Ole Miss Stopped Only By Lightning In 48-34 Win Over Auburn

With more than six minutes still to play, No. 9 Ole Miss already had 552 yards with three 100-yard rushers and led Auburn 48-34 when lightning delayed the game shortly before 4 p.m. eastern time at Vaught-Hemingway Stadium in Oxford, Mississippi.

At that point, the Auburn Radio Network reprogrammed to a happier time in the early 2000s for a game against Ole Miss with Ronnie Brown at tailback for the Tigers. He was the second pick of the NFL Draft by Miami in 2005.

When Auburn returned to present day after the 40-minute weather delay, it went on to fall by the same 48-34 final.

Auburn's defense did not do nearly as well as the lightning on this day. At the time of the delay, Ole Miss (7-0, 3-0 SEC) already had three 100-yard rushers - tailback Quinshon Judkins with 147, tailback Zach Evans with 104 and quarterback Jaxson Dart with 111. Judkins finished with 139, Evans had 136 and Dart had 115.

The 448 rushing yards by Ole Miss was the most allowed by Auburn since about that time of the radio reprogram. Arkansas gained 426 in a 38-17 win in the 2002 season.

OXFORD, MS - OCTOBER 15: Ole' Miss wide receiver Sellers Shy (15) makes a catch for a touchdown during the college football game between the Auburn Tigers and the Ole Miss Rebels on October 15, 2022 at Vaught-Hemingway Stadium in Oxford, MS. (Photo by Kevin Langley/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)

Judkins scored on a 41-yard run for the 48-34 lead just before the lightning delay. Dart had completed 9 of 19 passes for 130 yards with three touchdowns as Ole Miss took a 21-0 lead early in the second quarter. He didn't throw a pass after play resumed from the lightning delay.

Ole Miss coach Lane Kiffin's offense showed great versatility as Dart completed 25 of 32 passes for 448 yards and three touchdowns in a 52-28 win last week at Vanderbilt. It moved to the run game with a vengeance against Auburn, which fell to 3-4 overall and 1-3 in the SEC.

OXFORD, MISSISSIPPI - OCTOBER 15: Embattled Auburn head coach Bryan Harsin yells during the game against the Ole Miss Rebels at Vaught-Hemingway Stadium in Oxford, Mississippi. (Photo by Justin Ford/Getty Images)

Auburn coach Bryan Harsin's weekly firing watch will continue, but his team did come back from the 21-0 deficit to get within 28-24 early in the third quarter on a 50-yard touchdown run by tailback Tank Bigsby. Bigsby did not have 50 yards in a game this season against four Power 5 opponents. He had 179 on 20 carries at the delay and finished with that total.

Auburn stayed within striking distance the rest of the game, but couldn't overcome the 0-21 deficit.

Ole Miss will be at LSU on Saturday (3:30 p.m., CBS), while Auburn will finally get a break after three straight losses and have an open date. Of course, that will only lend itself to the fact that would be a convenient time to let Harsin go.