Malcolm Simmons – Syndication Server

Cam Coleman made the most of his opportunities in win over ULM

Coleman set several personal records on Saturday, leading Auburn to a 48-14 win over ULM.

Freshman wide receiver [autotag]Cam Coleman[/autotag] signed with Auburn in hopes of becoming the top target for Tiger quarterbacks. However, he has been unable to produce top target-caliber numbers.

That changed Saturday in Auburn’s 48-14 win over ULM at Jordan-Hare Stadium.

Coleman shattered his personal records in the game by hauling in eight catches for 100 yards and three scores. Before Saturday’s game, Coleman had not caught more than four passes for over 82 yards and had scored just twice.

After the game, Coleman told the media that he was thankful to be in position to make several plays in the win.

“It felt good because every opportunity I get, I’m going to make the best of it,” Coleman said postgame. “So, every opportunity that came my way, I was just making the best of it because there’s no telling when the ball is going to come back to you. You’ve got to make the best of every opportunity.”

Coleman’s production impressed several of his teammates as well, including quarterback [autotag]Payton Thorne[/autotag]. Three of Thorne’s five touchdown passes went to Coleman, which has built confidence between the two. Thorne complemented Coleman’s big day, and expects even greater feats from him in the future.

“He did a really good job today. He only needed one hand (to score his final touchdown), so that was sweet,” Thorne said. “He is a great athlete, and it’s fun playing with him. These young guys have a long career ahead of them. I’m sure he will keep working. That is all he does, so more and more of those plays will show up for him.”

After the performance, Coleman has now reeled in 23 passes for 392 yards and five scores. He is third on the team in yards behind [autotag]KeAndre Lambert-Smith[/autotag] (761) and [autotag]Malcolm Simmons[/autotag] (412), and trails just Lambert-Smith (8) in touchdown receptions.

Contact/Follow us @TheAuburnWire on X (Twitter), and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Auburn news, notes, and opinions. You can also follow Taylor on Twitter @TaylorJones__

Instant analysis: Cam Coleman, Auburn dominates ULM to return to win column

The freshman receiver logs 100 yards and three touchdowns in Auburn’s record-setting win over ULM.

Auburn football fans have waited all season for a breakout game from freshman wide receiver [autotag]Cam Coleman[/autotag]. On Saturday, it finally occurred.

Coleman broke several season highs on Saturday by logging eight catches for 100 yards and three touchdowns in Auburn’s 48-14 win over ULM on Saturday at Jordan-Hare Stadium in Auburn, Alabama.

Ahead of Saturday’s game, Coleman’s best game was a three-catch, 82-yard game vs. Oklahoma in September. He reeled in four catches in Auburn’s win over Kentucky on Oct. 26 and had recorded just two touchdown receptions. He blew past those numbers on Saturday to headline a record-breaking day for several Tigers.

In addition to Coleman’s epic day, Auburn running back [autotag]Jarquez Hunter[/autotag] reached the 1,000-yard rushing mark for the first time in his career after rushing for 102 yards on 14 carries. Quarterback [autotag]Payton Thorne[/autotag] also tossed five touchdown passes, which ties a single-game program record.

Auburn dominated ULM in several categories in the first half, including yards, first downs, red zone opportunities, and tackles for loss. The Tigers out-gained ULM 292-70 through the first 30 minutes, which included a 188-yard passing effort from Thorne. Thorne completed 16-of-24 passes with just under 50% of his completions to Coleman, who logged seven catches for 78 yards and two scores.

Auburn ended the day with 507 total yards, including 304 yards through the air. On the otherside, Auburn’s defense allowed ULM to gain just 218 yards and held them to 2-of-12 on third down opportunities.

The Tigers took control of the scoreboard early in the 1st quarter when Thorne connected with Coleman for a 20-yard touchdown reception with 10:57 remaining. Following a field goal from Birmingham Southern transfer [autotag]Ian Vachon[/autotag] with 5:21 in the 1st quarter to extend Auburn’s lead to 10-0, the pair teamed up again for a three-yard touchdown pass at the 7:44 mark in the 2nd quarter to put Auburn ahead, 17-0.

The final score of the first half occurred with 0:06 to go in the 2nd quarter when Thorne found [autotag]KeAndre Lambert-Smith[/autotag] for a 30-yard touchdown reception to push Auburn to a 24-0 halftime lead.

ULM started the 3rd quarter by finding the scoreboard on a one-yard rush by running back Ahmad Hardy at the 8:09 mark. However, their momentum was quickly taken away as the Tigers scored twice to close out the quarter. Thorne connected with Coleman for the third time with 4:37 to go in the 3rd quarter and later found fellow freshman receiver [autotag]Malcolm Simmons[/autotag] for a 40-yard score to give Auburn a 38-7 entering the 4th quarter.

Auburn added two more scores to cap their scoring. Damari Alston rushed for a score from seven-yards out to give Auburn the 45-7 lead with 11:48 to go in the quarter. Vachon connected on his second field goal of the day to give Auburn the 48-7 lead with 1:48 to go in the game. ULM capped scoring with less than 10 seconds remaining when Warhawks QB General Booty found Jonathan Bibbs for a 65-yard touchdown pass to cut into Auburn’s lead, 48-14.

Auburn will host No. 14 Texas A&M next Saturday to close out its home schedule for the 2024 season. The official game time and network will be announced following the conclusion of Saturday’s college football action.

Two Tigers named Mid-season Freshmen All-Americans by On3

Auburn has used plenty of freshmen on the field this season, and these two have caught the eye of a national publication

Auburn football has relied heavily on freshmen through six games. Two of those newcomers were recently recognized by On3.

Charles Power, On3’s Director of Scouting and Rankings, recently dropped his picks for the Midseason Freshmen All-American Team and included two Tiger defenders, defensive lineman [autotag]Malik Blocton[/autotag] and safety [autotag]Kaleb Harris[/autotag].

Blocton, a freshman from Pike Road, has registered seven tackles through six games with one sack. Outside of true tackles, Blocton has become a threat to opposing quarterbacks in his short time on the Plains. According to Pro Football Focus data, Blocton has created five pressures, four being registered as quarterback hurries. In Auburn’s most recent game at Georgia, Blocton graded out at 78.8 overall and 80.6 in rush defense.

Harris is the team’s best tackler according to PFF. The freshman from Alabaster grades at 90.1 in the category and is No. 2 in coverage with 77.8 as opposing receivers have caught just three of nine passes when guarded by Harris. He has accumulated 15 tackles to this point of the season and has swatted four passes.

Blocton and Harris have earned their place on Power’s midseason team, but several others missed an opportunity to also earn the honor.

Freshmen receivers [autotag]Malcolm Simmons[/autotag] and [autotag]Cam Coleman[/autotag] are No. 2 and No. 3 in receiving for the Tigers with a combined statline of 27 catches for 472 yards and three scores. Cornerback [autotag]Jay Crawford[/autotag] has also had a great start to his collegiate career by making six tackles and holding opposing receivers to a 33.3% catch rate.

Watch out for Blocton, Harris, and the rest of the Auburn freshmen as they look to play an instrumental role in the team’s second-half success in 2024.

Auburn’s freshmen receivers have caught the eye of Kirby Smart

Smart mentioned “phenomenal” freshmen Cam Coleman and Malcolm Simmons when breaking down the Auburn offense ahead of Saturday’s game.

Auburn’s true freshmen receivers have lived up to the hype through the season’s first five games.

[autotag]Cam Coleman[/autotag] and [autotag]Malcolm Simmons[/autotag] are No. 2 and No. 3 respectively in terms of receiving yards and are in the top five in receptions. Simmons has turned the most heads so far by hauling in 14 passes for 214 yards and two scores while the team’s top signee, Coleman, has caught nine passes for 212 yards and one touchdown.

Georgia head coach Kirby Smart is intrigued by these two players, stating his thoughts on the duo during his weekly press conference ahead of Saturday’s game vs. Auburn. Smart feels that Simmons and Coleman have a bright future ahead of them.

“Fast, athletic, great size,” Smart said of Simmons and Coleman. “I mean, they were phenomenal players coming out. They both have special attributes in terms of ball skills, playmaking ability, speed, dynamic receivers. And, you know, those guys, you want to catch them when they’re young. You want to catch them when they’re early in the season, not as they’re getting seasoned vets of the SEC. You can see these guys growing up on tape as they make more of them play.”

When talking about Auburn’s offense, Smart says that playing [autotag]Hugh Freeze[/autotag] has made a living by implementing the run-pass option within his game plan and it will be important to limit how often the Tigers use them.

“Yeah, it’s the RPO game. (Hugh Freeze) hung his hat on the ability to have RPOs, and I think he’s done a good job adjusting to where it’s not just that. For a while, he was an RPO guy. When RPOs came out, he was ahead of the game at doing those. He’s evolved. He still does those. He still has the quarterback make decisions on plays, whether to throw it or run it, because you can take advantage of defenses doing that. But he’s added new wrinkles and twists that you see in the NFL, you see across college football, using motions and eye candy and sorts of things to create an advantage or create a leverage or a mismatch. So he’s done a good job evolving while keeping the RPO game. The RPO game is the biggest difference. They are fully committed to being able to do and throw RPOs.”

Auburn faces No. 5 Georgia on Saturday at 2:30 p.m. CT. Both teams are coming off of losses to ranked teams. The Bulldogs lost a road game at No. 2 Alabama while Auburn dropped a game late to No. 17 Oklahoma at Jordan-Hare Stadium.

What did we learn from Auburn’s loss to Oklahoma?

Auburn made very few, but costly mistakes in its recent loss to Oklahoma.

Auburn football finished its five-game home stand in less than desirable fashion, which seemed to be the name of the game throughout the entire start to the 2024 season.

The Tigers saw a late pick six become the difference in Saturday’s 27-21 loss to the Oklahoma Sooners, dropping them to 2-3 overall and 0-2 in the SEC heading into the month of October.

Unlike the team’s other two defeats, this one felt like things were going right for Auburn. While it only scored 21 points, plays were being made and the team was moving the ball. Despite that, it gave up the lead late and horror struck once again for a team with high hopes.

Here is what we learned about the Tigers after the loss.

Quarterback [autotag]Payton Thorne[/autotag] was benched a short couple of weeks ago and thrown back into action last week against Arkansas after struggles shown by [autotag]Hank Brown[/autotag]. He responded this week in one of the biggest games of Auburn’s season by playing well, which is what fans desperately needed to see.

There were many good deep throws made with smart decisions, but what fans will remember were the other decisions made, the ones that had them holding their breath and just hoping the ball would not be interceptions.

For the most part, they were relieved of that, that was until the Sooners’ Kip Lewis intercepted a ball on a slant route and ran it back to give his squad a late lead. It answered the question of if Thorne had improved in crunch time, which was no.

On the receiving end, [autotag]KeAndre Lambert-Smith[/autotag] and [autotag]Malcolm Simmons[/autotag] have become two of the team’s most reliable targets in the early going, and when they get the ball, it always feel like a big play is in motion.

Running back [autotag]Jarquez Hunter[/autotag] is also still who every Tigers fan knows him as, a powerful weapon. Despite not breaking 100 yards, Hunter continues to make explosive plays that provide a spark to the offense.

The defense still has many kinks to work out. Containing the quarterback has consistently been a problem all year, and while things improved on Saturday, it gave up two of the more crucial plays of the game in the opening drive touchdown by Michael Hawkins Jr. and his two-point conversion that gave Oklahoma a 24-21 lead.

[autotag]Demarcus Riddick[/autotag] had an explosive game and proved what he can do with six tackles, including a tackle-for-loss and sack. Look for him to continue growing down the stretch.

For the first time this season, Auburn saw its special teams struggle, as [autotag]Towns McGough[/autotag] missed both of his field goal attempts on the day, including one right before the half that would have given his team a 17-7 lead and raised the momentum heading into the break. For a young kicker, he still has a lot to grow on, but those two turned out to be a major miss for the Tigers.

Auburn takes the road for the entire month of October, beginning with a trip to Athens to take on the Georgia Bulldogs. That game is set for 2:30 p.m. CST and will be broadcast live on ABC from Sanford Stadium.

Contact/Follow us @TheAuburnWire on X (Twitter) and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Auburn news, notes and opinions. You can also follow Tyler on X @traley34

Hugh Freeze reveals who will start at quarterback for Arkansas game

Did Hank Brown do enough against New Mexico to earn another start? Hugh Freeze shared his answer on Saturday night.

Auburn enters SEC play this week with confidence after defeating New Mexico, 45-19 on Saturday at Jordan-Hare Stadium.

Most of its confidence comes from quarterback play. Redshirt freshman [autotag]Hank Brown[/autotag] earned his first career start on Saturday, taking over for previous starter [autotag]Payton Thorne[/autotag]. Brown passed his first test by completing 17-of-25 passes for 235 yards and four touchdowns. He completed a pass to 10 different receivers including [autotag]Camden Brown[/autotag], [autotag]Sam Jackson V[/autotag], and [autotag]Malcolm Simmons[/autotag].

Brown has won the respect of his teammates outside of the gridiron, and it was great for players such as tight end [autotag]Micah Riley[/autotag] to watch Brown finally get his chance to shine.

“He balled out man,” Riley said of Brown’s performance postgame. “The way that he carries himself is great. He always has his Bible. Reading it and talking to guys. He always keeps his spirits up. I’m proud of him and can’t wait for him to ball out his next game.”

Brown checked most of the boxes head coach [autotag]Hugh Freeze[/autotag] was hoping to accomplish on Saturday. Because of his performance, Brown has earned another start. He will get the nod for Auburn’s SEC opener next Saturday against Arkansas at Jordan-Hare Stadium according to Freeze, citing that he wants to see how Brown competes against a tougher opponent.

According to a report from Justin Hokanson of Auburn Live, Freeze is not ready to say that Brown is Auburn’s permanent fixture at quarterback, but he hopes to see every player at the position to practice better in the event that their number is called.

“I don’t know if it’s, if he keeps playing well, it’ll be a permanent fix,” Freeze said of Brown’s hold on the QB1 spot. “If not, maybe it wakes everybody else up, spurs them to be better prepared and make better decisions.”

Following Saturday’s performance, Brown has now passed for 463 yards and six touchdowns while completing 69.2% of his passes with zero interceptions. So far in 2024, he has completed 20-of-30 passes for 331 yards. The biggest test of his young career will unfold next Saturday as Auburn welcomes Arkansas to Jordan-Hare Stadium to open SEC play. Kickoff is scheduled for 2:30 p.m. CT and can be seen on ESPN.

Auburn stays put at No. 12 in SEC Power Poll after opening night victory

Despite the emphatic statement victory, most experts still believe the Tigers are a long way from contending for an SEC title.

The Auburn Tigers collected one of the best wins in the college football world on Saturday night, as the offense hummed their way to 73 points in a 70-point shellacking on in-state opponent Alabama A&M. Despite the emphatic statement victory, most experts still believe the Tigers are well on the outside looking in when it comes to competing for an SEC Championship.

This sentiment held true for Tuscaloosa News’s SEC writer Chase Goodbread, who ranked the Tigers at the No. 12 spot in his SEC power poll after week one. Even after the Auburn’s new-look offense had their way with an inferior opponent, the Tigers rank ahead of only South Carolina (16), Mississippi State (15), Arkansas (14), and Vanderbilt (13) on the list.

After telling fans he needed to see explosive sparks from Auburn’s new offense last week, he warns that the Tigers could be on upset alert this week against ACC opponent Cal, making it fairly clear he was not convinced after [autotag]KeAndre Lambert-Smith[/autotag], [autotag]Cam Coleman[/autotag], [autotag]Malcolm Simmons[/autotag], and [autotag]Payton Thorne[/autotag] tore up an inferior Alabama A&M defense in week one.

It is important to remember Alabama A&M was a 45-point underdog in Jordan-Hare a week ago. 315 combined receiving yards from the quartet of Simmons, Lambert-Smith, Coleman, and [autotag]Perry Thompson[/autotag] was a fantastic first step, but experts will need to see success against better competition before claiming the Tigers offense as top notch.

Payton Thorne and company have the opportunity to prove week one wasn’t a fluke as soon as this Saturday when Auburn hosts Power four opponent Cal from Jordan-Hare stadium. Another assertive win could push [autotag]Hugh Freeze[/autotag]’s squad closer to the top of Goodbread’s poll.

Currently, the top five consists of Georgia (1), Texas (2), Alabama (3), Ole Miss (4), and Tennessee (5). While a win this week is unlikely to leapfrog Auburn near the top, it could help them fly by Florida (11) and Texas A&M (10), who both lost in week one.

Contact/Follow us @TheAuburnWire on X (Twitter), and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Auburn news, notes, and opinion. You can also follow Brian on Twitter @TheRealBHauch

The best images from Auburn football’s 73-3 win over Alabama A&M

Auburn football kicked off the 2024 season with a massive win over the Alabama A&M Bulldogs on Saturday

Auburn football kicked off the 2024 campaign with a strong 73-3 win over Alabama A&M at Jordan-Hare Stadium.

The Tigers set the tone of the game early thanks to a 34-yard touchdown rush by [autotag]Jarquez Hunter[/autotag] with 14:13 remaining in the 1st quarter. Auburn would score three more times in the opening stanza, all via the pass from quarterback [autotag]Payton Thorne[/autotag].

Passing was the name of the game for Auburn as Thorne and backup [autotag]Hank Brown[/autotag] combined to complete 64% of their passes for 451 yards and six touchdowns. A total of 10 different receivers recorded a reception in the win, with freshman [autotag]Malcolm Simmons[/autotag] leading the charge with three catches for 91 yards and a score. Penn State transfer [autotag]KeAndre Lambert-Smith[/autotag] led the team in receiving touchdowns with two.

There were many memorable moments in Auburn’s season-opening win, take a look back at some of the best by checking out this photo gallery.

Tigers of the Game: Shades of ‘vintage’ Thorne graced Jordan-Hare Stadium on Saturday

Auburn football grabbed the season-opening win over Alabama A&M due in part to Thorne’s great passing.

Auburn quarterback [autotag]Payton Thorne[/autotag] had a disappointing season in 2023 where he passed for just 1,755 yards and 16 touchdowns. [autotag]Hugh Freeze[/autotag] overhauled the receiving unit during the offseason in hopes of giving Thorne the opportunity to replicate his 2021 success when he passed for over 3,000 yards and led Michigan State to 11 wins and a Peach Bowl win.

It is still too early to tell if Thorne can bring Auburn similar success in 2024, but he has gotten off to a great start.

Thorne passed for 322 yards and four touchdowns in Auburn’s season-opening win over Alabama A&M on Saturday. Thorne eclipsed the 300-yard mark for the first time as a Tiger and his four touchdown passes are the most he has thrown since the 2022 season in Michigan State’s season-opening win over Western Michigan. It was his best performance in an Auburn uniform since he passed for 230 yards and three touchdowns against Mississippi State last October.

After the game, Thorne discussed his excitement of being able to connect on multiple deep passes.

“It was great, nice to see that we were able to take some shots down the field and connect on them and then obviously finish it the rest of the way and get in the endzone. It means a lot. You know it’s good to get out here and do it against another team and see it happen and it’s something we have to build on.”

Who are some other players that are worthy of a “Tiger of the Game” nod? Here are the players that caught the eyes of Auburn Wire writers Taylor Jones, Brian Hauch, Tyler Raley, and Auburn fans for their performance against Alabama A&M.

Following a strong scoring output, it is easy to see why the Auburn offense is earning a bulk of the attention. However, limiting Alabama A&M to three points and 242 yards can not go unnoticed. Jalen McLeod was Auburn’s top defensive player on Saturday after recording five tackles with two tackles for loss and a sack.

The “Freeze Four” had a stellar debut as [autotag]Malcolm Simmons[/autotag], [autotag]Perry Thompson[/autotag], [autotag]Bryce Cain[/autotag], and [autotag]Cam Coleman[/autotag] all logging at least one reception, with three of them finding the endzone.

However, it was Simmons that had the most impressive debut. Simmons hauled in a team-leading 91 receiving yards with an offensive touchdown. His first score came in the 3rd quarter when he recovered a blocked put in the end zone and earned his first receiving touchdown seven minutes later when he brought in a 57-yard pass from [autotag]Hank Brown[/autotag].

The debut of “Big Play Dre” was memorable. Penn State’s leading receiver from a year ago ended his first game in orange and blue with three catches for 80 yards and a team-leading two touchdowns. Look for Lambert-Smith to be a life force for Payton Thorne this season.

Auburn fans have spoken, and they have chosen quarterback Payton Thorne as the “Tiger of the Game” after his performance against Alabama A&M. To have a say in who wins next week’s “Tiger of the Game” award, visit Auburn Wire on X (formerly Twitter) after every game to cast your vote.

Here’s an updated look at how many “Tiger of the Game” honors each Auburn player has earned this season:

KeAndre Lambert-Smith (1)
Payton Thorne (1)
Malcolm Simmons (1)
Jalen McLeod (1)

Instant analysis: Revamped passing game shines in Auburn’s season-opening win over Alabama A&M

Auburn receivers lived up to expectations in the Tigers 73-3 win over Alabama A&M on Saturday.

Auburn football fans entered the 2024 season hoping to see new life within the passing game.

Through one game, it is safe to say that quarterback [autotag]Payton Thorne[/autotag] and the Tigers’ receivers lived up to fans’ expectations.

Thorne and backup quarterback [autotag]Hank Brown[/autotag] combined to complete 18-of-28 passes for 451 yards and six touchdowns in Auburn’s 73-3 victory over Alabama A&M. The duo combined to connect with 10 different receivers.

After [autotag]Jarquez Hunter[/autotag]’s 34-yard touchdown run with 14:13 in the 1st quarter, Auburn went on to record four receiving touchdowns over its next six drives. On the Tigers’ ensuing possession, Thorne connected with Penn State transfer [autotag]KeAndre Lambert-Smith[/autotag] on a 67-yard pass to push Auburn ahead, 14-0 with 12:47 remaining in the opening quarter. Thorne and Lambert-Smith hooked up again later in the quarter on a 4-yard touchdown pass. In-between Thorne and Lambert-Smith’s connections, freshman [autotag]Cam Coleman[/autotag] hauled in his first collegiate pass for a 44-yard touchdown to push the Tigers ahead, 21-0.

Thorne’s final passing score of the night came with 10:10 remaining in the first half when he found another true freshman, [autotag]Perry Thompson[/autotag], for a 70-yard touchdown pass to extend the lead to 38-0. Thorne passed the torch to Brown after calling his own number for a four-yard rush to give Auburn the 45-3 lead with 3:22 in the 2nd quarter.

Brown picked up where Thorne left off by throwing two touchdown passes of over 35 yards. He found freshman [autotag]Malcolm Simmons[/autotag] for a 57 yard score and later connected with Cal transfer [autotag]Sam Jackson V[/autotag] from 37 yards out. Brown’s home debut concluded after passing for 96 yards and two scores.

[autotag]Holden Geriner[/autotag] finished the game by leading Auburn’s final drive that lasted five plays, 36 yards. However, it resulted in a lost fumble.

Three Auburn receivers recorded over 80 yards of receptions: Malcolm Simmons (91 yards), Perry Thompson (82), and KeAndre Lambert-Smith (80). Cam Coleman logged 62 yards on two catches with a touchdown in his highly-anticipated debut.

Auburn football kicks off the 2024 season with a 1-0 record. Next week, the Tigers will look to remain unbeaten by hosting Cal at Jordan-Hare Stadium for a 2:30 p.m. CT kickoff.