Auburn’s five most memorable games from 2007

By Lee Roberts  |   Wednesday, August 27, 2008  |  Comments( 1 )

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The 2008 college football season is upon us. In only a few short days, Auburn will take the field at Jordan-Hare Stadium against Louisiana-Monroe to start the season. It’s the beginning of a new era in Auburn football with Tony Franklin’s spread scheme aiming to reinvent and energize the Tigers’ offense. But before we dive headfirst into this season, let’s take a look back at Auburn's five most memorable games from 2007.

5. South Florida 26, Auburn 23 – Not all memories are good ones, and I’m sure Auburn was hoping to forget its five turnovers in this game. This home loss looked a lot worse at the time than it did a few weeks later when South Florida was ranked second in the nation. The Bulls grabbed a 14-3 lead in the first quarter, only to see the Tigers storm back in the second stanza to take a 17-14 advantage into halftime. The high-scoring pace fell off in the second half, with the teams exchanging field goals. No one got into the end zone again until overtime, when South Florida scored the game-winner.

4. Auburn 23, Clemson 20 – The first look at the future of Auburn’s offense came in the Chick-fil-A Bowl against Clemson. Franklin joined the Tigers before the bowl game and installed parts of his spread offense. Quarterback Kodi Burns used his speed and that offense to run for a 7-yard touchdown in overtime to beat Clemson. That glimpse of the future has Auburn fans excited for what this offense can do in 2008.

3. LSU 30, Auburn 24 – LSU fans will probably remember this one a bit more fondly than Auburn loyalists, but it was one of the best games of the year -- a classic SEC battle with both teams imposing their will at different points of the game. Auburn’s 17-7 halftime lead quickly evaporated into a 23-17 deficit with eight minutes to go in the game, then Auburn scored to go up 24-23 with 3:21 left on the clock. LSU put itself in position for a game-winning field goal, but opted to throw for the touchdown. A miraculous catch by Demetrius Byrd with one second left gave LSU the win.

2. Auburn 20, Florida 17 – Going into the Swamp to face an undefeated Florida team is a tall task for anyone. With a 2-2 record, Auburn’s season appeared to be in serious jeopardy. Auburn jumped on Florida early, taking a 14-0 lead into the half. As Florida tends to do, it fought back and tied the game at 17 with 7:36 remaining in the fourth quarter. The score stayed tied until Wes Byrum’s 43-yard field goal went through the uprights as time expired, giving the Tigers the victory.

1. Auburn 17, Alabama 10 – As in most years, the Auburn game everyone remembers is the Iron Bowl. Led by a strong running attack and a stout defense, Auburn extended its winning streak in this bitter rivalry to six games. This matchup was Tide head coach Nick Saban’s introduction to the Iron Bowl rivalry and the loss dropped Alabama to 6-6, surely not what the school had in mind when it hired Saban for $4 million a year. The win capped a roller-coaster regular season for Auburn and led the Tigers to their aforementioned Chick–fil-A Bowl triumph over Clemson.
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About Lee Roberts

Born in Richmond, Va, I moved south to UNC-Chapel Hill for college and received a degree in Journalism and Mass Communication. I currently live in Charlotte, NC and cover Auburn, LSU and the ...
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