The Auburn Tigers pulled off a huge upset this weekend, defeating the No. 15 Texas A&M Aggies 43-41 in four overtimes, giving the Aggies a chance to qualify for the College Football Playoff. .
Auburn got off to a quick start, 21-7, but the game went back and forth from there after Texas A&M scored back-to-back touchdowns within the first two minutes, leading to overtime.
It was a season full of ups and downs for the Tigers, who were competitive in many games early in the season. However, they lost four games by 10 points or less, dropping their record to 2 wins and 5 losses.
But since then, Auburn has shown signs of hope, winning three of its past four games, including this weekend's thrilling 43-41 game against a Top 15 team, and playing the final game of the season. This gives the team momentum ahead of their game against the Alabama Crimson Tide.
A big part of the team's recent success has been the emergence of five-star freshman wide receiver Cam Coleman, who has put together back-to-back 100-yard, two-touchdown games for the Tigers and built a rapport with quarterback Payton. be. Thorn.
Coleman, considered the No. 3 player in the 2025 class by On3, turned into Auburn's second-best receiver as a freshman, totaling 30 catches for 720 yards and seven touchdowns. He was the only one behind the team leader in both receiving yards and touchdowns, Penn State transfer KeAndre Lambert-Smith, and despite the inconsistent play from Auburn's quarterback this year, he was a consistent downer. He has established himself as a threat on the field.
Auburn is chasing a bowl game with a 43-41 win over Texas A&M, but Coleman's appointment comes at the right time for Auburn as the Alabama Crimson Tide poses an obstacle to a postseason appearance. It happened.
“[It’s] It’s really a revenge tour,” Coleman said of the rivalry fight. “We're going to go in their place and actually go to their crib and just take over and have fun while we're doing it because this is the last memory we're going to make with each other. Let's make this a memorable match.”
Running back Harquez Hunter has been a mainstay of the program for the past four years, but Auburn has had inconsistent QB play since the start of the year after quarterback Peyton Thorne was benched after recording four interceptions in Week 2. I was having a hard time not doing it.
As a result, reserve Hank Brown started the game and scored four touchdowns in Week 3, but the following week against Arkansas, he had multiple interceptions early on and was benched again to replace Thorne. .
From there, Thorne had some good opportunities, but he was inconsistent with just one pass for over 250 yards and one pass for a touchdown or more until the final two weeks.
With Coleman and Lambert Smith leading the way, Thorne scored five touchdowns against UL Monroe, followed up with a 300-yard performance against Texas A&M, and the quarterback put the five-star freshman in the end zone. He scored two touchdowns. .
Coleman has scored five touchdowns in the last two games, catching passes of 63, 15, 20, 3 and 22 yards, all resulting in scores, as well as a 20-yarder over the stretch. He also added two more catches.
His elite performance earned him some recognition, and he was named the SEC's Freshman of the Week after rushing for 100 yards and two touchdowns in a game against Texas A&M. But that didn't faze him, especially with the Alabama game coming up.
“That's in the past,” Coleman said of the honor. “We're trying to look forward. We can't keep looking in the past. We have to keep moving forward every week, improving from last week's mistakes. It's a great accomplishment, but we have to keep trying.”
Alabama has won each of the past four years in the rivalry. If Auburn does make the switch, Coleman will play a key role in that effort this week as he faces a talented freshman defensive back looking to spark an upset.
