Touchdown Auburn: Boobee Meets Bully

Photo by Michael Chang/Getty Images

Auburn scores quick to star the game.

Auburn scored 53 touchdowns in 2019 and over the coming weeks we are going to breakdown each one.

Following a victorious road trip to College Station, Auburn returned home to take on a struggling Mississippi State Bulldog team. Things went off the rails before the season even started for Joe Moorhead’s crew as 10 players were busted for a cheating scandal. Their punishment was one of the more bizarre ones I can remember where they were required to sit for 8 games but the coaching staff got to pick which ones. For this game, Mississippi State elected to sit the majority of them. I suspect that’s because Moorehead had an idea of what was coming.

After going 3 & out to start the day, Mississippi State punted to Christian Tutt who returned it 18 yards setting Auburn up with tremendous field position. The Tigers wasted no time making the most of it.

In preparation for this game, Auburn’s coaching staff obviously saw something on tape about the way the Bulldogs defense adjusts or doesn’t adjust to quads. I don’t remember Auburn using this formation much but it was extremely effective on this snap.

The Tigers have three wide receivers to the near side with Spencer Nigh lined up at tight end to the field as well. Seeing the alignment, Mississippi State rotates the strength of its defense to the field leaving only one safety backside. Auburn runs GT Counter to that side. Here’s a better look.

Mike Horton and Jack Driscoll combine to pancake the defensive tackle to that side. The end pinches in too far allowing Marquel Harrell to pin him inside. Prince Tega Wanogho pulls around and fits on State’s middle linebacker who is trying to fill the C-gap. That leaves only the safety with a chance of stopping this play but JaTarvious Whitlow does a great job setting him up with his initial path outside before jump cutting behind Tega’s block. From there it’s just a race to the endzone.

Finally, just so Mississippi State fully understood what was coming, Whitlow ran over their mascot Bully.

Targeting! pic.twitter.com/NZKElzDgzK

— Michael Shamburger (@mshamburger1) September 28, 2019

Overkill? Maybe so but sometimes you have to send a loud and clear message to your opponent. Get out the way or get run the hell over.

War Eagle!

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