Recently, Taylor Swift really blew the musical world up with her new signal “Shake It Off.” Well, Auburn could not “shake it off”. The “it” was their fumbles. Auburn fumbled the ball two times in the last three minutes as they were attempting to come back and beat Texas A&M and keep their playoff hopes alive.
The costly fumble was at the Texas A&M two-yard line. Nick Marshall and Cameron Artis-Payne were running the option and read it the wrong way. Marshall saw the opening to the right and headed towards the end zone. Artis-Payne headed to the left. However, both thought they were going to have the ball and because of that, the ball fell to the ground and A&M recovered. With 2:45 remaining in the game, it looked like Auburn’s season was over.
However, Auburn was able to force a three and out and had one more chance. They got a first down and rushed to the line. As Marshall went to the line, he seemed to notice something in the A&M defense and went to make a change in the play. However, Reese Dismukes, Auburn’s’ center, snapped the ball. Marshall was not ready and the ball bounced and rolled around on the ground and A&M’s Alonzo Williams recovered the ball with 54 seconds and the game was over.
The playoff committee is going to have to “shake it up” and change the teams that they have targeted to play.
Auburn played a very good offensive game, gaining 580 yards. However, their 3 fumbles during the game would cost them.
Cameron was the star for Auburn as he rushed the ball 30 times for 217 yards and 2 TDs.
However, the difference maker was Kyle Allen:
Kyle kept his poise and was very efficient in the game. He was 19 for 29, for 278 yards, with 4 TDs, 1 INT and a QB Rating of 184.4.
Auburn, the defending SEC champions, had lost their first home game in 15 tries. Thus, Texas A&M knocked off the team with the longest home-winning streak and they did it with their freshman quarterback who was not rattled and even had swagger through the game.
Now, Auburn does not have a chance for the playoffs but they do have a chance to knock off two of their rivals over the next three weeks: Georgia and Alabama.
Photo Credit: Getty Images