THE GAME: Louisiana-Monroe at Auburn

Hey everyone. Welcome to Jordan-Hare Stadium, where the weather is just grand.

Sunny, just enough breeze, temps in the high 70s. Perfect.

AUBURN 52
ULM 3
8:46, 4th

—FIRST QUARTER—
AUBURN TOUCHDOWN (@14.28) — Onterio McCalebb 50 run. PAT kick good. Drive covered 65 yards in two plays. ULM defensive back Otis Peterson had the angle on McCalebb coming around right end, but McCalebb just altered the geometry and pulled away. The kid is fast.

AUBURN TOUCHDOWN (@10:22) — Emory Blake 94 pass from Cam Newton. PAT kick good. Drive covered 97 yards in two plays. Newton faked the zone-read handoff to McCalebb, make a pump fake (I guess you’d call it that) and hit Blake, who was wide open down the left hash. Nobody around. Easy stuff.

ULM FIELD GOAL (@4:31) — FG 35 yards. Drive covered 61 yards in 14 plays. The Warhawks are throwing short and quickly. Auburn can’t stop it. It’s just like Arkansas State.

AUBURN FIELD GOAL (@2:09) — FG 19 yards. Drive covered 48 yards in eight plays. More easy yards. Newton completed a pass on a drag route to Lutzenkirchen, which is a new thing. Seems like a combination that could come in handy throughout October and November. It’s obvious to me that coaches told Newton to avoid running at all costs today. He had an easy touchdown on 1st-and-Goal from the 4, waited for receivers to get open instead.

—SECOND QUARTER—

AUBURN TOUCHDOWN (@6:53) — Mike Dyer 3 run. PAT kick good. Drive covered 66 plays in nine yards. Still no runs from Newton. He went 3-for-3 on that drive for 34 yards. Mario Fannin had two carries for 26 yards, no fumbles.

AUBURN TOUCHDOWN (@2:41) — Quindarius Carr 16 pass from Newton. PAT kick good. Drive covered 49 yards in four plays. Newton was 2-for-2 on that drive for 28 yards. Touchdown throw was a fade route. Emory Blake lined up wide initially, then Carr flip-flopped spots just before the snap. I’m guessing Carr was the de facto jump-ball guy on that side and ULM’s alignment put that plan into action. Interesting.

—THIRD QUARTER—

AUBURN TOUCHDOWN (@6:09) — Lutzenkirchen 5 pass from Newton. PAT kick good. Drive covered 21 yards in six plays. Drive created by a Mike Goggans forced fumble. Jake Holland recovered. Unremarkable touchdown drive — if there is such a thing.

—FOURTH QUARTER—

AUBURN TOUCHDOWN (14:55) — Mario Fannin 2 run.

AUBURN TOUCHDOWN (8:46) — Barrett Trotter 18 run.

—OTHER INFORMATION OF NOTE–

• Jake Holland is playing as Auburn’s second-team middle linebacker. There goes any chance for a redshirt, though it’s clear coaches are prepared to use him from this point forward. He’s now ahead of Harris Gaston.

• Nothing much to note from pre-game, though Nova, the eagle that buzzed fans with a low flight last week, will continue as the Tigers’ No. 1 option.