Auburn football: What sort of offensive performance should we expect from Gus’ Tigers?
By Rob Maxwell
Auburn 31, Louisville 24
Head coach: Gus Malzahn
Auburn final record: 7-6
Points per game: 27.5
National ranking: 75th out of 128 teams
This is another one that’s hard to rehash. Yes, it was a good win to kick off the season, but the way Auburn went about it … let’s just say it was no surprise the Tigers finished the season 7-6.
Auburn led 17-0 at the half despite throwing a pair of interceptions and managing 124 yards on offense. Then the second half started. Auburn took the kickoff, drove 75 yards in seven plays and stretched the lead to 24-0. The rout was on, right?
Wrong.
Auburn managed another touchdown drive that covered 72 yards but its three other second half possessions went 12, 12 and minus-8 yards.
For the game, Auburn had just 327 yards — 190 on the ground — and threw three interceptions.
The following week was the near-disaster against Jacksonville State (a 27-20 win in overtime) and we all knew that it was going to be a long season (it was).