NASHVILLE, Tenn. – Three catches, three touchdowns. A near-perfect day for Darius Slayton.
"It was pretty exciting," the junior receiver said. "I just wanted to come out here and help my team get a bowl win. Like Coach Malzahn said, we were looking to play our best game today. Fortunately, for me, also individually, as far as my best day. It just went hand in hand."
On Auburn's second drive, Slayton and Jarrett Stidham narrowly missed connecting on a go route on what would have been a 72-yard touchdown. Six plays later, JaTarvious Whitlow scored the second of his three first-quarter touchdowns, but Stidham and Slayton would soon be heard from again.
"We came to the sideline, I was telling Jarrett, 'We're going to hit the next one,'" Slayton said.
The junior's words proved prophetic. With Auburn leading 21-7 late in the first quarter, Stidham hit Slayton for a 74-yard play-action TD pass to make it 28-7, the longest touchdown reception in Auburn bowl history.
"Next time we were out there, we were able to hit it," said Slayton of the longest catch of his Auburn career.
After Auburn stopped Purdue on fourth down, Stidham and Slayton teamed up again, on second-and-18, for a 52-yard touchdown down the left sideline to make it 35-7 with 12:54 left in the second quarter.
"I caught it and I was waiting on Marquel [Harrell] to get out there and throw the block," Slayton said. "He did a great job and after that, I was able to outrun them."
Slayton recorded the hat trick on a 34-yarder to give Auburn a 56-7 lead at the half.
"Jarrett and I knew we were going to be able to connect down the field later on in the game," Slayton said. "I was just able to come down with the ball on that one."
One quarter after Whitlow became the first Auburn player to score three touchdowns in a bowl game, Slayton equaled the feat before intermission.
"I don't even think I ever did it in high school," said Slayton of his TD trio. "I think I had three in a game in high school, but never three in a half, so it's a personal best for me."
Stidham earned MVP honors on the strength of a program record-tying five touchdown passes. Seated next to Slayton in the postgame interview room, Auburn's quarterback credited Slayton, who averaged 53.3 yards per catch.
"He's about as fast as they can get," Stidham said. "We did a great job up front protecting and we just tried to make those explosive plays that we've needed all year."
Slayton's 160 receiving yards broke Herbert Casey's record of 159 from the 1990 Peach Bowl.
"We were really aggressive," said Slayton, who logged his third career 100-yard receiving game. "I think it showed in our play-calling and our execution. Obviously, it paid off."
Jeff Shearer is a Senior Writer at AuburnTigers.com. Follow him on Twitter: @jeff_shearer