Auburn Survives Baylor 17-16 After a Failed Two-point Try
Baylor needed two points with nine seconds left, and did not get them. That is the whole difference between a 17-16 Auburn win and an 18-17 Baylor one.
Auburn got there the odd way. It threw three interceptions (Byrum Brown went 26 of 35 for 259 yards and no touchdowns through the air) and was outgained 450 yards to 390, yet it still led for almost the entire afternoon. Alex McPherson kicked a 43-yard field goal in the first quarter, and Jeremiah Cobb ran in from 15 yards with 3:51 left in the second for a 10-0 lead. DJ Lagway answered with a 14-yard touchdown pass to Louis Brown IV with 1:30 to go in the half, so it was 10-7 at the break.
The third quarter had no scoring. Rhett Armstrong tied it at 10-10 with a 22-yard field goal at 7:12 of the fourth, and that is the only time anyone was level. Byrum Brown answered with an 11-yard touchdown run with 3:21 left, and Auburn went up 17-10. Lagway then found Gavin Freeman from 5 yards with 0:09 on the clock. The two-point pass failed, and that is the end of the story.
Lagway threw 54 times, completing 27 for 333 yards and two touchdowns with one interception, and lost a fumble. Baylor had more yards, more passing and more chances, and it still lost by a point. Auburn is 1-0 and Baylor is 0-1. Auburn gave the ball away three times and won anyway. Nobody has to explain that one to me.
Fantasy-wise, Freeman had the day: 12 catches, 154 yards, a touchdown and 33.4 points.