NASHVILLE, Tenn. – In what looked and sounded like an Auburn home game, Jarquez Hunter sprinted for two long early touchdowns and the Tiger defense forced six three-and-outs in a 31-15 victory over Vanderbilt Saturday at FirstBank Stadium.
"It did not feel like we were in a typical road game. Our fans were incredible," Auburn coach Hugh Freeze said. "It's been a long time since Auburn played well up here. Our kids competed well and did some really nice things. I'm proud of our defense. Only gave up one score."
With orange-clad Auburn fans filling most of the stadium's east side and much of the west, Hunter raced a season-long 67 yards on the Tigers' second play of the game, cruising through a sizable hole created by linemen Connor Lew and Kam Stutts for a 7-0 lead.
"Being patient has helped me a lot," said Hunter, who rushed for a career-best 183 yards. "The offensive line did a marvelous job today. They made their reads and opened holes for me; I just had to hit them."
After Auburn's defense forced consecutive three-and-outs, Hunter found another hole up the middle before breaking a tackle and outrunning Vandy's secondary on a 56-yard touchdown run that gave the Tigers a 14-0 lead at the 3:01 mark of the first quarter.
"That's as patient as I've seen him on inside zone," Freeze said. "I do think that's why he's having more explosive runs the last few weeks."
Vanderbilt's Bryce Cowan returned an interception 5 yards for a touchdown that trimmed Auburn's lead to 14-7 early in the second quarter.
Late in the half on third-and-4 from Vanderbilt's 26-yard line, Payton Thorne rolled left and completed to a leaping Jay Fair for a 23-yard gain that set up Alex McPherson's 32-yard field goal for a 17-7 Auburn lead with 20 seconds left in the half, McPherson's 15th consecutive make.
Auburn scored touchdowns on its first two possessions of the second half to pull away from the Commodores.
Thorne found Rivaldo Fairweather for a 53-yard touchdown, Auburn's third touchdown of 50-plus yards, a feat the Tigers most recently accomplished in the 2018 Music City Bowl at nearby Nissan Stadium.
After Auburn's defense recorded its sixth three-and-out, Thorne passed to Ja'Varrius Johnson for 39 yards on third-and-five, setting up Thorne's 5-yard touchdown pass to Jeremiah Cobb that gave the Tigers a 31-7 advantage at the 9:44 mark of the third quarter.
Vanderbilt (2-8, 0-6) scored on a 30-yard touchdown pass and added a 2-point conversion to cut Auburn's lead to 31-15 with 2:43 to play in the third quarter.
After the Tigers stopped Vanderbilt's penultimate possession by forcing an incompletion on fourth-and-goal, Nehemiah Pritchett ended the Commodores' last drive with an interception.
Thorne completed 17 of 27 passes for 194 yards, two touchdowns and an interception.
D.J. James led Auburn with seven tackles, all solos, and broke up two passes. Auburn recorded five quarterback sacks.
"Thrilled to win a second consecutive SEC game, particularly on the road, and get us one step closer to being bowl eligible," Freeze said.
Seeking its third consecutive SEC victory, Auburn (5-4, 2-4) plays at Arkansas next Saturday at 3 p.m. CT on SEC Network and the Auburn Sports Network.
Jeff Shearer is a Senior Writer at AuburnTigers.com. Follow him on Twitter: @jeff_shearer
Postgame Notes>> Captains: Elijah McAllister, Zion Puckett, Marcus Harris, Gunner Britton
>> Coin Toss: Auburn wins the toss and defers; Vanderbilt will receive
>> Attendance: 28,500
>> Not including the 2020 season (Covid restrictions), this is the smallest stadium capacity (28,500) Auburn has played in since the 1958 matchup with Georgia in Columbus, Ga. (13,500)
TEAM NOTES
>> First-time starters for Auburn: none
>> Auburn has scored in 138 consecutive games, the second-longest streak in school history.
>> Auburn has forced a turnover in 18 straight games, the longest streak since an 18-game string in 2007-08.
>> Auburn had three offensive scoring plays of 50+ yards for the first time since the 2018 Music City Bowl vs. Purdue.
INDIVIDUAL NOTES: OFFENSE
>> Jarquez Hunter's 67-yard touchdown run was his longest run of the season. Hunter's 121 yards rushing in the first quarter are the most by an Auburn running back since Tre Mason had 141 yards on six carries in the first quarter against Alabama A&M in 2012. The last Auburn player to rush for 100 yards in the first half was Tank Bigsby (106) vs. Arkansas in 2020. The previous top rushing mark in the first quarter against an SEC opponent was Casinious Moore (104) vs. Mississippi State in 2001.
>> Hunter has eight rushing touchdowns this season and 18 for his career. This is his third career game with multiple rushing scores and his third game with 3 rushing TD (also Mercer, 2022).
>> Hunter has recorded his second consecutive 100-yard rushing game, his second of the season and his seventh such career effort; his 200 yards rushing marks a career high.
>> Jarquez Hunter is now 22nd among Auburn career rushers with 1,916 yards, passing Tommie Agee (1,735 from 1983-86), Nick Marshall (1,866 from 2013-14) and Phil Gargis (1,884 from 1973-76); next is Fob James (1,913 from 1952-55).
>> Rivaldo Fairweather's 53-yard touchdown reception was his longest at Auburn. It was his third TD catch this season.
>> The 53-yard TD pass to Fairweather was Payton Thorne's longest at Auburn.
>> Jeremiah Cobb's TD catch was his second this season.
>> Payton Thorne now has 10 TD passes this season.
INDIVIDUAL NOTES: DEFENSE
>> With seven tackles, D.J. James has a new Auburn personal best.
>> Austin Keys recorded his first sack at Auburn.
>> Jalen McLeod now has 2.5 sacks during his Auburn career.
>> Lawrence Johnson recorded his second TFL of the season.
>> Cam Riley now has 2.5 career sacks.
>> Marcus Harris now has 8.5 career sacks at Auburn.
>> Eugene Asante now has 4.5 career sacks at Auburn.
>> Nehemiah Pritchett's interception is the third of his career.
INDIVIDUAL NOTES: SPECIAL TEAMS
>> Including two punts today, Oscar Chapman now has 37 punts of 50+ yards during his career.
>> Alex McPherson has made 15 consecutive field goals.
>> Brian Battie's 39-yard kickoff return was his longest of the season.