BATON ROUGE, La. โ Another week, another game-changing touchdown pass on fourth down.ย
Bo Nix avoided four LSU rushers before finding Tyler Fromm for a 24-yard pass on fourth-and-2 for Auburn's first points, Jarquez Hunter scored a late touchdown, and Bydarrius Knighten's interception sealed Auburn's 24-19 comeback victory over LSU Saturday before 97,717 at Tiger Stadium.
"Great win," Auburn coach Bryan Harsin said. "I told our guys I'm proud of them for what they did tonight. We finished.
"That was a tremendous environment and our guys were able to handle that. Tonight was about this football team, the fans and people who have been part of this program for a long time. We're very happy for them."
Hunter capped a 92-yard drive with a 1-yard touchdown run to give Auburn its first lead with 3:11 to play. Hunter's 44-yard run was the drive's key play. The freshman rushed for 65 yards on six carries.
Knighten intercepted LSU on fourth-and-6 with 1:09 to play to secure Auburn's first victory at Tiger Stadium since 1999.
"I felt in the locker room something that's really important that we have to have on this team: that camaraderie and that belief in each other," Harsin said. "Guys supporting their teammates when they're on the field."
The ๐๐๐๐ ๐๐๐ to end a Saturday Night!#WarEagle | #AuburnMade pic.twitter.com/CRyzPokspU
โ Auburn Football (@AuburnFootball) October 3, 2021
Trailing 13-0 late in the second quarter, Nix rolled right, scrambled left and found Fromm running free in the end zone near the Auburn fan section, a highlight-reel play that energized the visitors' sideline.
"Fourth down, anything can happen," Nix said. "I just remember running back to the left, trying to do something. I made that last guy miss. I knew everybody was about to be there and tackle me, and I saw Tyler Fromm running in the back. Got the ball out of my hands just fast enough and he ran under it and caught it."
Auburn trimmed LSU's lead to 13-10 before halftime on Anders Carlson's 49-yard field goal.ย
Nix completed 23 of 44 passes for 255 yards and a touchdown and added 74 rushing yards and a TD on 12 carries.
"We battled, and as a team, I felt like we competed and did whatever it took to win the game," Nix said.
Cade York kicked a pair of field goals in the third quarter to give LSU a 19-10 lead heading to the final quarter.
Nix scored on a 5-yard touchdown run early in the fourth quarter to cap a nine-play, 75-yard drive and pull Auburn within two points at 19-17.
Tight ends figured prominently in Auburn's offense, with John Samuel Shenker making five catches for 102 yards and Fromm adding three for 40.
ย Gallery: (10-2-2021) Auburn 24, LSU 19
Zakoby McCain led the Tigers' defense with 12 tackles. Derick Hall added eight tackles and 1.5 sacks. After allowing a touchdown on LSU's first possession, Auburn kept LSU out of the end zone the rest of the game.
LSU built a 13-0 lead on a 31-yard touchdown pass from Max Johnson to Kayshonn Boutte and a pair of York second-quarter field goals before Nix's razzle dazzle.ย
Auburn defeated Georgia State the previous week on a fourth-down touchdown pass from T.J. Finley to Shedrick Jackson.
Auburn (4-1,1-0) returns to Jordan-Hare Stadium next Saturday to play No. 2 Georgia in the Deep South's Oldest Rivalry at 2:30 p.m. CT. on CBS and the Auburn Sports Network.
Jeff Shearer is a Senior Writer at AuburnTigers.com. Follow him on Twitter: @jeff_shearer
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