Memphis Player Gets Into Altercation With Auburn Equipment Staff After Birmingham Bowl

A wild scene played out after Auburn beat Memphis 31-10 in the Birmingham Bowl. The Badgers (9-3) who are making their first trip in this bowl, will be trying to win back-to-back bowls after beating Auburn in overtime in the Outback Bowl last season.

Auburn’s offense started fast against Memphis, producing points on the Tigers’ first two drives of the game.

Auburn (7-6) hounded Memphis quarterback Paxton Lynch all day, limiting the standout signal caller to 104 yards passing, and didn’t allow a touchdown by the Memphis offense. Entering the game for the first time, he threw an 11-yard touchdown – his only pass attempt of the game – to put Auburn ahead 17-10. Even if Memphis stays in this game, which they should for a majority if not all of it, they’ll do it by slowing down the Auburn run game and getting the ball back to Lynch. Memphis defensive back Reggis Ball (39) returns an interception as Auburn wide receiver Ricardo Louis (5) tackles him during the Birmingham Bowl NCAA college football game, Wednesday, Dec. 30, 2015, in… Jeremy Johnson was reliable by completing 60.3 percent of his passes for 1,043 yards and nine touchdowns with seven interceptions.

The other big story, at least offensively, was the play of Auburn running back Jovon Robinson.

The 6-foot-7, 245-pounder has been projected as a top-five overall pick in this spring’s National Football League draft by multiple draft analysts, including ESPN’s Todd McShay, who most recently predicted he will be the No. 2 overall pick to the Cleveland Browns. Jared Goff played very well during his bowl game, so scouts and general managers may like his skill set better. Barber has run for 976 yards and 13 touchdowns this season and has a combined 1,085 yards total on the term.

In the process the Auburn defense throttled the high-powered Memphis team that was averaging 42.3 points per game.

Straight out of the second half, it looked like Memphis remembered how its offense worked and drove down the field.

As for the game itself, Ball’s two interceptions weren’t enough. In full, Auburn emerged with the 31-10 victory.

Not only did Auburn win the game, it announced Kevin Steele as its new defensive coordinator. The Tigers were a potential College Football Playoff team at the beginning of the season but stumbled mightily with offensive problems and finished 6-6. The loss puts a bow on the four-year Fuente era, with 19 wins over the last two seasons the highest two-year total in the history of the program.

Interesting that Auburn is a favorite in this one, but they do play in the SEC and have played a tougher schedule.

The turnovers wiped away a almost flawless first half from the defense.