Week 9 – Ole Miss
by Leroy Jenkins
What a quarter. What looked like another boring Auburn/Ole Miss affair turned into an exciting game. There was a lack of enthusiasm in the skybox for the first half of the game. Like most Auburn fans, we were just waiting for the penalty flags to start flying and the offense to under-perform. Even with a 10-7 halftime lead, the mood was far from enthusiastic. The third quarter changed the mood quickly. Auburn finally put together a solid performance and looked unstoppable…well for the first half of the quarter. When Ole Miss scored twice in the matter of just a few minutes we all thought “here we go again!” Then we get a block on the extra point and take it in for two points. I really believe that play saved the game, and possibly salvaged the season for Auburn.
Chris Todd had his moments in this game. He looked like a Heisman candidate one play, then the 2008 version of Chris Todd the next. The person that stood out to me was Terrell Zachary. He made a few incredible catches for us. He has quickly turned from a blue-chip bust into a solid starting receiver in this league. Tate stepped up and had another big game for us as well. The absence of McCalebb really takes away a big part of what we can do on offense. Hopefully he will sit out the Furman game, and be 100% for Georgia and Alabama.
The defense played pretty well overall. Ole Siss was only 3-15 on third down. That is always a recipe for success. Granted, we were only 5-15 on third down, but we made the plays when it counted. Holding the guy that’s “better than Tebow” to only 175 passing yards is a good accomplishment.
I really think this win has salvaged our season. Now at worst we will be 7-5 and headed to Shreveport. That’s a good turn around from what we saw last year. If thUGA doesn’t show up to play, we can be at least 8-4. That would exceed most people’s expectations for us. Who knows though? Maybe just maybe we can turn it all around and win out…9-3 while dashing Bammers hopes for a NC would feel really good.
