Auburn wins third in a row, takes down Arkansas 48-10

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. (WSFA) - The Auburn Tigers put together an impressive performance on the road against SEC foe the Arkansas Razorbacks on Saturday. The Tigers left Fayetteville with a 38-point victory after flexing their muscles all day on both sides of the ball.

The Tiger offense came out on fire. On the game’s opening drive, Payton Thorne led the offense 75 yards down the field and capped off the drive with a 12-yard touchdown run to give Auburn the early lead.

The defense was not about to be overshadowed by the offense and forced a quick three and out, forcing an Arkansas punt. Keionte Scott exploded for a 74-yard punt return into the endzone, and the crowd in Fayetteville was silenced after the Tigers scored twice in just over two minutes to start the game.

Auburn wasn’t done scoring yet in the first quarter. After the defense once again made short work of Arkansas, Thorne and company took the field again. This time around, Thorne used his arm to get in the endzone when he connected with Rivaldo Fairweather for a touchdown, putting the Tigers up 21-0.

Arkansas was able to put some points on the scoreboard after Thorne threw an interception, giving the Razorbacks a short field. The Auburn defense did, however, only hold the Razorbacks to a field goal, allowing only four yards on the drive.

The scoring slowed down in the second quarter, but Auburn kicker Alex McPherson kicked two field goals to stay perfect on the season, giving the Tigers a 27-3 lead at halftime.

When the Tiger offense hit the field for the first time in the second half, it was more of the same after the defense forced another three and out. Thorne continued his stellar play and found Ja’Varrius Johnson open for a 14-yard touchdown, pushing the lead out to 31 points.

Arkansas was not able to get anything going when their offense came back out, and the Tiger defense came up with a turnover when Raheim Sanders fumbled the ball on the Auburn 17. Caleb Wooden scooped up the ball and nearly scored but was taken down on the Arkansas 11 after a 74-yard return.

With the short field, it only took the Tigers one play to find the endzone. Thorne hit a wide-open Fairweather for the duo’s second touchdown of the night on the very next play, and the game was already out of reach for the Razorbacks halfway through the third quarter.

In the closing seconds of the third quarter, the Tiger offense struck again. This time, it was Brian Battle rumbling into the endzone for a seven-yard touchdown run. Auburn now held a 45-point lead.

The Razorbacks finally found the endzone at the start of the fourth quarter. Jacolby Criswell set up the touchdown with a big-time 60-yard run to start the drive. On the next play, Criswell connected with Isaac TeSlaa for a touchdown.

After the Razorback touchdown, the Auburn offense ate up 12:19 off the clock on two separate offensive drives as they cruised to their second SEC victory of the season.

Next up for Auburn is a matchup with New Mexico State at Jordan-Hare Stadium next Saturday. Kickoff is set for 3 p.m., and if you can’t make it to the game, you can catch all the action on the SEC Network.

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