushing leaders list this season (863 yards). While quarterback Payton Thorne didn’t too anything super impressive, Auburn’s signal caller did take care of the football and make key throws in important spots, helping the Tigers extend drives behind Hunter’s outstanding night.
As for the programs at the top of Goodbread’s rankings, Georgia (No. 1) held on to the top spot in the conference following an idle week. Texas A&M (No. 2) moved up from two spots after another major victory, while Texas (No. 3) fell for a second straight week. Tennessee (No. 4) dropped a spot after an idle week and Alabama (No. 5) climbed back into the top 5 following a 34-0 beatdown over Missouri.
With a matchup against No. 9 Vanderbilt on the cards this Saturday, Hugh Freeze’s team has a chance to knock on the door of the top 10 with a second-straight victory.
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