Samford sailed into Auburn on a gloomy Saturday afternoon as the rain misted Auburn poured it on, taking them out at will. All but the financial arrangement, we all know they were retooling for the Iron Bowl. It could have been a trap of a game, but there was not enough horsepower under the hood, and there was no mechanic in town capable of any legitimate repairs or enhancements.
When your first two drives end in a fumble and an interception, you know it’s going to be dreary even if the sun was shining bright. The first quarter ended 7-0 in favor of Auburn, and somehow I was underwhelmed. The Tigers had a considerable advantage 110 total yards to 25. The scoreboard jumped when JaTarvious Whitlow popped into the end zone from 3 yards out to widen the gap.
From there, it was about having fun splashing in the rain and avoiding injuries.
Bo Nix surpassed Stan White for most completions [185] by a freshman quarterback in a season when he threw a 10-yard touchdown pass to Harold Joiner to start the avalanche at 21-0. There was more than water washing down the drains. Any thoughts of shocking Goliath dissipated.
Chris Oladokun came in as quarterback, hoping to get something positive. It went negative on his first run the ball squirted from his arm and went straight up in the air like a missed jumped shot coming down with the rebound/fumble was Roger McCreary.
The turnover led to a .46 scoring drive by the Tigers; the scoreboard started to reflect dominance 28-0. The only thing negative for Auburn was when the wind blew the ball of the tee before Carlson could kick it off after a successful 29-yard field goal for practice in the rain.
At 31-0, the only thing Head Coach Gus Malzhan had to say was enjoy splashing in the rain. The Auburn dense held Samford to 35 total yards the fewest given up by an Auburn defense in the first half since 2003. Meanwhile, they produced 293 total yards.
Talk about going from bad to worst Samford started the second half with an interception which contributed to another quick score at 38-0. The rain stopped, and Malzhan gave the future some valuable playing time.
Back up quarterback Cord Sandberg connected with Zack Farrar for a 27-yard touchdown it was 45-0 and time to crank up the vocal cords to sing the most appropriate song Turn out the Lights the Party is Over. Rain, Shine, Sleet, or Snow when you are playing with superior talent it like house money. The young guns added another score to record a decisive 52-0 win, which reflects a tune-up.
The best thing about this one was no major injuries to report; therefore they can officially focus on their most important Rival Big Bad Bama and hosting the IRON BOWL. The Auburn Tigers is scheduled to play the Alabam Crimson Tide next Saturday 11-30-19 at home Jordan Hare Stadium will be rocking.
On Iron Bowl…
“We’re excited. We’ve got the Iron Bowl at home. It’s as good as it gets” said Malzhan.
There would be nothing sweeter than to throw a monkey wrench into their playoff hopes.
