Quick Pick Six sparks Auburn in 43-8 win over Southern Miss in home opener

AUBURN, Ala. – Andre Jordan Jr. scored the fastest touchdown in modern Auburn history, returning an interception for a score on the game’s first play to help the Tigers defeat Southern Miss 43-8 Saturday in Kickoff on The Plains at Jordan-Hare Stadium.

“What an incredible Tiger Walk. It’s different, it’s pretty incredible,” said coach Alex Golesh of his Jordan-Hare Stadium debut. “Defensively, to start like that was huge. Offensively, I thought we were beyond sloppy. Overall, a lot to clean up, and we’re going to have to really quickly here.”

After nearby lightning pushed back the kickoff almost an hour, Jordan intercepted an overthrown pass and returned it 20 yards for a pick six after only 10 seconds had elapsed. Unblocked defensive lineman Dallas Walker IV pressured Southern Miss quarterback Ethan Hampton to cause the errant throw for a 7-0 Auburn lead.  

“I saw him staring at the receiver so I came down,” Jordan said. “He overthrew it and I caught it. I followed my blockers and it was a touchdown from there. It was an unbelievable feeling.”

Byrum Brown put Auburn ahead 14-0 on a 22-yard touchdown pass to tight end Jonathan Echols, who raced past Southern Miss’s linebackers undetected and was all alone at the 5-yard line when he caught Brown’s pass.

Jordan made his second career interception on USM’s fourth down pass late in the opening quarter, setting up Alex McPherson’s 47-yard field goal that gave Auburn a 17-0 lead.

Brown and Jeremiah Koger teamed up for Auburn’s longest play of the game, a 45-yard completion.

Three plays later, DeShawn Spencer made his first Auburn touchdown catch midway through the second quarter when Brown rolled to his right and found the freshman in the end zone to put the Tigers on top 24-0.

After the visitors put together a 14-play, 75-yard touchdown drive and scored with 24 seconds left in the first half, Brown completed three passes for 33 yards in 16 seconds, advancing to the Golden Eagles’ 38-yard line.

From there, McPherson kicked a career-long 55-yard field goal as the half expired, tying for the fifth longest in program history, giving Auburn a 27-8 halftime lead.

“My guys put me in a good position,” said McPherson, whose 43 career field goals rank seventh in Auburn history. “Great snap, great hold by Hudson (Powell) and Hudson (Kaak). The line did their job for me, and I was able to execute. I’m definitely pumped and glad I could do that to give the team some momentum going into halftime.”

Brown showcased his receiving skills in the second half, catching a 5-yard touchdown pass from Christian Neptune for a 34-8 Auburn advantage with 9:56 remaining in the third quarter.

Brown completed 18 of 29 passes for 226 yards and two touchdowns, adding 88 rushing yards on 13 carries.

“Same guy every day,” Golesh said of Brown. “Elite process, confidence, urgency, leader. He’s going to continue to get better as he continues to play with the guys around him.”

Auburn’s defense produced two more points when Cody Sigler pressured USM’s quarterback into an intentional grounding penalty from the Golden Eagles’ end zone for a safety.

Omar Mabson II’s second career touchdown, a 2-yarder with nine seconds to play in the third quarter, gave Auburn a 43-8 lead. Mabson eclipsed the 100-yard mark for the first time in his career, leading the Tigers with 108 rushing yards on 15 carries.

Linebacker Elijah Melendez led Auburn with six tackles, including a sack, 1.5 tackles for loss, a pass breakup and two quarterback hurries.

After winning its 10^th consecutive home opener, Auburn (2-0) remains at Jordan-Hare Stadium next Saturday at 6 p.m. CT for the Tigers’ SEC opener against Florida on ESPN and the Auburn Sports Network.

Jeff Shearer is a Senior Writer at AuburnTigers.com. Follow him on X: @jeff_shearer

 

GAME NOTES

•  Captains: Byrum Brown, Bryce Cain, Jeremiah Cobb, Elijah Melendez, Sylvester Smith-Reed
• The game was delayed 55 minutes due to lightning in the area. Official game time start was 7:50 p.m. CT. It was the second straight Auburn-Southern Miss game delayed by weather; the 2018 meeting was delayed in the second quarter for 2 hours, 44 minutes.
• Coin Toss: Auburn won the toss, deferred. Southern Miss to receive and defend south end zone.

TEAM NOTES

• First starts of the year:  Defense: LB Bryce Deas; LB De’Marcus Riddick 
• First career starts: DE Darrion Smith
• Auburn debuts: WR Kory Pettigrew; QB Tristan Ti’a; WR Brian Williams Jr.; DE Jaquez Wilkes; TE Hunter Herring; OL Parker Pritchett
• Auburn has scored in a school-record 168 consecutive games, dating back to the first game of 2013. 
• Auburn has an 811-485-47 record in 133 seasons of football, the 14th most wins among FBS programs.
• Auburn improved to 107-17-3 in home openers all time and have won 20 of its last 21 home openers, including 10 straight.
• Auburn has outscored the opponent 476-89 during the 10 straight home-opening wins.
• Today’s offensive performance marks the first time since 2021 that Auburn has opened the season with back-to-back games with 300+ yards rushing in each game 

INDIVIDUAL NOTES - OFFENSE

• QB Byrum Brown made his 34th career start. He leads the SEC in career starts by a QB; fifth-most nationally.
• TE Jonathan Echols had Auburn’s first offensive touchdown in the game, coming at 3:45 in the first. It was the fifth TD in his career and the first by an Auburn tight end since Rivaldo Fairweather vs. Vanderbilt on Nov. 2, 2024. 
• WR De’Shawn Spencer with his first career TD catch at 6:40 in the 2nd quarter
• With 63 touchdown passes, 32 rushing scores and 2 TD receptions, Brown now has had his hand in 97 TDs in his career. 
• WR Chas Nimrod finished with 7 receptions on the night for 52 yards. That reception total marked a career high
• Brown’s TD reception from Christian Neptune in the 3rd quarter was the second of his career and first since 2024
• That touchdown catch was also the first for an Auburn QB since Kiehl Frazier in 2012 vs. ULM. 
• The TD pass for Neptune was the 2nd of his career and he is 2-for-2 on career passes. 
• Brown finished with 226 passing yards and 88 rushing yards.
• RB Omar Mabson finished with a career-high 108 yards and ran in for a TD late in the 3rd, scoring his 2nd career TD. It was the first 100-yard game of his career.
• Cobb made his 13th career start at Auburn
• Singleton has caught a pass in 17 consecutive games
• OL Cole Best started his 24th consecutive game dating back to the 2024 season at USF.

INDIVIDUAL NOTES - DEFENSE

• CB Andre Jordan Jr. with an interception for a touchdown at 14:59 in the first quarter was Jordan Jr.’s first interception of his career.
• Jordan Jr.’s touchdown was the fastest score ever in Auburn’s modern history and was Auburn fastest defensive touchdown since Kurt Crain recovered a fumble at Vanderbilt with 13:54 left in first quarter on Oct. 11, 1986. 
• The interception for a touchdown was the fourth defensive touchdown under defensive coordinator DJ Durkin and the first since Elijah Melendez had a 41-yard INT return for a score against Mercer on Nov. 22, 2025.  
• Jordan Jr. finished with two INTs on the night and he became the 19th different Auburn player in the last 30 seasons to record two or more INTs in a game
• DL Malik Autry recorded the first sack of his career in the 2nd quarter
• The Auburn defense forced a safety in the 3rd quarter and was the first for the Tiger defense since Sept. 4, 2021 vs. Akron.
• DT Cody Sigler forced the safety with his first sack of the season and 12th of his career
• LB Elijah Melendez finished with a team-high 6 tackles, including 1.5 TFLs and a sack in the 3rd quarter. It was his second sack of his career

INDIVIDUAL NOTES/SPECIAL TEAMS 

• Alex McPherson now has 223 career kicking points, ninth in Auburn program history. 
• McPherson is a perfect 94-for-94 in his career on PAT attempts.
• McPherson went 2-for-2 in FGs on the night and upped his career FGs made to 43 to move into seventh in Auburn program history. 
• His 55-yard FG at the end of the first half is the longest of his career and tied for the 5th longest in AU history. It’s the longest FG for an Auburn kicker since Daniel Carlson hit a 56 yarder against Louisville in 2015. 
• The 55-yarder FG is the second longest field goal made in a FBS game this year.