Auburn football: LSU boots final-play field goal to know off Tigers

The No. 7 Auburn football team gets it second big test early in the season today when it plays No. 12 LSU in the SEC opener for both teams at Jordan-Hare Stadium.

Both teams own victories over top-10 teams this season and last week, both teams had easy wins against inferior opponents.

The key SEC West battle puts one team a step ahead in the battle to reach Atlanta for the league title game.

Follow here for updates throughout the day and game.

Auburn-LSU live updates, score

Fourth quarter

LSU 22, Auburn 21: That’s ballgame. Cole Tracy hits from 42 on the final play of the game. Auburn’s 13-game home winning streak is over.

Stidham throws his second pick of the game, Auburn defense holds, offense puts together a decent drive but Anders Carlson’s 52-yard attempt sails wide left. The snap wasn’t great. Had the distance. LSU takes over on its 35. (4Q, 12:57).

Third quarter

Auburn 21, LSU 13: Auburn’s scoring streak ends and LSU puts together a nice drive but stalls out inside the 10. A field goal puts a dent in the Auburn lead and halts the Tigers’ 21 consecutive points run. (3Q, 3:58)

Auburn 21, LSU 10: LSU gets a couple first downs, but a pass on a fake punt falls incomplete and Auburn takes over near midfield. Stidham hits freshman Asa Martin on a 33-yard wheel route to the 4. Stidham runs to the 1, but Whitlow is stopped at the 4 in the Wildcat. After a timeout, Stidham hits Slayton for the TD while rolling to his right. Three consecutive very good drives. (3Q, 10:38)

Halftime analysis

After a quarter and a half of head-scratching, what-the-heck is going on from the Auburn football team, the Tigers finally put it together and closed the half with back-to-back scoring drives of 74 and 66 yards to take a 14-10 lead into the break.

Jarrett Stidham, wanting to shake off last season’s miserable 9-for-26 outing against LSU, started miserably with a first pass pick and 0 for his first 4. But he completed 8 of his next 11 for 115 yards to bounce back and lead the scoring drives.

Also key: Auburn started finding running room. It starts with the offense picking up first downs — that’s when the up-tempo play begins. Whitlow ran for 54 yards and Shivers gained 22 on three carries. If Auburn can keep the balance and continue giving the defense a breather, it should win.

But here was the big concern when Auburn trailed 10-0: LSU had run 34 plays and Auburn just 17. It’s hot inside Jordan-Hare Stadium and the defense was laboring. Now, the play total favors LSU just 39-37.

Some halftime stats:

TEAM

Total offense: LSU 191, Auburn 179
Rushing: LSU 23-80 (3.5), Auburn 22-66 (3.0)
Passing: LSU 7-16-0 111, Auburn 11-15-1 113
Time of possession: LSU 17:43, Auburn 12:17
Third downs: LSU 5-10, Auburn 3-6
Penalties: LSU 8-75, Auburn 3-40

INDIVIDUAL

Auburn

Passing
Jarrett Stidham: 11-15-1 113

Rushing
JaTarvious Whitlow: 13-54
Shaun Shivers: 3-22
Kam Martin: 2-4

Receiving
Seth Williams: 2-35
Darius Slayton: 2-29
Chandler Cox: 2-16

LSU

Passing
Joe Burrow: 7-16-0 111

Rushing
Nick Brossette: 10-46
Clyde Edwards-Helaire: 7-17
Joe Burrow: 4-9

Receiving
Justin Jefferson 4-85

Second quarter

Auburn 14, LSU 10: Another back-breaking drive for the Tigers. Shaun Shivers scores from the 7. The defense got that three-and-out, then it was 9 plays, 66 yards and another score. Auburn has 180 total yards and 140 have come on the last two scoring drives. (2Q, 1:31)

LSU 10, Auburn 7: And there’s the drive we’ve been waiting on all day. JaTarvious Whitlow caps off a long drive with a 7-yard scoring run. (2Q, 5:06)

Analysis: 10 plays, 74 yards, 3 minutes, 31 seconds. That’s the Auburn offensive. Stidham was 3 for 4 for 40 yards. Whitlow gained 23 yards on four carries along the way. The biggest beneficiary of that 10-play drive? The defense. LSU has run 34 plays to Auburn’s 27. Auburn needs a quick stop here to get the ball back with all its timeouts remaining with a chance for more points before the half.

LSU 10, Auburn 0: LSU lines up to go for it on fourth-and-1, but a false start forces the Tigers to kick and Cole Tracy connects from 33 yards. (2Q, 8:37)

Analysis: To be blunt: Auburn needs to score on this possession. The offense has been disjointed. Good plays negated by bad ones, inconsistency. You name it. LSU gets the ball to start the second half, so getting points before halftime is important for Auburn.

– LSU is driving again after a 33-yard completion. The drive started on LSU’s 9. It’s third-and-5 from the Auburn 13 now. Timeout LSU.

First quarter

End of the quarter and it’s been mostly LSU:

First downs: LSU 7-3
Yards: LSU 123-71

– Cole Tracy pushes a 53-yard field goal attempt wide right and Auburn holds and takes over on its 35 as the first quarter comes to a close.

– Auburn puts together its first good drive of the game, mostly on Stidham passes, but comes up well short on fourth-and-1 at the LSU 15.

Analysis: This running show was way too slow to develop. LSU defenders had filled the gaps before Whitlow had a chance to move.

– After surrendering a 31-yard completion, Auburn stops LSU and will start its third possession at its own 10. Total yards midway through the first quarter: LSU 72, Auburn 2.

– For the second consecutive game, freshman Seth Williams can’t make a third-down catch on a well-thrown ball on an early drive and Auburn goes three-and-out on its second drive and Jarrett Stidham is 0 for 4 (three drops).

Analysis: Why isn’t Nate Craig-Myers the target on this over-the-middle third-and-long plays?

LSU 7, Auburn 0: Not the start Auburn was hoping for today. On second down from the 27, Jarrett Stidham is picked off. Nine plays later, Clyde Edwards-Helaire dives in from the 1. (1Q, 9:59)

Pre-game notes

– Your starting lineups today:

https://twitter.com/AuburnFootball/status/1041046193818791936

– Four players who were banged up after last game are in the starting lineup according to Josh Vitale of the Montgomery Advertiser:

– Our very own Shea Brennamen is in Auburn for the game (you should be following her) and confirms our weather report from earlier this week:

– It’s a big one today — it always is when the pair of Tigers meet — in SEC opener for both teams. During Week 1 of the college football season, ESPN’s College Gameday crew all took Washington over Auburn except for the guest picker, Luke Bryan, who sided with the Tigers. On Saturday, it was the opposite. Lee Corso, Kirk Herstreit and Desmond Howard each selected Auburn. Guest picker Roman Reigns went with LSU.

One former Auburn football player agrees with those picks.

Auburn-LSU game time, information

When: Saturday, Sept. 15, 2018
Game time: 3:30 p.m. ET
Where: Jordan-Hare Stadium, Auburn, Ala.
TV: CBS | Watch online: CBSSports.com.
Line: Auburn (-9.5)
Weather report: 90 at kickoff. Full report here.

Auburn-LSU preview

Stidham vs. Burrow

The quarterback battle will be one that most people are watching Saturday. Auburn QB Jarrett Stidham is healthy, looks calm in the pocket and is making good decisions. He’s throwing darts. He’s also shown that he learns from mistakes. He went 9 for 26 against LSU last season and was non-existent in the second half. Stidham remembers and won’t let that happen again. Plus, he has a lot of playmakers surrounding him.

On the other side, Ohio State transfer Joe Burrow is 2-0 as a starter after LSU beat Miami and Southeastern Louisiana. He’s completed 21-of-44 passes with two touchdowns and without an interception. Is Burrow ready for his first SEC game — on the road, no less?

Running game battle

The Auburn football running game is starting to take shape. After being contained to less than 150 rushing yards by a solid Washington defense, JaTarvious Whitlow and freshman Shaun Shivers went past 100 yards last week against Alabama State. But that’s not the same defense the Tigers will face Saturday against LSU.

Nick Brossette is 13th in the nation in rushing, averaging 131.0 yards per game with two touchdowns. He will have Auburn’s full attention.

More Auburn football

– Shea Brennamen: Greatest Auburn gameday traditions
– Fly War Eagle staff makes its Auburn-LSU picks
– Ed Orgeron had a lot of compliments for the Auburn football team
– Is Shaun Shivers Auburn’s next big thing among smaller RBs?
– Three biggest areas of concern against LSU
– Tigers have a growing stack of playmakers on offense