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AUBURN, Ala. (WSFA) – Auburn began SEC play Saturday afternoon when the Arkansas Razorbacks came to town. However, a sloppy first half with lots of turnovers and a strong running game by the Razorbacks was too much for the Tigers, and they lost 24-14 at home.
After the Razorbacks missed a field goal, Hank Brown and the Tiger offense went to work. However, things didn’t go according to plan when Brown intercepted a ball and hit Doneiko Slaughter in the approaching scoring position.
Arkansas took advantage of the young quarterback’s mistake and stormed 81 yards into the end zone. Ja’Qunden Jackson is credited with the first touchdown of the game when he ran into the end zone from one yard out.
The rest of the first half was marked by sloppy offense, with the teams combining for four punts and four turnovers. At halftime, the score was 7-0 Arkansas.
Hugh Freeze decided to bench Brown early in the second half, and Payton Thorne took over the leadership of the Auburn offense again. After a shaky first drive, the Tiger offense came to life. They gained 77 yards in 6 plays, and Thorne capped the attack with a touchdown pass to KeAndre Lambert-Smith that tied the game.
Taylen Green and the Razorback offense immediately struck back, and on Birmingham’s third and attempt, Green dropped back and found Isaiah Satengna completely free for a 54-yard touchdown pass, giving Arkansas the lead immediately again.
After a Thorne interception late in the third quarter, the Razorback offense went back to work. Auburn’s defense was able to keep Green and Co. out of the end zone, but a 43-yard field goal by Kyle Ramsey increased Arkansas’ lead to 10 points.
Thorne shook off the interception and immediately went back to work when the Tiger offense returned to the field. Thorne found Lambert-Smith wide open and Lambert-Smith ran toward the end zone. The 67-yard touchdown pass brought the Tigers back to within three points.
With just under 10 minutes left, the Razorback offense went into time management mode and needed just over six minutes to run down the field and extend the lead. On a crucial third and deciding play, Jackson got the handoff and got the ball just far enough over the goal line to score, putting the Razorbacks up 10 points with 3:38 left.
When the Auburn offense came back, Thorne was sacked twice, and they failed to convert on fourth-and-20 attempts, giving Arkansas the ball back at the Auburn 23-yard line.
The Razorbacks were unable to build on their lead and gave the ball away to Auburn with 56 seconds left. Auburn’s offense showed they weren’t going to give up despite running out of time, but they failed to find the end zone and fell to 2-2 on the season.
Next up for the struggling Auburn Tigers is a duel with SEC newcomer Oklahoma this coming Saturday afternoon.
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