Alabama State Hornets vs. Auburn Tigers

AUBURN, Ala. (WIAT) — The Auburn Tigers open the season at home against the Alabama State Hornets after a top-10 win against the Washington Huskies last Saturday.

The Tigers are looking to improve in week two before taking on LSU at Jordan-Hare on Sept. 15, 2018. That game will air on CBS 42 at 2:30 p.m. CT.

AUBURN, Ala. (AP) — JaTarvious Whitlow ran for 122 yards and receiver Anthony Schwartz accounted for 117 total yards and two touchdowns to help No. 7 Auburn rout Alabama State 63-9 on Saturday night.

Starting quarterback Jarrett Stidham played only into the second quarter, with the Tigers (2-0) leading 42-0. The redshirt junior finished 6 of 11 for 113 yards with a passing and rushing score.

Stidham’s backup, sophomore Malik Willis, gifted the Hornets (1-1) their first points of the night when he was sacked in the end zone on his first snap for a 4-yard safety in the second quarter. Willis directed the offense until 23-year-old freshman left-hander Cord Sandberg took the on the last play of the third quarter.

Sandberg, a former minor league baseball player for the Philadelphia Phillies, completed one pass for 22 yards and ran for 35 yards on three carries.

A silver medalist for the 100m in the U20 World Championships in Finland over the summer, Schwartz got to display his world-class speed in the Tigers’ home opener. On his second reception, the true freshman hauled in a 57-yard post route from Stidham for the score.

Schwartz added a rushing touchdown midway through the second quarter on a reverse to top off Auburn’s highest scoring half since dropping 42 in the first half in a 62-3 win over Western Carolina on Oct. 12, 2013 — also the last time Auburn scored over 60 points.

A play after Schwartz’s touchdown grab, safety Daniel Thomas jumped a route for a 29-yard pick-six. The junior recorded his second interception of Darryl Pearson Jr. in the second quarter for the first multi-interception outing by a Tiger since Thomas picked off Alabama’s Jalen Hurts twice in 2016.

THE TAKEAWAY

Alabama State: The Hornets cycled through quarterbacks before redshirt sophomore KHA’Darris Davis found Joe Williams for a 29-yard touchdown in the third quarter. Pearson Jr., the Hornets’ starter, was pulled in favor of Dakota Rocker.

Auburn: Freshmen accounted for 457 of Auburn’s 568 total yards. The Tigers’ four turnovers are their most since committing five in a 24-10 win over FCS Mercer last season.

UP NEXT

Alabama State: The Hornets travel to Kennesaw State next Saturday. Donald Hill-Eley’s team won’t return to Montgomery until Nov. 3 against Texas Southern.

Auburn: The Tigers open SEC play against No. 11 LSU next Saturday in Jordan-Hare Stadium. ESPN announced during the game that College Gameday will be traveling to No. 4 Ohio State vs. TCU in Arlington, Texas, over Auburn-LSU.

Live game blog:

1st Q:

(6:16) Jarrett Stidham run for 66 yards for a TD. Anders Carlson kick is good. 7-0, Auburn.

(1:07) Jarrett Stidham pass complete to Anthony Schwartz for 57 yards for a TD. Anders Carlson kick is good. 14-0, Auburn.

(1:00) INT. Darryl Pearson Jr. pass intercepted by Daniel Thomas for 29 yards for a TD. Anders Carlson kick is good. 21-0, Auburn.

2nd Q:

(11:30) Kam Mart runs for 4 yards for a TD. Anders Carlson kick is good. 28-0, Auburn.

(7:42) Team punt blocked by Jordyn Peters and D. Barrett returned for 10 yards for a TD. A. Carlson kick is good. 35-0, Auburn.

(6:56) A. Schwartz run for 23 yards for a TD. A. Carlson kick is good. 42-0, Auburn.

(4:43) M. Willis run for -4 yards for a safety. 42-2, Auburn.

HALFTIME SCORE: 42-2, Auburn.

3rd Q: