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Auburn Football vs Samford Final Score and Game Recap

By Nicholas Ian Allen

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The Tigers sleepwalked through the first fifteen minutes against in-state FCS opponent Samford, but snapped a two-game losing streak with a 31-7 victory on Senior Day at Jordan-Hare Stadium.

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Much maligned in recent weeks, the Auburn defense performed well in the Iron Bowl tune-up against the Bulldogs. The Tigers allowed 238 yards, forced two interceptions and had two sacks in easily the best performance for the unit since October 4 against LSU.

Kris Frost led the way with 13 tackles, 1.5 tackles for a loss and an interception. Frost and the defensive line also put a lot of pressure on Samford quarterback Michael Eubank. Montravius Adams and Elijah Daniel added sacks and Jonathan Mincy had the Tigers’ second pick.

At the end of the first quarter, the game was scoreless and the usually explosive Auburn offense had just 33 total yards. Sanford took a 7-0 lead shortly thereafter, but Quan Bray and Cameron Artis-Payne jumpstarted the Tigers in the second quarter.

Bray put the Tigers on the scoreboard for the first time with a 23-yard touchdown run. At the half, he had two carries for 34 yards, two catches for 44 yards, and 108 all-purpose yards. The senior finished with 45 rushing yards, 56 receiving yards on five catches and 30 punt return yards in his final game at Jordan-Hare.

Artis-Payne, the SEC’s leading rusher, had 79 yards and a touchdown on 15 first half carries. Overall, he had 129 yards on 24 attempts and his 11th touchdown of the season. The senior also passed 1,400 yards for the season, joining Tre Mason, Bo Jackson, Rudi Johnson and Cam Newton as the only Auburn Tigers to reach that mark in a single season.  Their touchdowns sandwiched a 29-yard Daniel Carlson field goal to give Auburn a 17-7 halftime lead.

Nick Marshall struggled early. A wobbly first quarter pass was intercepted, but he rebounded and completed two long passes in the second quarter – a 49-yarder to Sammie Coates and a 40-yard connection to Bray to spur scoring drives. Otherwise, he was 2-for-5 for six yards and a pick in the first half.

Marshall settled down in the second half and increased the Tigers’ lead to 24-7 with a 13-yard touchdown pass to Corey Grant. He finished his final home game with 171 passing yards on 11 completions in 18 attempts with a touchdown and an interception. Marshall was sacked three times and finished with minus-8 rushing yards on 11 carries, meaning he will need 86 rushing yards next week to become Auburn’s all-time leading rusher as a quarterback.

Roc Thomas added a one-yard touchdown with 8:44 left in the game to increase the lead to 31-7. Jeremy Johnson saw action at quarterback late in the game. His first pass was completed to former quarterback Jonathan Wallace. The sophomore completed two of four passes for 15 yards.

In all, the Tigers accumulated 386 yards of offense, including 200 on the ground. The win pushed the Tigers’ record to 8-3.

Rumor has it, tonight’s game may have been the last of Auburn football legend Pat Sullivan’s head coaching career. Sullivan, who won the 1971 Heisman Trophy with the Tigers, is the Bulldogs’ all-time leader in coaching wins. He has a 47-43 career record at Samford and is 71-85-1 overall.

Auburn will be back in action next week in Tuscaloosa in the 47th Iron Bowl against top ranked Alabama.

Next: ESPN College GameDay Will Be at the Iron Bowl

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