Auburn football falls to No. 18 Oklahoma, 27-21

Auburn quarterback Payton Thorne needed a “redemption game,” and he nearly got just that on Saturday in the Tigers’ game vs. No. 18 Oklahoma.

The senior quarterback completed 66% of his passes for 338 yards and three touchdowns on Saturday. However, a major blemish on his record was the deciding factor in the contest. With 4:06 to go in the game, Thorne threw an interception to Oklahoma’s Kip Lewis, who returned it 63 yards for a touchdown. A two-point conversion pushed the Sooners ahead by three points. Unfortunately, the score came at a pivotal time for the Sooners as they escaped the Plains with a 27-21 victory over Auburn on Saturday afternoon at Jordan-Hare Stadium in Auburn, Alabama.

Trailing by a touchdown heading into halftime, Oklahoma chipped away at Auburn’s lead by outscoring the Tigers, 20-7 through the final 30 minutes.

Following an Auburn punt on their first possession of the 3rd quarter, Oklahoma built a 11-play drive that covered 51 yards and six-and-a-half minutes before Keldric Faulk and Demarcus Riddick ended the Sooners’ scoring threat at the Auburn six-yard line with a stuffing of Hawkins. Oklahoma was forced to kick a field goal, cutting into the deficit, 14-10 with 2:26 remaining in the quarter.

The Sooners’ momentum was short-lived as Auburn answered in the following possession. Thorne tossed his third touchdown pass of the day, this time to Luke Deal, to push Auburn’s lead to 21-10 with 14:12 remaining in the game. Oklahoma answered by scoring two unanswered touchdowns over the final 8:32 of the game. Sooners’ running back Jovante Barnes scored from two-yards away to trim Auburn’s lead to 21-16 with Lewis’ pick-six delivering a crushing blow to Auburn’s confidence with less than three minutes to play. Sooners’ kicker Zach Schmit delivered the final blow by kicking a 39-yard field goal with 0:54 to go in the game.

The loss outweighs what was an otherwise solid day offensively for the Tigers. Auburn outgained…