The Tigers (3-1) held the ball for 18 minutes, 49 seconds in the opening half while outgaining the Toppers, 255-94. Western (2-1) was able to pick up three first downs in the first 30 minutes.
“Our heads are up because we played hard for 60 minutes, but we definitely could have done more,” WKU head coach David Elson said. “We stuck together and did some good things, however I’m disappointed that we didn’t come out and execute early the way are capable of — we weren’t able to take advantage of some opportunities.”
Western received the opening kickoff and had the game’s first scoring opportunity after Justin Haddix’ 51-yard run down the left sideline on the opening play from scrimmage. But, after picking up just three more yards Chris James attempted a 48-yard field goal that sailed just wide left.
Kenny Irons led the Tigers back down the field, collecting 54 on seven carries before Auburn threw its first pass of the afternoon — it was complete for four yards, but short of a first down. John Vaughn connected on a 28-yard field goal with 9:10 remaining in the opening quarter to give the Tigers a 3-0 advantage.
After an 3-and-out, AU put together a nine-play, 63-yard drive that Irons capped with an 8-yard touchdown run at 2:48 for a 10-0 lead.
Auburn put the Hilltoppers away in the second quarter, limiting the WKU offense to just 15 yards while putting together a pair of scoring drives late in the period. The Tigers extended to a 17-0 advantage with 4:41 left in the half on a 38-yard screen pass from Field to Brad Lester, then got the ball back after a 3-and-out and needed just over two minutes to go on a nine-play drive that culminated with Field’s 9-yard completion to Anthony Mix 13 seconds before the break for a 24-0 lead.
Field, who completed his first six pass attempts, finished 13-of-23 passing for 200 yards. He connected with 10 different receivers, as no AU player had more than two catches. Field was starting in place of Brandon Cox, who missed the game with flu-like symptoms.
Western posted better offensive numbers in the second half as Haddix led two scoring drives that covered 80 yards or more. His 42-yard run with 11:54 remaining in the contest got the Hilltoppers on the board, while he led an 8-play, 83-yard possession — hitting three different receivers in going 3-of-4 for 77 yards — that Lerron Moore capped with a 1-yard touchdown run to close out the scoring.
Haddix was 12-of-22 passing for 187 yards, and he led the Toppers on the ground with 82 yards on 12 carries. Chris Jackson and Stephen Willis each posted three catches, with Jackson leading all players with 71 yards.
Marion Rumph led the WKU defense, recording a career-best 15 stops (including 12 solo). Andre Lewis and Antonio Thomas each collected eight tackles, with Daniel Williams posting a stop for loss among his four tackles and breaking up a pass. Chris Walker recovered a Field fumble late in the fourth quarter as well.
Steve Gandy and Will Herring paced the Tigers with five tackles apiece as AU limited Western to 342 yards. Zach Gilbert and Travis Williams had interceptions to stop WKU drives, with seven players recording a stop behind the line of scrimmage.
Vaughn added field goals of 20 and 32 yards in the third quarter, and Lee Guess accounted for the Tigers’ final points with a 13-yard touchdown catch with just over 11 minutes to go in the contest.
Auburn finished with 409 total yards. Irons posted 111 yards rushing on 18 attempts and Lester added 10 carries for 64 yards to help the Tigers record 209 yards on the ground.
“They are a good football team, we knew they were going to make plays,” said Elson. “But, I was really proud of the way we performed and with our effort in the second half.”
WKU will open up Gateway Football Conference action Saturday at 1 p.m. (CDT) at Indiana State.
