Monday’s pick six helps lift Auburn past Tennessee
AUBURN, Ala. (BVM) — The Auburn Tigers defeated the Tennessee Volunteers 30-17 this past Saturday night.
Tennessee jumped out to an early 10-0 lead and seemed to have all the early momentum. Auburn would respond by tying the game at 10 heading into halftime.
An Anders Carlson field goal would give Auburn a 13-10 lead late in the third quarter, but Tennessee was threatening to steal the lead back. The Volunteers had a third and goal at the five yard line and decided to put the ball in senior quarterback Jarrett Guarantano’s hands. Guarantano had a chance to make one of the plays of the game and help the Volunteers upset the Tigers.
Instead, Guarantano threw a pass right into the hands of Auburn safety Smoke Monday, who ran untouched 100 yards for the pick six.
“Once the ball was in my hands, I knew I was going to the end zone,” said Monday.
The pick six was Monday’s first interception of the season and could not have come at a better time. The Auburn defense struggled all night to contain the Volunteer rushing attack and also had trouble punching the ball in the end zone on offense.
“That changed the dynamics of the game,” Auburn head coach Gus Malzahn said. “You know, that was really the key play of the game that changed the whole dynamic and gave us some breathing room and gave us some confidence.”
The confidence given to Auburn by Monday’s pick six would help the Tigers score a touchdown the next time they got the ball and take a commanding 17 point lead. Auburn quarterback Bo Nix led the Tigers on a 12-play, 80-yard drive that was capped off by a nine yard D.J. Williams’ touchdown run with seven minutes left in the game.
Tennessee would score a late touchdown to cut the lead to 10, but another Carlson field goal would ice the game and end the scoring for the night.
Auburn earned their fifth win of the season, moving to 5-2 overall as they prepare for their showdown with top-ranked Alabama. For an Auburn team that had not played in three weeks, this game gave the Tigers a chance for a tuneup before their biggest game of the year.
“Yeah, I’m ready for it,” said Auburn receiver Seth Williams. “It’s a good game. It’s Iron Bowl week, so you know we got to be ready, the team and myself.”
