UK Football: Cats score huge SEC road win over Auburn 21-14

Kentucky coach Rich Brooks said it was a big win for the Wildcats after three straight losses to ranked opponents.

"From where we were headed, I think this breathes a little light back into our fan base, life into our locker room and I think it's a big win for us. It's only a huge win if we follow up with another win," Brooks said.

Cobb rushed 12 times for 109 yards mostly on direct snaps from the Wildcats' wildcat and Derrick Locke ran 19 times for 137 yards.

It was the first time either Cobb or Locke had rushed for more than 100 yards.

"It felt good," Locke said. "The first thing I did was go to my linemen and give them the credit. I have the ability to do things, but without them, I can't do anything."

Kentucky (3-3, 1-3 Southeastern Conference) had tied the score with 6:29 to play on a 2-yard run by quarterback Will Fidler. Fidler came off the bench in the second half to lead the comeback. He replaced freshman Morgan Newton, who had started the game in the place of injured Mike Hartline.

Fidler and Newton both scored the first touchdowns of their careers in the game.

"It was fun to be out there when I knew I was going to play. I had a great time and did some good things, but there were definitely things I need to work on," Newton said.

Auburn (5-2, 2-2) held a 14-7 halftime lead, but was held scoreless by the Kentucky defense in the second half. Ben Tate rushed 31 times for 132 yards, his fifth 100-yard game of the season.

Tate said the more than 100-yard performance was not important to him because the Tigers lost the game.

"It is great to run 100 yards and celebrate when you are winning. To run for 100 yards in a loss, it doesn't really matter," Tate said. "I don't care if I only have to run for 20 yards if we win."

Auburn had one last chance to tie the game as the Tigers drove from their own 20 into Kentucky territory. The drive started with a 10-yard keeper by quarterback Chris Todd and an 18-yard run by Tate. But the drive was thwarted by two false start penalties and ended with 1:36 to play on fourth-and-11 from the Auburn 48 when Chris Todd's pass to Terrell Zachery fell incomplete.

Both teams were ineffective passing the ball on a cold night. Kentucky gained only 75 yards in the air, while Auburn had 95 passing yards.

Auburn coach Gene Chizik said the Kentucky defense stopped much of what the Tigers wanted to accomplish on offense.

"They played a lot of base defense and didn't give up any big plays to us. We had our chances to hit some open receivers on some different routes and it just didn't seem like we were clicking in the passing game like we needed to be for whatever reason," Chizik said.

Defenses mostly dominated in the first half. Auburn's Jake Ricks blocked Lones Seiber's 38-yard field goal attempt in the first quarter and Neiko Thorpe scooped it up and raced 69 yards for a touchdown.

It was the first score on a blocked field goal attempt for the Tigers since 1981, when Chris Martin returned a blocked kick 77 yards for a score against Georgia Tech.

Making his first start at quarterback, Newton was shaky at first.

But he started to warm up in the second quarter and scored on a 4-yard run with 9:02 to play in the half. Kentucky's score came after a six-play, 53-yard drive that included a 23-yard sideline pass to Chris Matthews.

The game remained tied until Auburn took advantage of a poor Kentucky punt and got the ball at the Kentucky 48 at 5:26 in the half. The Tigers then took control of the ball, driving methodically to Tate's 1-yard touchdown run with 6 seconds to play in the half.

STATISTICS

at Auburn, Ala.

First Quarter

Aub_Thorpe 69 blocked field goal return (Byrum kick), 7:25.

Second Quarter

Ky_Newton 4 run (Seiber kick), 9:02.
Aub_Tate 1 run (Byrum kick), :06.

Fourth Quarter

Ky_Fidler 2 run (Seiber kick), 6:29.
Ky_R.Cobb 4 run (Seiber kick), 3:17.

A_86,217.

INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS

RUSHING_Kentucky, Locke 19-126, R.Cobb 12-109, A.Smith 2-20, Newton 8-15, Fidler 2-10, Conner 3-8, Team 3-(minus 6). Auburn, Tate 31-132, Burns 6-37, McCalebb 7-22, Zachery 1-15, Todd 2-15, Fannin 2-(minus 1).

PASSING_Kentucky, Newton 5-13-0-39, Fidler 4-9-0-36. Auburn: Todd 10-24-1-80, Burns 1-1-0-15.

RECEIVING_Kentucky, Matthews 2-30, Locke 2-(minus 2), R.Cobb 1-12, Lanxter 1-10, McCaskill 1-10, Melillo 1-8, Drake 1-7. Auburn, Zachery 4-24, D.Adams 3-57, Fannin 2-9, E.Smith 1-3, McCalebb 1-2.