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Five takeaways from Auburn’s victory over Western Kentucky

Auburn’s two-headed rushing attack grows stronger and coach Williams proves his case in these five takeaways:

It’s another week and another win for the Auburn Tigers.

The Tigers closed out their season on home turf on Saturday against Western Kentucky in a 41-17 win, but the team will still head away from home for one last game against the Alabama Crimson Tide next week. While improbable, a win against the Tide would have Auburn bowl eligible when the prospect looked meek for Auburn just weeks prior. The team rode a strong rushing attack and more excellent coaching from Cadillac Williams to a victory on the Plains before the rivalry showdown.

Here are five takeaways from Auburn’s second consecutive victory:

Photo Gallery: Auburn earns big win over Western Kentucky

Here are the best images from Auburn’s 41-17 win over Western Kentucky on Saturday afternoon.

Auburn earns its second win of the [autotag]Cadillac Williams[/autotag] era, and its’ fifth of the season after defeating Western Kentucky, 41-17 on Saturday.

Auburn led 17-3 in the first half before surrendering the advantage to Western Kentucky, who would score 14 unanswered points over the final 4:35 seconds of the second quarter to tie Auburn, 17-17 at halftime.

Auburn came out with a victory on its mind, as the Tigers scored 24 second-half points to run away with the win. [autotag]Tank Bigsby[/autotag] and [autotag]Jarquez Hunter[/autotag] scored touchdowns in the second half, with [autotag]D.J. James[/autotag] recording a 27-yard pick-six to seal the game with 6:15 remaining in the 4th quarter.

It was a rewarding day for 24 seniors, as they get a win to close out their final home game at Jordan-Hare Stadium.

Here is a look at the best images from Saturday’s game.

Social media reacts to Auburn’s 41-17 win over Western Kentucky

Auburn won their final game in Jordan-Hare Stadium this season and Twitter had some great reactions to the game.

Auburn picked up an emphatic 41-17 win over Western Kentucky Saturday in Jordan-Hare Stadium.

The Tigers stormed out to a 17-3 lead but a second-quarter surge by the Hilltopper tied it at 17 before halftime. The Tigers came out firing in the second half and outscored them 24-0 to pull away win the win on Senior Night.

The Tigers are now 5-6 on the season and can become bowl eligible with a win over Alabama next week in Tuscaloosa.

[autotag]Tank Bigsby[/autotag] and [autotag]Jarquez Hunter[/autotag] led the way for the Tigers. Bigsby ran for 110 yards and two touchdowns while Hunter ran for 109 yards and one touchdown and threw another one to [autotag]Koy Moore[/autotag].

DJ James had a monster game for the defense, making five tackles and putting an exclamation mark on the win with a pick-six in the fourth quarter.

Here are the top social media reactions to the game.

Photo Gallery: The best images from Auburn’s win over Texas A&M

Relive an incredible night at Jordan-Hare Stadium with this photo gallery from Auburn’s victory over Texas A&M.

The Auburn Tigers snapped its five-game losing streak on Saturday night by defeating the Texas A&M Aggies, 13-10 at Jordan-Hare Stadium.

Defense ruled the game for Auburn, as they limited the Aggies to just one trip to the red zone, and only 215 yards of total offense. Offensively, [autotag]Tank Bigsby[/autotag] and [autotag]Jarquez Hunter[/autotag] both rushed for 121 yards despite neither back getting into the end zone.

It was also a big night for [autotag]Alex McPherson[/autotag], who got the start at kicker in place of the injured [autotag]Anders Carlson[/autotag]. His Auburn debut resulted in going 2-for-3, making field goals of 34 and 26 while pushing a 54-yarder wide right in the 3rd quarter.

The win also marked the first under interim head coach [autotag]Cadillac Williams[/autotag]. The Auburn legend earned his first victory in front of a sold-out crowd.

Saturday night was incredible, and it is a great time to relive each special moment. Here is a look at the best images from Auburn’s win over the Aggies.

Five takeaways from Auburn’s win over Texas A&M

The Tigers have won a football game for the first time in almost two months.

For the first time since September, the Auburn Tigers have won a football game.

Coach Cadillac Williams and his squad avoided last place in the SEC West with a victory over the Texas A&M Aggies at home in what was largely a defensive contest that ended with a 13-10 scoreline. A win is a win, though, and the Auburn crowd made Jordan-Hare stadium a hostile environment for an A&M team that finds itself in a freefall after losing nine out of its last 11 FBS games. The Tigers, meanwhile, will have some motivation heading into a tune-up game against Western Kentucky next week.

Here are five takeaways from the Tigers’ first victory after firing coach Bryan Harsin:

Twitter reacts to Auburn beating Texas A&M 13-10

The Auburn Tigers beat the Texas A&M Aggies and Cadillac Williams has his first win as head coach of the Tigers.

It was not always pretty but Auburn beat the Texas A&M Aggies 13-10 Saturday night in Jordan-Hare Stadium.

The offense was unable to finish their drives but [autotag]Colby Wooden[/autotag] and the rest of the defense made sure they never trailed, shutting down the Aggie’s offense.

The offense leaned heavily on the running backs and they delivered. [autotag]Tank Bigsby[/autotag] and [autotag]Jarquez Hunter[/autotag] each rushed for 121 yards in a fitting tribute to interim head coach [autotag]Cadillac Willimas[/autotag], who picked up his first win in front of a raucous Auburn crowd that did not care the win was just their fourth of the season.

The win energized an Auburn fanbase and they took to Twitter to celebrate. Here are the top reactions.

Instant Analysis: Tigers defense takes over in 13-10 win over Texas A&M

Cadillac Williams has his first win as Auburn’s head coach.

On a night when Auburn’s offense was unable to get anything going the Tiger’s defense took over and led them to a 13-10 victory over Texas A&M Saturday night in Jordan-Hare Stadium.

With the win, Auburn (4-6, 2-5 SEC) snapped a five-game losing streak and gave [autotag]Cadillac Williams[/autotag] his first win as head coach of the Auburn Tigers.

Despite giving up 0 points in the first half, Auburn’s defense kicked it up in the second half. They forced five consecutive three-and-outs and held the Aggies to -2 yards in the third quarter.

The Aggies were without star running back Devon Achane and were unable to get anything going on the ground, they averaged 3.9 yards per carry and were forced to keep turning to true freshman quarterback Conner Weigman to bail them out.

Auburn’s defensive line made sure that did not happen. They may have with 3.0 sacks but they kept Weigman under constant pressure. He never looked comfortable and at one point he missed on 13 straight pass attempts. He finished the night 14-for-36 for 121 yards.

After Auburn nearly committed their fourth turnover of the game, they were clinging to a 10-3 lead late in the fourth quarter and Texas A&M had a chance to tie it up.

[autotag]Colby Wooden[/autotag] had other plans. He beat the left tackle and stripped Weigman and [autotag]Morris Joseph Jr.[/autotag] recovered to give Auburn the ball at the Texas A&M 32-yard line.

Auburn was once again unable to finish the drive with a touchdown but [autotag]Alex McPherson[/autotag] made a 26-yard field goal to give Auburn a 13-3 lead with 3:02 to play.

On a night when Auburn’s defense took over, Wooden led the way. His strip sack was his only tackle but he finished with three quarterback hurries and was constantly in the backfield.

Auburn’s offense was able to move the ball throughout the game but once again failed to finish their drives. They averaged 4.9 per play and crossed the 50-yard line on their first five drives. However, they managed just seven points on those drives.

The biggest missed opportunity came in the third quarter when Auburn started the ball at midfield after a short punt by the Aggies. [autotag]Jarquez Hunter[/autotag] ripped off a 25-yard run to get Auburn right outside the red zone. Two plays later a miscommunication between [autotag]Robby Ashford[/autotag] and [autotag]Tank Bigbsy[/autotag] resulted in a fumble and the Aggies recovered to end the scoring opportunity.

After Texas A&M opened the game with nine straight punts, Ashford was picked off by Edgerrin Cooper to give the Aggies the ball at Auburn’s 39-yard line.

Auburn’s defense once again stood up though and they held the Aggies to a field goal to keep it a 10-3 Auburn lead with 10:38 left to play.

The Aggies had their best drive of the game after falling behind by two possessions with 3:02 left to play. They scored their first touchdown of the game with 1:33 left to play but failed to recover the onside kick and it was over.

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Instant Analysis: Auburn rallies but falls to Mississippi State 39-33 in overtime

Auburn fought hard but was unable to overcome a tough start to the game.

Auburn erased a 21-point deficit Saturday night against the Mississippi State Bulldogs but was unable to hold on as they fell to the Bulldogs 39-33 in overtime.

The Tigers rallied from down 24-6 at halftime and scored 27 second-half points to force overtime but after Anders Carlson missed a 38-yard field goal the Bulldogs’ Jo’quavious Marks ran it in from the 5-yard line to hand Auburn their fifth straight loss.

The Tigers managed just 109 yards in the first half but the ground game came alive in the second half as they clawed their way back into the game.

The comeback started with the Tiger’s defense forcing a Mississippi State punt on their first drive of the half but a bobbled snap gave the Tigers the ball deep in the Bulldog’s territory.

Facing second-and-14, [autotag]Robby Ashford[/autotag] scrambled for the 20-yard touchdown to give Auburn their first touchdown of the game and make it a 24-12 Mississippi State lead.

The Bulldog’s next punt was not much better as they punted it just 13 yards, giving Auburn the ball at the Mississippi State 35.

Ashford once again made sure Auburn capitalized on the chance, taking the designed run 18 yards for his second rushing touchdown of the game. The touchdown made it a 24-19 game with 4:18 left in the third quarter.

He finished the game with 108 yards rushing, two touchdowns, and a crucial two-point conversion.

After the teams traded punts, [autotag]Tank Bigsby[/autotag] made his presence known with a 41-yard touchdown run that gave Auburn a 25-24 lead with 6:36 left to play in the game.

The score erased a 24-3 first-half deficit and it looked like [autotag]Cadillac Williams[/autotag] was going to open his head coaching career with a win.

However, the Bulldogs were not done yet, they marched down the field on their first scoring drive of the half and retook the lead 30-25 with 3:49 left to play.

As they did throughout the second half Auburn fought back. With the Tigers facing 3rd-and-nine, Ashford hit [autotag]Ja’Varrius Johnson[/autotag] for a 24-yard gain and Auburn was in business.

After a defensive holding gave Auburn a crucial first down, Ashford took a designed run to the Mississippi State 8-yard line, and [autotag]Jarquez Hunter[/autotag] punched it in to give Auburn the 33-30 lead after Ashford converted the two-point conversion.

Mississippi State was not done though. A facemask penalty on the kickoff gave the Bulldogs the ball at the 50-yard line with 56 seconds to play.

Mississippi State’s kicker was up to the challenge and drilled the 48-yard field goal to tie it up.

The Bulldogs pulled out the trickery on the ensuing kick-off and drilled an Auburn returner and recovered the ball to give them a chance to win in regulation.

As expected with a team led by a former running back and with an offensive line coach calling plays the Tigers leaned on the ground game, rushing for 256 yards and all four of their touchdowns. They ran the ball 46 times compared to 22 passes.

Ashford’s 109 yards and two touchdowns led the way but Bigsby added 89 yards and one score on 13 carries while Hunter had 54 yards and a score of his own on 12 carries.

Instant Analysis: Auburn drops fourth straight game, falls to Arkansas 41-27

Auburn was unable to keep up in the second half, getting out-scored 24-14 by the Razorbacks.

Auburn was able to keep it close in the first half but the Arkansas Razorbacks pulled away in the third quarter to win 41-27 in Jordan-Hare Stadium.

With their fourth straight loss, Auburn (3-5, 1-4 SEC) has now lost to every SEC West team under [autotag]Bryan Harsin[/autotag] and does not have an active winning streak against any of their divisional rivals.

The Tigers had a solid start to the game, forcing a three-and-out on defense and marching into [autotag]Anders Carlson[/autotag]’s range on their first drive, however, he missed the 46-yard attempt. After a Razorbacks fumble on their ensuing drive, he got a second attempt and nailed it, giving Auburn a 3-0 lead to start the game.

The lead would not last as the Razorbacks marched down the field and made sure to finish their drive with a touchdown, taking a 7-3 lead with 3:10 left in the first quarter.

The Razorback’s success in the red zone was the difference in the game, they scored four touchdowns in their first five trips to build the commanding 31-13 lead. Auburn scored once in their first two trips, a 24-yard field goal.

With Auburn trailing 14-3 in the second quarter, [autotag]Tank Bigsby[/autotag] and [autotag]Robby Ashford[/autotag] were able to get Auburn back in the game with their legs. Ashford ran for 31 yards and a few plays later Bigsby ripped off a 41-yard touchdown run to make it a 14-10 game and bring Jordan-Hare Stadium alive.

The Tigers were unable to carry this momentum into the second half, Auburn moved the ball to open the second half but stalled and was forced to attempt a 52-yard field goal, which was blocked.

The Razorbacks took advantage of the opportunity, going on a nine-play, 64-yard touchdown drive and taking a 24-13 lead.

As has been the case all season, Auburn’s offense had no answers in the second half. They did not record a first down on either of their next two drives and the defense once again got worn down.

The Razorbacks scored touchdowns on their first three touchdowns of the half to pull away 38-13 and secure their first win over Auburn since 2015. They finally found success on the ground in the second half, rushing for 220 yards after managing just 70 yards in the first half.

The Tiger’s two scoring drives of the half came when the game was well in hand for Arkansas. With Ashford finding [autotag]Camden Brown[/autotag] for a nine-yard touchdown and [autotag]Jarquez Hunter[/autotag] punching it in with 4 seconds left to make it a 41-27 Arkansas win.

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Where are they now?: The curious case of Auburn’s 2021 signing class

The nation’s No. 18 signing class from 2021 is only halfway standing after the news of Landen King, A.D. Diamond, and Tar’varish Dawson’s intent to transfer.

Auburn head coach [autotag]Bryan Harsin[/autotag] was dealt a great hand to open his tenure on the Plains.

Just one week before the official announcement of the Harsin hire, Auburn signed the nation’s No. 18 recruiting class according to 247Sports, a class that consisted of 18 high school players, six of whom were rated as four-star prospects.

However, just two years after faxing their National Letter of Intent to the university, half of those signees that were expected to be the future of the program now appear on another program’s roster. The number has grown now that tight end [autotag]Landen King[/autotag] has announced his intent to enter the transfer portal. One day later, wide receiver [autotag]Tar’varish Dawson[/autotag] and cornerback [autotag]A.D. Diamond[/autotag] also announced that they were looking to test the transfer waters once the season concluded, moving the number of departures from seven players to ten in just two days.

Why is that? No one can for sure say at this time, but it is definitely a concern. Not only are the departures concerning, but the lack of production from this class is worrisome.

The headliner from this class is running back [autotag]Jarquez Hunter[/autotag], who has been given an opportunity to complement Tank Bigsby in the running game. Outside of Hunter, defensive players such as [autotag]Dylan Brooks[/autotag], [autotag]Cayden Bridges[/autotag], [autotag]Marquis Robinson[/autotag], and [autotag]Joko Willis[/autotag] have combined to play just 236 of Auburn’s 513 defensive snaps according to Pro Football Focus. Between those four players, Bridges is receiving the bulk of those snaps with 173.

With the recent news of King, Dawson, and Diamond’s departure, Auburn Wire is here to break down Auburn’s 2021 signing class, and who is still a part of it.

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Who is still here? Who has gone on to play for another program? All of that information is below: