AUBURN, Ala. – Making his first start, redshirt freshman quarterback Hank Brown threw for four touchdowns to lead Auburn to a 45-19 victory over New Mexico Saturday at sold-out Jordan-Hare Stadium, the Tigers’ 33rd consecutive Homecoming victory.
"For his first start, Hank was really solid," Auburn coach Hugh Freeze said. "Something we can build upon."
Leading 17-13 at the half, Auburn opened the third quarter with a 75-yard touchdown drive that began with Jarquez Hunter’s 31-yard run and ended with Brown’s 3-yard touchdown pass to Micah Riley.
Hunter logged his ninth career 100-yard game, gaining 152 yards on 20 carries, an average of 7.6 yards per rush.
Brown completed 17 of 25 passes for 235 yards, completing 68 percent of his attempts, including nine consecutive completions in the second half.
Starting fast in the 2nd Half 🎯@Hankb_15 + @micah_r_d = 6️⃣ https://t.co/DhWzCDAMd1 pic.twitter.com/ZhBsDPaEwb
— Auburn Football (@AuburnFootball) September 15, 2024
Antonio Kite then intercepted New Mexico quarter Devon Dampier’s pass on fourth-and-5, giving Auburn possession at midfield after a personal foul penalty on the Lobos on the return.
Two plays later, Brown hit Hunter out of the backfield for a 14-yard touchdown to give Auburn a 31-13 lead with 4:55 remaining in the third quarter.
"We were efficient in the third quarter, and most of the second half," Freeze said.
Early in the fourth quarter, New Mexico pulled within two scores on a 4-yard touchdown pass from Dampier to Caleb Medford on fourth down. The Tigers forced an incompletion on the two-point attempt and led 31-19.
Brown connected with Rivaldo Fairweather for his fourth touchdown, a 26-yard catch-and-run that increased Auburn’s lead to 38-19 with 12:08 to play.
Damari Alston closed out the scoring with a 22-yard touchdown run with 5:51 remaining.
After New Mexico kicked a field goal to cap the game’s opening possession, Jeremiah Cobb returned the ensuing kickoff a career-long 66 yards and Auburn scored on Brown’s 10-yard touchdown pass to Camden Brown to take a 7-3 lead.
The Lobos responded with a 10-play, 75-yard drive, benefiting from a pass interference penalty on third-and-19, then gaining 41 yards on a deep pass and scoring on a 3-yard NaQuari Rogers run to go ahead 10-7.
Brown found KeAndre Lambert-Smith for a 50-yard gain that led to Hunter’s 2-yard touchdown, helping the Tigers regain a 14-10 lead.
Late in the opening quarter, Jerrin Thompson intercepted New Mexico’s pass at the Lobos’ 33-yard line, Auburn’s first takeaway of the season, leading to Towns McGough’s 24-yard field goal early in the second quarter.
AYO how you do this⁉️ @jerrin_thompson 😳 pic.twitter.com/Pzp2pmvL5s
— Auburn Football (@AuburnFootball) September 15, 2024
"The takeaways were great to see," Freeze said. "We've got to win that turnover battle."
New Mexico answered with its second field goal to trim the Tigers’ lead to 17-13 with 10:01 remaining in second quarter in what turned out to be the final points of the first half.
Late in the half, Alston delivered a 29-yard pickup and the Tigers drove to the Lobos’ 18-yard line but a fumble ended the drive.
Auburn (2-1) opens Southeastern Conference play next Saturday at 2:30 p.m. CT when the Tigers host Arkansas at Jordan-Hare Stadium.
"I think we can play better than we played tonight," Freeze said. "All of these SEC games are going to be battles. They'll be fun to see how we respond to them."
Jeff Shearer is a Senior Writer at AuburnTigers.com. Follow him on X: @jeff_shearer