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AUBURN |
UK |
Jarquez Hunter rushes for career-high 278 yards, 2 touchdowns to rally Auburn past Kentucky 24-10
LEXINGTON, Ky. (AP) Jarquez Hunter had career highs of 278 yards on 23 carries and two touchdowns, including the go-ahead score in the third quarter, Payton Thorne passed for 172 yards and a score and Auburn rallied from a 10-0 deficit with 24 unanswered points to beat Kentucky 24-10 on Saturday night.
After four consecutive losses that included blowing double-digit, fourth-quarter leads against Missouri and Oklahoma, the Tigers (3-5, 1-4 Southeastern Conference) overcame an early deficit with Hunter’s punishing runs and Thorne’s arm. Hunter put Auburn up 17-10 with a 1-yard scoring run midway through the third before blasting a 45-yard TD early in the fourth for a 14-point cushion.
The senior topped his previous highs of 183 yards last November against Vanderbilt and 20 carries against New Mexico on Sept. 14. His total is the fourth-best single-game performance in school history and he moved past Brent Fulwood into sixth among Auburn career rushers with 3,033 yards.
Hunter passed several guys on that career list: Fulwood (2,789), Stephen Davis (2,811), Tank Bigsby (2,903) and Tre Mason (2,979).
“Every play I got, I tried to take advantage of my opportunity and I tried to wear them out," said Hunter, who also had a 50-yard run late in the third.
Guiding it all was Auburn coach Hugh Freeze, who did not travel with the team on Friday because of a stomach illness but flew up Saturday morning. A football spokesman said Freeze became ill on Friday and experienced nausea, but he recovered to participate in the Tiger Walk into Kroger Field and go through his normal pregame routine before watching Auburn dominate the final 51 minutes.
“It would’ve really been miserable for everybody if I tried to travel with them yesterday," Freeze said afterward. "But nothing was really different other than I missed the Friday night meetings.”
Thorne completed 20 of 26 passes including a 6-yard score to KeAndre Lambert-Smith in the second quarter to start the remarkable comeback. The Tigers outgained Kentucky 498-224, including 452-140 over the final three quarters, to win their 10th consecutive trip to Lexington dating back to 1966.
Kentucky jumped to a 10-0 lead on its first two drives on Alex Raynor's 46-yard field goal and freshman Jamarion Wilcox's 2-yard TD run, but the Wildcats (3-5, 1-5) dropped their third consecutive game and fifth in seven.
“Bottom line, we got beat,” Kentucky coach Mark Stoops said. “Didn’t play good enough in any phase for us to win, and that’s discouraging. It didn’t surprise me that they were going to play hard. We just have to match that.”
The Wildcats tried to come back late in the fourth and drove down to the Auburn 3, but three runs gained just one yard before Kayin Lee intercepted Gavin Wimsatt at the goal line and returned it nine yards before going out of bounds.
Jay Crawford had Auburn's other interception, picking off Brock Vandagriff midway through the second quarter to set up Alex McPherson's game-tying 27-yard field goal.
Auburn didn't let up once it found its rhythm, though it wasn't quick enough and missed out on one scoring opportunity as the first half wound down. Thorne was sacked for a seven-loss at the Kentucky 14 with 7 seconds left and the Tigers immediately tried to set up for a field goal, but time ran out before they could snap the ball.
Auburn: Whether this salvages their shaky postseason hopes remains to be seen. The Tigers got a needed lift from their slide and did so in lopsided fashion on both sides of the ball.
Asked how important that was after the losses, Freeze added, "Just to see them happy and their continuous hard work to be gratified with the feeling of an SEC win on the road. And for coaches, particularly to go through the type of losses we have.”
Kentucky: Just as the Wildcats seemed poised to put last week's collapse in Florida behind them, they rang up another dud and jeopardized their bowl hopes.
Auburn hosts No. 25 Vanderbilt on Saturday before its second bye of the season.
Kentucky visits No. 7 Tennessee on Saturday.
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Copyright 2024 STATS LLC and Associated Press. Any commercial use or distribution without the express written consent of STATS LLC and Associated Press is strictly prohibited.
J. Hunter
27 RB 278 RuYds, 2 RuTDs, 19 ReYds, 4 RECs |
|
J. Wilcox
10 RB 25 RuYds, RuTD, 2 ReYds, REC |
Team Stats | ||
---|---|---|
1st Downs | 28 | 14 |
Rushing | 17 | 4 |
Passing | 9 | 7 |
Penalty | 2 | 3 |
3rd Down Conv | 8-14 | 4-12 |
4th Down Conv | 0-0 | 0-1 |
Total Net Yards | 499 | 224 |
Total Plays | 76 | 54 |
Avg Gain | 6.6 | 4.1 |
Net Yards Rushing | 327 | 70 |
Rush Attempts | 50 | 27 |
Avg Rush Yards | 6.5 | 2.6 |
Yards Passing | 172 | 154 |
Comp. - Att. | 20-26 | 12-27 |
Yards Per Pass | 4.9 | 4.5 |
Penalties - Yards | 6-57 | 3-40 |
Touchdowns | 3 | 1 |
Rushing TDs | 2 | 1 |
Passing TDs | 1 | 0 |
Other | 0 | 0 |
Turnovers | 1 | 2 |
Fumbles - Lost | 0-0 | 1-0 |
Int. Thrown | 1 | 2 |
Punts - Avg | 2-43.5 | 5-44.4 |
Return Yards | 33 | -1 |
Punts - Returns | 2-27 | 0-0 |
Kickoffs - Returns | 0-0 | 0-0 |
Int. - Returns | 2-6 | 1--1 |
Safeties | 0 | 0 |
Passing | CP/ATT | YDS | TD | INT |
P. Thorne
1 QB
|
P. Thorne | 20/26 | 172 | 1 | 1 |
Rushing | ATT | YDS | TD | LG |
J. Hunter
27 RB
|
J. Hunter | 23 | 278 | 2 | 50 | ||||||||||||||||||||
D. Alston
0 RB
|
D. Alston | 9 | 38 | 0 | 15 | ||||||||||||||||||||
P. Thorne
1 QB
|
P. Thorne | 12 | 11 | 0 | 11 | ||||||||||||||||||||
J. Thompson
1 S
|
J. Thompson | 1 | 9 | 0 | 9 | ||||||||||||||||||||
J. Cobb
23 RB
|
J. Cobb | 3 | 2 | 0 | 2 |
Receiving | TAR | REC | YDS | TD | LG |
K. Lambert-Smith
5 WR
|
K. Lambert-Smith | 7 | 4 | 53 | 1 | 25 | ||||||||||||||||||||||
C. Coleman
8 WR
|
C. Coleman | 5 | 4 | 24 | 0 | 9 | ||||||||||||||||||||||
D. Alston
0 RB
|
D. Alston | 1 | 1 | 22 | 0 | 22 | ||||||||||||||||||||||
M. Simmons
11 WR
|
M. Simmons | 3 | 3 | 21 | 0 | 8 | ||||||||||||||||||||||
J. Hunter
27 RB
|
J. Hunter | 6 | 4 | 19 | 0 | 10 | ||||||||||||||||||||||
C. Brown
4 WR
|
C. Brown | 1 | 1 | 12 | 0 | 12 | ||||||||||||||||||||||
R. Lewis
14 WR
|
R. Lewis | 1 | 1 | 11 | 0 | 11 | ||||||||||||||||||||||
R. Fairweather
13 TE
|
R. Fairweather | 2 | 2 | 10 | 0 | 7 |
Defense | T-A | SACK | INT |
K. Faulk
15 DL
|
K. Faulk | 2-0 | 2.0 | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||
Q. Jamison-Travis
97 DL
|
Q. Jamison-Travis | 1-0 | 1.0 | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||
D. Mausi Jr.
12 LB
|
D. Mausi Jr. | 1-0 | 0.0 | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||
K. Lee
4 CB
|
K. Lee | 0-0 | 0.0 | 1 | ||||||||||||||||||||
J. Crawford
23 CB
|
J. Crawford | 0-0 | 0.0 | 1 |
Kicking | FG | LG | XP | PTS |
A. McPherson
38 K
|
A. McPherson | 1/2 | 27 | 3/3 | 6 |
Punting | NO | AVG | IN20 | LG |
O. Chapman
91 P
|
O. Chapman | 2 | 43.5 | 1 | 44 |
Kickoff Returns | NO | AVG | LG | TD |
M. Simmons
11 WR
|
M. Simmons | 1 | 26.0 | 26 | 0 |
Punt Returns | NO | AVG | LG | TD |
K. Scott 0 CB
|
K. Scott | 2 | 13.5 | 26 | 0 |
Passing | CP/ATT | YDS | TD | INT |
B. Vandagriff
12 QB
|
B. Vandagriff | 9/17 | 120 | 0 | 1 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
G. Wimsatt
2 QB
|
G. Wimsatt | 3/10 | 34 | 0 | 1 |
Rushing | ATT | YDS | TD | LG |
J. Patterson
26 RB
|
J. Patterson | 6 | 38 | 0 | 23 | ||||||||||||||||||||
J. Wilcox
10 RB
|
J. Wilcox | 7 | 25 | 1 | 12 | ||||||||||||||||||||
G. Wimsatt
2 QB
|
G. Wimsatt | 10 | 16 | 0 | 15 | ||||||||||||||||||||
B. Brown
7 WR
|
B. Brown | 1 | 2 | 0 | 2 | ||||||||||||||||||||
B. Vandagriff
12 QB
|
B. Vandagriff | 3 | -11 | 0 | 2 |
Receiving | TAR | REC | YDS | TD | LG |
D. Key
6 WR
|
D. Key | 11 | 4 | 87 | 0 | 34 | ||||||||||||||||||||||
H. Gilmore IV
17 WR
|
H. Gilmore IV | 1 | 1 | 22 | 0 | 22 | ||||||||||||||||||||||
J. Patterson
26 RB
|
J. Patterson | 3 | 1 | 15 | 0 | 15 | ||||||||||||||||||||||
K. Anderson
15 TE
|
K. Anderson | 2 | 2 | 14 | 0 | 14 | ||||||||||||||||||||||
B. Brown
7 WR
|
B. Brown | 4 | 1 | 8 | 0 | 8 | ||||||||||||||||||||||
F. Farrier II
13 WR
|
F. Farrier II | 2 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 3 | ||||||||||||||||||||||
J. Kattus
84 TE
|
J. Kattus | 2 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 3 | ||||||||||||||||||||||
J. Wilcox
10 RB
|
J. Wilcox | 1 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 2 | ||||||||||||||||||||||
A. Brown-Stephens
5 WR
|
A. Brown-Stephens | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Defense | T-A | SACK | INT |
J. Dumas-Johnson
2 LB
|
J. Dumas-Johnson | 1-0 | 1.0 | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||
K. Silver
9 DL
|
K. Silver | 1-0 | 1.0 | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||
J. Weaver
13 LB
|
J. Weaver | 1-0 | 1.0 | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||
D. Walker
0 DT
|
D. Walker | 1-0 | 1.0 | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||
J. Hardaway
6 DB
|
J. Hardaway | 0-0 | 0.0 | 1 |
Kicking | FG | LG | XP | PTS |
A. Raynor
16 K
|
A. Raynor | 1/1 | 46 | 1/1 | 4 |
Punting | NO | AVG | IN20 | LG |
A. Laros
48 P
|
A. Laros | 5 | 44.4 | 2 | 53 |
Kickoff Returns | NO | AVG | LG | TD |
B. Brown
7 WR
|
B. Brown | 1 | 19.0 | 19 | 0 |
Punt Returns | NO | AVG | LG | TD |
1st | POSS | PLAYS | YDS | RESULT | |
11:28 | AUBURN 9 | 1:17 | 3 | 0 | Punt |
8:24 | AUBURN 25 | 0:48 | 2 | 0 | INT |
5:59 | AUBURN 10 | 3:49 | 9 | 38 | Punt |
2nd | POSS | PLAYS | YDS | RESULT | |
13:28 | AUBURN 47 | 2:32 | 5 | 53 | TD |
9:06 | AUBURN 37 | 5:09 | 8 | 54 | FG |
2:24 | AUBURN 13 | 2:24 | 10 | 67 | Half |
3rd | POSS | PLAYS | YDS | RESULT | |
15:00 | AUBURN 25 | 7:07 | 14 | 75 | TD |
6:52 | AUBURN 10 | 3:14 | 6 | 53 | FG Miss |
1:56 | AUBURN 20 | 4:42 | 9 | 95 | TD |
4th | POSS | PLAYS | YDS | RESULT | |
4:39 | AUBURN 9 | 4:39 | 11 | 81 | Game |
1st | POSS | PLAYS | YDS | RESULT | |
15:00 | UK 25 | 3:32 | 7 | 47 | FG |
10:11 | UK 47 | 1:47 | 7 | 53 | TD |
7:36 | AUBURN 40 | 1:37 | 3 | -9 | Punt |
2:10 | UK 9 | 3:42 | 6 | 6 | Punt |
2nd | POSS | PLAYS | YDS | RESULT | |
10:56 | UK 19 | 1:50 | 5 | 26 | INT |
3:57 | UK 25 | 1:33 | 6 | 22 | Punt |
3rd | POSS | PLAYS | YDS | RESULT | |
7:53 | UK 25 | 1:01 | 3 | 1 | Punt |
3:38 | UK 29 | 1:42 | 4 | 20 | Punt |
4th | POSS | PLAYS | YDS | RESULT | |
12:14 | UK 25 | 7:35 | 14 | 73 | INT |
- Field Goal (7 plays, 47 yards, 3:32 poss)
Result | Play |
---|---|
Kickoff | (15:00 - 1st) T.McGough kicks 65 yards from AUB 35 to the KEN End Zone. Touchback. |
+7 YD | 1 & 10 - UK 25 (15:00 - 1st) J.Wilcox rushed for 7 yards. Tackled by AUB at KEN 32. |
+15 YD | 2 & 3 - UK 32 (14:27 - 1st) B.Vandagriff pass complete. Catch made by J.Patterson for 15 yards. Tackled by AUB at KEN 47. |
+21 YD | 1 & 10 - UK 47 (13:48 - 1st) B.Vandagriff pass complete. Catch made by D.Key for 21 yards. Tackled by AUB at AUB 32. |
No Gain | 1 & 10 - AUBURN 32 (13:02 - 1st) B.Vandagriff steps back to pass. Pass incomplete intended for A.Brown-Stephens. |
+1 YD | 2 & 10 - AUBURN 32 (12:55 - 1st) G.Wimsatt rushed for 1 yards. Tackled by AUB at AUB 31. |
+3 YD | 3 & 9 - AUBURN 31 (12:14 - 1st) B.Vandagriff pass complete. Catch made by F.Farrier for 3 yards. Tackled by AUB at AUB 28. |
Field Goal | 4 & 6 - AUBURN 36 (11:32 - 1st) A.Raynor 46 yard field goal attempt is good Center-W.Himebauch Holder-W.Berry. |
- Punt (3 plays, 0 yards, 1:17 poss)
Result | Play |
---|---|
Kickoff | (11:28 - 1st) A.Laros kicks 65 yards from KEN 35 to the AUB End Zone. M.Simmons returns the kickoff. Tackled by KEN at AUB 26. PENALTY on AUB-M.Riley Defensive Holding 9 yards accepted. |
No Gain | 1 & 10 - AUBURN 9 (11:21 - 1st) P.Thorne steps back to pass. Pass incomplete intended for J.Hunter. |
No Gain | 2 & 10 - AUBURN 9 (11:17 - 1st) P.Thorne scrambles for 0 yards. Tackled by KEN at AUB 9. |
No Gain | 3 & 10 - AUBURN 9 (10:39 - 1st) P.Thorne pass complete. Catch made by J.Hunter for 0 yards. Tackled by KEN at AUB 9. |
Punt | 4 & 10 - AUBURN 9 (10:23 - 1st) O.Chapman punts 44 yards to KEN 47 Center-R.Hughes. Fair catch by B.Brown. |