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Auburn won its fourth game of the season at home on Saturday in blowout fashion.
The Tigers (4-6) blasted UL-Monroe 48-14 behind brilliant days from quarterback Payton Thorne and receiver Cam Coleman. With losses in 5 of its last 6 games, Auburn finally found some rhythm and produced its best offensive day since Sept. 14.
Here are 3 takeaways from the game.
The Cam Coleman Game
The former 5-star prospect was a massive storyline throughout the offseason. He showed up on campus ahead of spring ball and instantly went to work in the hopes of providing an immediate impact for the Tigers. As the spring turned to the summer, Coleman became impossible to ignore.
He had 2 catches for 62 yards and a touchdown in Auburn’s opener, and he had 53 yards on 2 catches the following week, but then he missed the New Mexico game with a shoulder injury and had only 15 yards the following week.
Since going for 82 yards against Oklahoma on Sept. 28, Coleman had just 6 receptions entering Saturday.
He had 3 catches and a touchdown on the Tigers’ opening drive. He ended the day with 8 receptions on 9 targets, 100 receiving yards, and 3 touchdowns.
Quarterback Payton Thorne spread the ball around well, finding Keandre Lambert-Smith and Malcolm Simmons for additional touchdowns, but there was a clear emphasis within the offensive gameplan to get Coleman rolling.
The biggest play of the day came in the third, when Coleman hauled in a one-handed catch to complete his hat trick.
WHAT A CATCH, ARE YOU SERIOUS
Cam Coleman with his third TD of the day @SECNetwork pic.twitter.com/8cc0EqCrRS
— SportsCenter (@SportsCenter) November 16, 2024
Tigers dominate on first
Auburn’s defense was outstanding against an overmatched ULM team, but it was so effective because it was unyielding on first downs.
Prior to the garbage-time touchdown in the final 2 minutes, the Tigers faced 18 first-down plays. UL-Monroe gained 47 yards on those 18 plays — an average of 2.6 yards. The Warhawks almost exclusively ran on first down (15 attempts) and got nothing from those attempts. They threw 3 times and gained 3 yards. Auburn was constantly playing ahead of the chains.
And ULM didn’t have the horses to recover from that. The Warhawks gained just 143 yards of total offense on their first 11 possessions. They were limited to 54 rushing yards and 2-for-12 on third down. Auburn finished with 6 tackles for loss and 3 sacks. The secondary led the effort, with Jerrin Thompson, Kayin Lee, and Kaleb Harris all finishing with 5 tackles apiece.
ULM got a 3-play, 75-yard touchdown drive across the board in the final 2 minutes thanks to a 65-yard touchdown pass with 8 seconds left. You don’t want to see that, but it did nothing in the grand scheme of things.
It comes down to this
If Hugh Freeze was looking for a specific performance that would light a fire under his time, this was probably pretty close to the one he’d draw up. Auburn was not penalized. Auburn was 12-for-17 on third down. Jarquez Hunter topped 100 yards on the ground. Coleman and Lambert-Smith topped 100 yards through the air. Thorne completed 22 of his 32 passes for 286 yards and 5 scores without a turnover. Until the final drive, Auburn gave ULM’s offense nothing.
Now the Tigers need 2 wins to reach a bowl game.
They have 2 games left, against Texas A&M at home next week and then against Alabama in Tuscaloosa on Nov. 30.
Never say never. As unlikely as a 3-game winning streak would be to end the regular-season, Auburn got exactly the kind of springboard game on Saturday it needed to jumpstart such a run.
Derek Peterson does a bit of everything, not unlike Taysom Hill. He has covered Oklahoma, Nebraska, the Pac-12, and now delivers CFB-wide content.
